Yep, it’s kind of gross. But . . . → Read More: Dark Days Challenge Week 4: How to Cut Up a Whole Chicken]]> Our Dark Days meal for the week was something that we have already posted, so we decided to post a strategy instead. Eating locally sometimes means having limited options and learning how to deal with what you can get. In our case, we can’t find (or afford when we find it!) user-friendly, pre-wrapped packages of local chicken breasts. So, we buy a whole chicken and do some work ourselves.

Yep, it’s kind of gross. But I think it’s important to acknowledge that you’re eating an animal, not just “meat”. I sort of feel like this is the respectful way to eat chicken. Is that overly crunchy and “we are the world”? Probably. But it’s also waaaay cheaper and not all that bad. To combat the ick factor, keep a pair of tongs and a towel nearby. When I feel the willies coming on, I just clean my hands on the towel, grab the tongs, take a deep breath, and remind myself that if I’m going to eat it, I should be able to touch it. A few minutes with the tongs and I’m back to my bare hands.

This is probably not the “official” way to cut up a chicken, but it works for me. The model for our photo shoot was a delicious 3-and-a-half pound chicken from Stillman’s. She had a little cosmetic issue with the skin on her breasts, so imagine that it was intact. Sorry for the blurry photos…the day went something like this…

Erik: Hold still so I can take the photo.
Lindsay: I’M HOLDING A CHICKEN SPINE. IT’S GOOD ENOUGH!!

Directions

1. Get all your tools ready. Once your hands are chicken-y, you won’t want to dig around. You’ll need:
   • Cutting board
   • Sharp knife
   • Kitchen scissors
   • Plate to hold the finished pieces
   • Zip-top bag or something similar to hold the pieces that will go in the freezer for stock later
   • Tongs
   • Towel for drying your hands when things get icky or slippery

2. Take a look inside the bird. Is there a little bag? These are the giblets – the organs. Some people cook them up; some people toss ‘em. Your choice, but take them out of the cavity either way.
3. Put your chicken, breast side down, on the cutting board. Use the scissors to cut down one side of the spine and then the other to remove it. You might have to use two hands. I save the spine for chicken stock, so it goes in my zip-top bag.

   

4. If there’s anything floating around inside, get rid of it. My chicken had a couple of things that I assume were organs. That called for tongs and a deep breath. I got through it, though, and so will you.
5. Flip the chicken over. Legs are up first. This is mostly about dislocating the joint, rather than cutting through the bone. Lift up the chicken by a leg to see how it moves. This will help you figure out where the joint is. Cut through the skin and meat on all sides of the joint until you can see it. Bend the leg back and forth to try to pop it. Sometimes I’m lucky and it comes apart easily. If that doesn’t work, stick the tip of your knife in the joint and push down to break it. Repeat with the other leg.

   

6. If you want, you can also separate the drumstick from the thigh. Follow the same steps as for separating the leg from the body – find the joint, cut through the skin and meat, and pop/cut the joint.

   

7. Now for the wings. I usually stick these in my stock bag along with the spine, but you can certainly cook them if you’d like. Again, just use the same steps as for the leg to remove both wings.

   

8. Once the wings are off, you’ll have a very familiar piece of chicken staring at you. The breasts. With the neck-end facing you, stick the tip of your knife in the bone at the top-middle of the breasts. Push the blade of the knife down to the cutting board to split the bone in half. One half of the breast should come away pretty easily at this point. You’ll have to use your fingers to separate the meat from the center bone, leaving you with ribs and meat. You can leave the second breast as is or remove the wedge-shaped breastbone by working the meat away from it with your fingers and a knife. There are probably nicer ways to split the breasts, but this works for me.

   

9. There. Done. Not so bad, right? Cook however you’d like.

   

We made this for dinner on Saturday, but because we tried out a (delicious) punch recipe with some friends yesterday, we didn’t get around to posting about it…or doing anything else we were supposed to do…until today. Oops! Pretty nice way to spend an afternoon, though.

Braising is one of my favorite Dark Days techniques, because we tend to eat more meat in the winter and I appreciate the extra heat from the oven. . . . → Read More: Dark Days: Chicken and Parsnips Braised in Hard Cider]]>

We made this for dinner on Saturday, but because we tried out a (delicious) punch recipe with some friends yesterday, we didn’t get around to posting about it…or doing anything else we were supposed to do…until today. Oops! Pretty nice way to spend an afternoon, though.

