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May 28 2010

How to Flatten a Chicken for Grilling

It’s Memorial Weekend, and do you know what that means? Time to lounge at the pool and hang out by the BBQ. We’re grilling this entire weekend; the weather is perfectly straddling between warm and hot (when it gets hot we jump in the pool … when it gets warm, we EAT!).

This week, I asked my friend, Steve, to share a grilling tip and recipe. He’s the publisher of Grilling Companion recipe site and developer of the brand new iPad app. Steve is sharing a recipe for a Grilled Whole Chicken with Balsamic Glaze and will show us how to spatchcock a chicken (i.e. flatten that sucker for even cooking!).

Grilled Whole Chicken with Balsamic Glaze

I have nothing against a whole chicken. It still cracks me up when I open the lid of the grill and see a bird perched up on a beer can. I just find it easier to handle a flattened chicken on the grill. A flat chicken cooks quicker and more evenly, and has the added benefit of not rolling off the platter on your way to the table (yeah, been there and cleaned up the mess). So today’s recipe is a bonus, with equal parts Chicken Butchering 101 and recipe for a delicious and simple honey balsamic glazed whole chicken. Grab a bird and a cutting board and let’s get started!

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken (around 4 – 5 pounds)
1/2 cup honey
6 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
Kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Let’s disassemble a bird. Lay the whole chicken breast side down on your cutting board.

2. Feel around his (or her) back until you feel the backbone running straight down the middle. I haven’t read about any cases of scoliosis in chickens, so it should be straight down the center of the back.

3. Using kitchen shears or a knife, cut down both sides of the backbone. The bones are pretty thin in this area, so you should be able to cut through with little effort.

4. Remove the backbone completely and trim off any excess fat around where the tail used to be.

5. Ok, here’s where it’s a little tricky the first time. Spread the chicken open and locate the white piece of grissel you see here just to the right of my finger? Cut through it with the knife.

6. There is a bone starting under that piece of grissel called the keel bone and it runs down the length of the breasts. If you bend the chicken back a little farther, you’ll start to see the keel bone poke out between the breasts.

7. Work your fingers down each side of the keel bone to loosen and then pull it out. See why they call it a keel bone (boat reference)?

8. Now you can either leave the chicken flat or cut all the way through where the keel bone used to be to form two half chickens. I prefer to work with two halves; they’re easier to move around the grill.

9. Light your grill for a two zone, indirect grilling session. If you are using gas, you’ve got it easy—just light half of your burners to medium high and leave the other half off (preferably the center burners should be off). For you charcoal folks, pile up a chimney full of charcoal on one side of the grill.

10. Combine the honey and balsamic vinegar in a bowl and whisk thoroughly to form our glaze.

11. Generously salt and pepper both sides of your chicken.

12. Once the grill is ready, place the chicken skin side down on the hot side of the grill. Stay close by, the fat from the skin is going to flare up! When it does, just move your chicken off the flame until the flare up goes out.

13. Sear the chicken for 5 – 10 minutes (depending on the temperature of your grill). We are looking to crisp up the skin and create a little char, but not burn the entire skin.

14. Once you are done searing, flip the chicken over skin side up and move the chicken to the cool side of the grill.

15. Using a mop or brush, baste the chicken with the honey balsamic glaze and close the grill’s lid.

16. We want to keep the grill at as close to 350 degrees as possible and only open the lid to baste the chicken. Just like your oven, the grill loses all of the heat each time you open the lid.

17. Continue to baste the chicken with the glaze every 10 minutes or so and keep the lid closed in between basting.

18. Grill the chicken until a thermometer inserted into the deepest part of the breast reads around 160 degrees and the outside skin has darkened.

19. Hit the chicken with a little more glaze and place on a platter to serve.

20. Allow the chicken to rest for about 10 minutes before you carve.

See? Told you this was easy! Sure, you can buy half chickens, but they are little more expensive and you won’t be able to impress your family with your new butchering skills. With a little practice, you’ll disassemble that bird in no time flat. (Get it?)

Along with that grilled chicken, I’d love to top it with some Fresh Watermelon Salsa from HowSweetEats.

And then we move on to BLT Bites from LanaAnn. How cute are these! I’ll take 4 of them please!

Another summery side perfect for this weekend is Karly’s Corn with Bacon and Green Onions. Because how can you have a celebration without bacon? Love it.

And for dessert, to top it all off, Mangiodasola’s Chocolate Crumb Cheesecake Bars. Truly decadent.

