Smoked Bourbon Chicken

From Cook's Country | August/September 2014

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:

Cooking the marinade was the first essential step to getting the most flavor compounds into our chicken. Slashing the chickens also allowed for better penetration of the marinade flavors before grilling. Splitting our chickens into halves allowed the skin and meat to have maximum exposure to… read more

SERVES 4

Use a bourbon you’d be happy drinking. Use all the basting liquid in step 5.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/4 cups bourbon
• 1 1/4 cups soy sauce
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 shallot, minced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons pepper
• 2 (3 1/2- to 4-pound) whole chickens, giblets discarded
• 1 cup wood chips
• 4 (12-inch) wooden skewers

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Bring bourbon, soy sauce, sugar, shallot, garlic, and pepper to boil in medium saucepan over medium-high heat and cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat and let cool completely. Set aside 3/4 cup bourbon mixture for basting chicken. (Bourbon mixture can be refrigerated up to 3 days in advance.)

2. With chickens breast side down, using kitchen shears, cut through bones on both sides of backbones; discard backbones. Flip chickens over and, using chef’s knife, split chickens in half lengthwise through centers of breastbones. Cut 1/2-inch-deep slits across breasts, thighs, and legs, about 1/2 inch apart. Tuck wingtips behind backs. Divide chicken halves between two 1-gallon zipper-lock bags and divide remaining bourbon mixture between bags. Seal bags, turn to distribute marinade, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours, flipping occasionally.

3. Just before grilling, soak wood chips in water for 15 minutes, then drain. Using large piece of heavy-duty aluminum foil, wrap soaked chips in foil packet and cut several vent holes in top. Remove chicken halves from marinade and pat dry with paper towels; discard marinade. Insert 1 skewer lengthwise through thickest part of breast down through thigh of each chicken half.

4A. FOR A CHARCOAL GRILL: Open bottom vent halfway. Light large chimney starter filled with charcoal briquettes (6 quarts). When top coals are partially covered with ash, pour into steeply banked pile against side of grill. Place wood chip packet on coals. Set cooking grate in place, cover, and open lid vent halfway. Heat grill until hot and wood chips are smoking, about 5 minutes.

4B. FOR A GAS GRILL: Remove cooking grate and place wood chip packet directly on primary burner. Set grate in place, turn all burners to high, cover, and heat grill until hot and wood chips are smoking, about 15 minutes. Leave primary burner on high and turn off other burners. (Adjust primary burner as needed to maintain grill temperature between 350° to 375°.)

5. Clean and oil cooking grate. Place chicken halves skin side up on cooler side of grill with legs pointing toward fire. Cover and cook, basting every 15 minutes with reserved bourbon mixture, until breasts register 160° and thighs register 175°, 75 to 90 minutes, switching placement of chicken halves after 45 minutes. (All of bourbon mixture should be used.) Transfer chicken to carving board, tent loosely with foil, and let rest for 20 minutes. Carve and serve.

Tamales

Mole

Pork tenderloin

Olive oil

Salt, pepper, garlic salt

170 degrees

75% California chili powder

25% New Mexico chili powder

Toast flour

1:1 flour

Toast flour/chili combo

Add roast drippings

Stir, add water, repeat

Add "Better Than Bouillon" (chicken & pork) to water

Bring to a boil

Add meat

Stir, add water, repeat

Bring to a boil

Lower to a simmer, stir occasionally

Simmer for hours

Cornmeal

Basically to recipe

Soak in water for 30 min

Heat water with bouillon

Add light olive oil (1 tbsp for 2 cups) - may use bacon grease

Bring to boil

Add cornmeal

Stir to cook evenly

Will thicken

Eclair Cake

Eclair Cake

Ingredients:
4 eggs
1 cup flour
1 cup water
1/2 cup butter
1 package Jello Instant Vanilla Pudding
Cool WHip
Magic Shell Chocolate


- Preheat over to 400 degrees
- Boil 1 cup water with 1/2 cup butter and 1 teaspoon salt
- Mix in 1 cup flour
- Mix in eggs 1 at a time

- Grease 9x13 pan
- Pour mixture in pan
- Bake for 15 minutes at 400 degrees, reduce to 375 bake 10-15 minutes

- Pour pudding on crust
- Add Cool Whip
- Drizzle Chocolate over the top
- Refrigerate


Blair and Jamie Rhodehouse

Korean Beef

Ingredients

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1/3 c brown sugar
• 1/4 c soy sauce
• 1 tbs sesame oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 - 1 tsp crushed red peppers
• 1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced
• water chestnuts
• yellow onion

Whisk Together

•  brown sugar
•  sesame oil
•  garlic
•  ground ginger
•  red pepper

- In large skillet over medium-high heat
  - brown & crumble ground beef, drain if necessary
  - stir in soy sauce mixture, simmer until most liquid reduce, stirring frequently about 2-3 minutes

- Server over steamed rice.
- Top with thinly sliced green onions

Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken

Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken

Ingredients:
- 6 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp garlic powder

Directions:

Place chicken breasts in slow cooker, and sprinkle with seasonings (and liquid, if using). Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, or until the chicken shreds easily with a fork. (*If making a smaller batch, keep an eye on your slow cooker as the chicken will likely need less cooking time.)