Braising is one of my favorite Dark Days techniques, because we tend to eat more meat in the winter and I appreciate the extra heat from the oven. I have made five or six recipes from the book All About Braising: The Art of Uncomplicated Cooking, because it has an excellent breakdown of the techniques and great recipes for creative and classic dishes, like Coq au Vin and pot roast. The short version of the procedure is: brown the meat, sauté the aromatics (such as onions and garlic), use a liquid (like wine) to loosen all the yummy dark bits from the bottom of the pan, put the meat back in the pan, cover, and cook at a low temperature in a small amount of liquid for several hours.

This recipe is also from All About Braising and is a winner, even though we ended up missing the movie we had planned on seeing, because it wasn’t ready in time. I ALWAYS underestimate the amount of time braising will take. It just takes longer to actually get to the braising part than I think it will. Lesson learned – either start an hour earlier than you think you should or don’t make plans to eat at a specific time. The nice part was that the recipe makes chicken and vegetables, so we didn’t have to mess with making a side dish. If you haven’t had parsnips before, this is a great way to try them. They’re sweet by themselves, but extra tasty after spending an hour in a bacon hard cider bath.

Chicken and Parsnips Braised in Hard Cider

Ingredients:

Directions:

1. Rinse the chicken breasts under cool water and then pat them very dry with a paper towel or two. They won’t brown very well if they’re damp, so don’t rush this step. Sprinkle both sides liberally with salt and pepper. Set them aside.

   

2. Slice the bacon into 1/2-inch strips.

   

3. Heat the oil in a 12-inch cast iron skilletover medium heat and add the bacon. Make sure your skillet has a lid. If it doesn’t, use a large, heavy-bottomed, oven-safe pot that will fit all the breast in one layer.

   

4. Stir the bacon occasionally until it becomes crisp, about 5 minutes. Use a slotted spoon or spatula to transfer the bacon to a paper towel covered plate to drain.

   

5. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the skillet (discard) and return it to medium high heat. Place the chicken breasts, skin side down, in the pan. This part is a bit like playing Tetris. Try not to move them around too much once they’re in the pan, but you might need to make a few adjustments to get them all to fit. In my pan, it works best to arrange them like the wedges in Trivial Pursuit. Try to remember the order they went in, because the first one in will brown first.

   

6. While the breasts are browning, chop the shallot, rosemary, and parsnips, if you haven’t already. The larger parsnips might have a visible, tough core. It’s worth removing this, if you have time.

   

7. After about 5 minutes, take a peak at the underside of the first breast you put in. It should be a nice golden brown and not stick to the pan. If it seems ready, flip it over with tongs and repeat for the other three breasts. If it sticks or isn’t brown, leave it for another minute. You’re not trying to cook them through at this point, just give them a nice brown crust.

   

8. After another 5 minutes, check the second side. If your breasts are pretty thick, you might want to stand them up against the side of the pan to brown the edge for another 2 to 3 minutes. Once all the sides are brown, take the breasts out of the pan and set them on a large plate.

   

9. Keep the pan on medium high heat and add the shallot. Stir constantly, because it will burn quickly. Once the shallot is brown, about a minute, add 2 cups of the hard cider.
10. Let the cider cook down to about 1/2 cup, which will take about 15 minutes. While it’s boiling, use a wooden spoon to scrape the bits off the bottom of the pan.

    

11. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
12. Add the rosemary and the other 1/2 cup of cider and reduce it again to about 3/4 cup. This should take another 8 minutes or so.
13. Arrange the parsnips in a single layer on the bottom of the pan and give them a good sprinkling of salt and grind of black pepper.
14. Add the bacon on top of the parsnips and try to spread it evenly.

    

15. Put the chicken, skin side down, back in the pan on top of the parsnips and bacon. Cover it with a piece of parchment paper and then the lid. If you’re using a pot, push the parchment paper down so that it almost touches the chicken, so that you can mimic the tighter quarters of the skillet.

    

16. Put the skillet in the oven and cook for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, flip the chicken and cook for another 25 minutes or until the meat is no longer pink on the inside (make a small incision in the thickest part to check).

    

17. After the chicken is done, use a slotted spoon/spatula or tongs to transfer the chicken and parsnips to a plate. Cover them with tin foil and return the pan to the stove. Boil the sauce over medium high heat for about 10 minutes to thicken it. It won’t become thick like gravy, but it will be thicker than broth.
18. Serve each breast on a big pile of parsnips with a good drizzle of sauce.

    

I think I’m going to go eat the leftovers for lunch. Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day!