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Jaden Hair is a food writer, television personality, and food photographer based in Tampa Bay, Florida. Find more of her recipes in her blog, Steamy Kitchen, where you can also read more about Jaden’s new book, The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook, and the rave reviews it’s received!

Apr 15 2011

Posh Pimento Grilled Cheese

Posted by ThreeManyCooks in Step-by-Step Recipes

I don’t know why National Grilled Cheese month is in April. Grilled Cheese (and tomato soup) reminds me of chilly autumn days when my dad would make my sister and me rake leaves on Saturday afternoons. We loathed this chore and practically loathed him by the time we were called in for lunch. Nine times out of ten, there were grilled cheese sandwiches waiting. And thank goodness for dad’s sake that there were, because there wasn’t much that could make us un-furrow our brows and un-cross our arms other than that ooey-gooey-melty-cheesy-goodness we loved so much.

Now I’ve grown up a bit and my taste buds have matured. While I still love a grilled cheese straight up, there are so many ways to make it more fun. Inspired by a Grilled Pimento Cheese Sandwich submitted by Tasty Kitchen user amaddux, I developed a recipe for this Posh Pimento Grilled Cheese made with homemade mayonnaise to celebrate National Grilled Cheese Month. And also to celebrate the fact that I’m grown up, live in an apartment and never have to rake leaves again.

To make a Posh Pimento Grilled Cheese you need the following ingredients: eggs, Dijon mustard, light olive oil, lemon, salt, pepper, cheese, pimento-stuffed olives (or just pimento), Worcestershire sauce, bread and butter. I’ve shown pimento and pimento-stuffed olives. For those who don’t like olives, just use plain pimento instead.

Let’s make the mayonnaise first. Start by putting the three egg yolks into your food processor. I had high hopes for three perfect yolks, but of course I busted one.

Then add one teaspoon of Dijon mustard. Process the yolks and mustard for a few seconds until just mixed.

Then slowly start to add the oil (I used a light olive oil). You can start adding the oil a bit faster when you hear and see that the mayonnaise is starting to form.

Then you get this: beautiful, golden mayonnaise. If you had known it was this easy, wouldn’t you always make it yourself? Once I tasted it, I knew I would never go back to store-bought mayonnaise again.

Make this already perfect mayonnaise more delicious by adding a good squeeze of lemon juice …

And a generous sprinkling of salt and black pepper.

Now we make the pimento cheese. Here we are divided. For the olive-lovers we have pimento-stuffed olives; for those who are not olive-lovers, we have plain pimento. Give those a rough chop or a quick dice.

Cheese is important. Get good sharp, cheddar. The sharper the better.

To the cheese, add the olives (we’re going with olives because I love ‘em).

Then you want to add 1/4 cup plus one tablespoon of your lovely mayo (the rest you can save in a jar and it will keep for up to a week).

Add some Worcestershire sauce and pepper, then mix to combine. This makes about 1 and 1/3 cup pimento cheese.

I completely understand if you want to stop here, grab a bag of pita chips and dig into this cheesy goodness. But if you’ll bear with me for just a few more minutes, we’re going to take it to the next level. And you’ll be glad we did.

Place a large skillet over medium heat. Low (temperature) and long (time) are best for grilled cheeses. You want to let the outside crisp up and the cheese inside to melt.

Get eight slices of bread and put 1/3 cup of pimento cheese on each half.

Evenly distribute the cheese before covering it with the other slice of bread.

Spread butter on one side of the bread, then place it (butter side down) on the skillet.

While it’s on the skillet, butter the other slice of bread. Toast on both sides until golden brown.

Cut in half and serve. Enjoy!

Thanks for the inspiration, amaddux!

Printable Recipe

Posh Pimento Grilled Cheese

by ThreeManyCooks on April 12, 2011 in Main Courses, Sandwiches

4.50 Mitt(s) 2 Rating(s) 2 votes, average: 4.50 out of 5

Description

April is National Grilled Cheese month! Celebrate with this Posh Pimento Grilled Cheese (with homemade mayonnaise!).

Ingredients

FOR THE MAYONNAISE:
3 whole Eggs Yolks
1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
1 cup Light Oil Such As Olive Oil Or Ground Nut Oil (the Less Flavor The Better)
1 dash Lemon Juice To Taste
1 pinch Salt And Pepper, to taste
FOR THE PIMENTO CHEESE:
½ cups Chopped Pimento-stuffed Olives OR Chopped Pimento (if You’re Not A Fan Of Olives)
8 ounces, weight Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Grated
5 Tablespoons Homemade Mayonnaise
½ teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce
¼ teaspoons Pepper
FOR THE SANDWICH:
8 slices Bread
4 Tablespoons Butter, Softened

Preparation Instructions

Place egg yolks and dijon mustard in a food processor. Process for a few seconds until just mixed. Slowly add the oil (you can start adding the oil a bit faster when you hear and see that the mayonnaise is forming).