Remove the chicken with tongs, and shred using two forks or the paddle attachment of a stand mixer. Use immediately, or freeze in ziplock bags or a sealed container.

**I almost always use frozen chicken when I make big batches of slow cooker shredded chicken like this. And the chicken has always released LOTS of extra juices while cooking, making plenty moist. Some of that extra liquid may be from the chicken breasts being a little icy and frozen. But if you are worried about chicken being dry, feel free to add in a little liquid while cooking.

Lasagna Cupcakes

Lasagna Cupcakes

24 wonton wrappers

1 3/4 c Parmesan Cheese, Grated

1 3/4 c Mozzarella Cheese, Shredded

Pasta Sauce

Filling:  Sausage, veggies, etc.

Basil (for garnish)

1.  Preheat oven to 375, spray muffin tin with cooking spray

2.  Layer your cupcakes:  wonton wrapper, parmesan, mozzarella, "filling", sauce.  

3.  Repeat layers

4.  Top with parmesan and mozzarella cheeses

5.  Bake for 18-20 minutes or until edges are brown.

7.  Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes.

8.  Garnish with Basil and serve.

Momofuku Milk Bar's Banana Cream Pie

Yield
1 9-inch or 10-inch round pie

Note: Changes to the recipe - I've reduced the salt in the chocolate crumbs, made it in a bowl like Tosi did in Chang's show and skipped the additional sugar and salt when making the crust as I find them redundant (she didn't use them in the show either). Most people who tried this recipe complained about the pie being too runny despite having been in the fridge for hours. So I did a little bit of research and found that you actually need 3 sheets of gelatin (equivalent to 1 packet of powdered gelatin, 2 1/4 teaspoons) to set the pie (more than 2 cups of liquid) into something you can slice.

Chocolate Crumb

• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2/3 cup good-quality cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Chocolate Crust

• 1 of the chocolate crumb recipe above
• 1 to 2 tablespoons of room temperature butter

Banana Cream

• 2 very ripe (black) large bananas
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup caster sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 egg yolks
• 3 gelatin sheets (or 2 1/4 teaspoons powdered gelatin)
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 teaspoon yellow food coloring
• 3/4 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup icing sugar
• 1 ripe (dark yellow) banana, sliced

Make the Chocolate Crumb
Heat the oven to 300°F/150°C. Combine the flour, cornstarch, sugar, cocoa, and salt in a medium bowl and whisk the ingredients to combine. Gradually add the melted butter and mix with a spatula or wooden spoon till the mixture starts to come together in small clusters. Spread the crumbs on a parchment line sheet pan. Bake till dry to the touch, about 20 minutes. Let the crumbs cool completely before using. (Refrain from snacking or eating the crumbs no matter how inviting they look, otherwise you will have a very thin pie crust.)

Make the Banana Cream
Meanwhile, make the banana cream. Combine the black bananas, 1/3 cup heavy cream and milk in a blender and puree until totally smooth. Add in the caster sugar, cornstarch, salt and egg yolks. Blend till smooth and pour into a medium saucepan. Clean out the blender. Bloom the gelatin. Soak it in a small bowl of cold water for about 3-4 minutes. To bloom powdered gelatin, sprinkle it evenly onto the surface of 1/4 cup of cold water in a small dish. Allow to soften for 3-5 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk the contents of the pan and heat over medium-low heat. As the banana mixture heats up, it will thicken due to the cornstarch added. Bring to a boil and continue to whisk vigorously for 3-4 minutes to fully cook out the starch. The mixture will resemble thick glue, bordering on cement (like a thick crème pâtissière), with a color to match. Scoop the contents of the pan back into the blender. Gently squeeze to remove any excess water from the bloomed sheet gelatin and add it into the blender. Blend until smooth and even. Color the mixture with a bit of yellow food coloring until it is bright yellow. (Tosi says, "Banana creams don't get that brilliant yellow color on their own." I think a few drops wouldn't hurt.) Transfer the mixture to a heatproof container and chill in the refrigerator 60 minutes or until completely cooled.

Make the Chocolate Crust
While waiting for the banana cream to cool, make the chocolate crust. Break up the chocolate crumbs into a food processor and pulse till broken slightly. Add 1 tablespoon of butter and pulse till mixture is pliable, adding remaining butter if necessary. Press the crust mixture firmly onto the pie plate/pan, making sure the bottom and sides are evenly covered. I put the pie crust to set in the fridge while finishing the banana cream.

Assemble the Banana Cream Pie
Using a heady whisk or a mixer with a whisk attachment, whip the cream and powdered sugar to medium-soft peaks. Add the cold banana mixture to the whipped cream gradually and slowly whisk until evenly colored and homogeneous. Pour about half of the banana cream into the chocolate pie shell. Lay out the sliced banana evenly and then cover the pie with the remaining filling. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before serving. Pie keeps chilled up to 5 days (good luck with that).

Do ahead
Chocolate crumbs can be made 2-3 days ahead, stored in an airtight container. The banana cream can be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days.