Chicken In The Pot Dorie Greenspan Food

CHICKEN IN THE POT (DORIE GREENSPAN)

Steps:

• Center a rack in the oven and preheat to 450 degrees.
• Using a paring knife, slice the peel from the preserved lemon and cut it into small squares. Discard the pulp.
• Bring the water and sugar to a boil in a small saucepan, drop in the peel, and cook for 1 minute. Drain and set aside.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the vegetables and garlic, season with salt and pepper and sauté until vegetables are brown on all sides. (If necessary, do this in 2 batches.) Spoon vegetables into a 4½- to 5-quart Dutch oven or other pot with a lid and stir in the herbs and the preserved lemon.
• Return the skillet to the heat and add another tablespoon of olive oil. Brown the chicken on all sides, seasoning it with salt and pepper as it cooks.
• Tuck chicken into the casserole, surrounding it with the vegetables.
• Mix together the broth, wine, and the remaining olive oil and pour over the chicken and vegetables.
• Put 1½ cups flour in a medium bowl and add enough hot water to make a malleable dough. Dust a work surface with a little flour, turn out the dough, and, working with your hands, roll the dough into a sausage.
• Place the dough on the rim of the pot - if it breaks, just piece it back together - and press the lid onto the dough to seal the pot.
• Slide the pot into the oven and bake for 55 minutes.
• Now you have a choice - you can break the seal in the kitchen or do it at the table, where it's bound to make a mess, but where everyone will have the pleasure of sharing that first fragrant whiff as you lift the lid with a flourish. Whether at the table or in the kitchen, the best tool to break the seal is the least attractive: a screwdriver. Use the point of the screwdriver as a lever to separate the lid from the dough.
• Depending on whether your chicken was whole or cut up, you might have to do some in-the-kitchen carving, but in the end, you want to make sure that the vegetables and the delicious broth are on the table with the chicken.

DUTCH OVEN CHICKEN AND VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Make the chicken: Heat oven to 450 degrees.
• Pour 3 tablespoons of the olive oil into a Dutch oven large enough to hold the chicken, then toss in all but 1 piece of the onion. Add the garlic and 4 sprigs each of the thyme and rosemary. Stir to coat, then season generously with salt and pepper.
• Pat the chicken dry, season the inside with salt and pepper, and tuck in the remaining piece of onion and herb sprigs. Rub the chicken with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Squeeze the juice from the lemon half over the bird, and then pop the lemon inside it with the herbs and onion. Settle the chicken into the pot, breast side up. Pour in the wine and cover.
• Roast the chicken for 60 minutes, then check on it: It's done when a thermometer plunged into the thickest part of the thigh has reached 165 degrees. If it's done but doesn't have enough color for you, you can run it under the broiler for a few minutes; if it's not done, remove the lid and continue to roast until done, 15 to 30 minutes more. Transfer the chicken to a platter, cover loosely with a foil tent, and let rest.
• While the chicken rests, make the vinaigrette: Pour off the pan drippings, measure out 6 tablespoons and return them to the pot. (If your drippings are scant or very dark, you can still use them. Keep any extra drippings for another use.) Hold onto the garlic but discard the onion and herbs from the pot. Place the pot over medium heat, pour in 1/2 cup water, and boil for a couple of minutes, scraping the bottom of the pan to pick up any stuck bits. You should have about 1/3 cup of drippings; if they're very chunky, strain them when you add them to the vinaigrette.
• Working in a medium bowl, mash 6 to 8 cloves of the soft garlic with the mustard, then whisk in the vinegar. Slowly whisk in the reserved liquid, followed by the walnut oil, if using. Taste for salt and pepper, then pour the vinaigrette into a small pitcher.
• To serve, carve the chicken, cutting it into quarters or eighths, and arrange on the platter. Pour over a little of the vinaigrette. Dress the salad greens lightly with vinaigrette and serve on the platter or in a shallow bowl. Pass the rest of the sauce at the table.

ROAST CHICKEN FOR LES PARESSEUX

Steps:

• Center a rack in the oven; preheat to 450°.
• Rub the inside of a Dutch oven or other large high-sided casserole with oil and place the bread in the.
• center of the pot.
• Season the chicken inside and out with salt and pepper.
• Put half a sprig of each herb and half of the garlic inside the cavity.
• Put the chicken in the pot, resting it on the bread.
• Put the other garlic half in the pot, along with the remaining herbs, and pour in a few tablespoons of oil and the wine.
• Slide the pot into the oven.
• Roast chicken for 45 minutes.
• Toss the potatoes, carrots, and shallots with enough olive oil to give them a shine, season generously with salt and pepper and scatter them around the chicken.
• Roast the chicken undisturbed for about 45 minutes more, a total of about 90 minutes or until the skin is crackly and crisp and the juices run clear when you pierce the thickest part of the thigh with the top of a knife.
• Remove the chicken from the oven.
• Leave the chicken in the pot for 5-10 minutes to rest.
• Transfer chicken and vegetables to platter; carve and serve.