Add a good squeeze of lemon juice and a generous sprinkling of salt and black pepper.

In a separate bowl, mix the olives or pimento and the cheese.

Add 1/4 cup plus one tablespoon (5 tablespoons total) of the mayonnaise to the cheese and pimento mix, followed by the Worcestershire sauce and pepper, then mix to combine. This makes about 1 and 1/3 cup pimento cheese.

Place a large skillet over medium heat. Put 1/3 cup of the pimento cheese on each of four slices of bread.

Cover the cheese with the other slice of bread. Spread butter on one side of the bread, then place it (butter side down) on the skillet, then butter the other slice of bread.

Toast on both sides until golden brown. Cut in half and serve. Enjoy!

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Three Many Cooks is the always-entertaining food blog of Pam Anderson and her two daughters, Maggy and Sharon. Pam is a well-known and much-respected food writer and author, Maggy is a “hippy adventurer meets 1950s housewife,” and Sharon refers to herself as a recovering food snob learning to survive on a graduate student’s budget. Theirs is a strong relationship both inside and outside the kitchen, and it shows in the food they create and the stories they tell.

Apr 1 2011

Grilled Salad with Strawberry Balsamic Reduction

Posted by callimakesdo in Step-by-Step Recipes

We’re so happy to welcome Calli to the Tasty Kitchen Blog. We love her and her blog Make it Do. It’s pretty, it’s yummy, and it has so many handy tips for making things around the house a little bit easier. (I’m waiting for her to invent automated laundry.) And what a gorgeous salad to start us off with, courtesy of TK member courtneyjoy. Take it away, Calli!

Let’s face it, it’s really easy to get into a recipe rut.

I knew I was in one when my 10 year old son walked into the kitchen and said in a ho-hum voice, “It’s Tuesday so I bet we’re having spaghetti for dinner.” The meat for Spaghetti and Meatballs was being thawed at that moment. Uggh! Was I really that predictable? His question needled at me to shake things up and try new things.

It was in this spirit of culinary adventure that the recipe for Grilled Salad with Strawberry Balsamic Reduction from TK member courtneyjoy caught my eye.

Lettuce on the grill? For REAL? The recipe looked easy enough, plus it included two of my latest favorite salad ingredients: strawberries and gorgonzola. Why not!

In less than 30 minutes I was drizzling my balsamic reduction over warm grilled romaine. It looked gorgeous and smelled even better. After a run to the silverware drawer for a fork and a knife, I dug in. Oh my! Totally unique and delicious.

Grilling really enhances the lettuce flavor and gives it a lovely smokiness, which is nicely balanced by the sweetness of the strawberries. Add to that the creamy goodness of gorgonzola and the balsamic reduction … well, it takes this salad over the top.

Are you sold? Are you ready for an adventure? Let’s make a salad.

I just love seeing those ingredients. So nice and simple.

Start by firing up the grill.

While it’s heating, make the reduction. In a small sauce pan, measure a cup of good balsamic vinegar.

Add in the sugar and strawberries. The recipe calls for sliced strawberries, but I decided to chop mine. It just seemed like the right thing to do.

Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and simmer until reduced by about 1/3. The reduction is syrupy and delicious.

Drizzle your washed and dried lettuce with olive oil. The first time I made this recipe I used the whole heads of romaine. The next time I removed the tougher outer leaves and got closer to the heart where the leaves are more tender. This was a good improvement to the recipe. (And yes, I used the outer leaves on sandwiches. Waste not!)

Before grilling, chop the rest of the strawberries. Crumble the gorgonzola too, so it’s all ready to go.

By now your grill should be nice and hot (mine was at 500ºF) and ready for the lettuce. It cooks really fast, so this is no time to switch the laundry! I basically stood next to the grill with the lid open and tongs in hand. Turn when the lettuce has nice charred grill marks. The recipe warns not to cook your lettuce too long or it will be limp, and who wants to eat limp lettuce! Not me.

Assembling the salad was a snap. Toss on the strawberries.

A generous sprinkling of gorgonzola cheese …

Add a drizzle of the balsamic reduction.

Make sure to serve while it’s still warm if you really want to be impressed.

Go ahead. Surprise your family and make this salad for dinner tonight. You’ll be glad you did.

And a big thank you to courtneyjoy for sharing a new and adventurous side to salad!

Printable Recipe