Mexican Style Beer Marinaded Roasted Chicken

This is a Mexican Inspired Beer Marinaded and Roasted Chicken. After the marinade the chicken gets a spice rub and then rest on a bed of aromatics that sort of steam the chicken. About three-four hours latter or until AT LEAST 165 degrees F the chicken will be done. I don’t usually time the chicken as they all cook up differently. I usually wait till I can smell the chicken and then I know it’s done. I go over the 165 degrees F. I find that if I cook the bird with breast side down it doesn’t dry out. I like the legs extra cooked so the meat just falls off the bone. The flavors are great and the chicken came out moist. I just used a little bit of the juices that ran out of the chicken to serve with the pulled meat. I note that the skin has to be removed unless you finish the chicken in a 425 degree oven for a few minutes but then you risk having dry breast meat (yuk). It’s less risky to just fry up pieces of the chicken once they cool down a bit if you must have crispy skin. At the end of the cooking process for the chicken you are left with this pan of flavorful juices that you MUST USE FOR POTATOES. Scoop out the vegetables and remaining stuff from the pan and add peeled potatoes. Just put in the oven for one hour. One hour latter you have these FORKING AMAZING POTATOES. They come out like un-fried Fondant Potatoes. Really eloquent but also very homey. Really creamy and moist inside. Just season them with some paprika, salt and pepper.

Ingredients for about 8 servings

1 chicken

2 bay leaves – (marinade)

1 12oz lager (beer) – (marinade)

1/4 cup garlic confit – (marinade)

1 jalapeno – chopped – (marinade)

1/2 onion sliced thin – (marinade)

1 lime – cut in quarters – (marinade)

1 teaspoon cumin – (marinade)

1 teaspoon hot smoked paprika – (marinade)

1 teaspoon sweet paprika – (marinade)

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper – (marinade)

1 teaspoon sea salt – (marinade)

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper – (marinade)

1 oz fresh cilantro – (marinade)

1 bay leaf – (vegetable bed)

1 onion – rough chopped – (vegetable bed)

1 apple – rough chopped – (vegetable bed)

1 orange – rough chopped – (vegetable bed)

2 carrots – rough chopped – (vegetable bed)

2 celery ribs – rough chopped – (vegetable bed)

1/2 oz epazote – (vegetable bed)

1 jalapeno – (vegetable bed)

21 cloves garlic – smashed – (vegetable bed)

1/2 cup water – (vegetable bed)

2 Tablespoons ground annatto – (rub)

3 Tablespoons granulated garlic – (rub)

2 Tablespoons kosher salt – (rub)

1 Tablespoon ground black pepper – (rub)

1 Tablespoon dried oregano – (rub)

8 dinner sized brown skinned potatoes – peeled

fresh crushed sea salt – (for potatoes)

fresh ground black pepper – (for potatoes)

8 shakes of sweet paprika – (for potatoes)

Directions

The beer, two bay leaves, garlic confit, 1 jalapeño, half onion, lime squeezed, cumin, paprika(s), 1/2 t.cayenne, 1 t. sea salt, 1/2t. black pepper, fresh cilantro and the chicken go in a marinating bag for at least four hours and up to over night.

Make the bed of vegetables. They go in a large baking dish or half pan. In the pan goes 1 bay leaf, onion, apple, orange, carrots, celery, epazote, jalapeño, garlic and a 1/2 cup of water.

When you are ready to cook the chicken (marinate at least 4 hours or up to over night). Set the oven to 350 degrees F.

Removed the chicken from the marinade and blot dry and put to the side.

Prepare the rub by getting a small mixing bowl and adding the ground annatto, granulated garlic, ground black pepper, kosher salt and dried oregano. Mix well.

Apply the rub to the chicken all over and also inside the cavity.

Fill the cavity from the vegetable bed.

Put the chicken breast side down on the vegetable bed.

Cover tightly with aluminum foil.

Put in the oven till inside the thigh is at least 165 degrees. (I go to 180 usually…but I don’t eat the skin and I prefer the dark meat to fall off the bone…at 180 the breast meat will still be moist this way) This might take 3-4 hours. Every Chicken does cook different. I can usually tell when it’s done by just the aroma.

When the chicken is done remove it from the pan and set on a platter or pan to rest for an hour.

Scoop out all the solid stuff from this pan with a slotted spoon and discard the solid stuff.

Add peeled potatoes, cover the pan with foil and put pan back in the 350 degree oven and one hour later these potatoes should be perfect.

Pull out the potatoes from the hot liquid to serve.

Sprinkle the potatoes with sea salt, black pepper and sweet paprika.

Not so pretty but it’s a #ForkYeah !

The Forking Truth

Braised Beets with Pickled Golden Raisins, Spiced Walnuts and Mint

I’m always coming up with new ways to do beets. These Beets are really hard to photo for me but I tried my best.  I sort of braised the beets in a sweet and sour solution with onion, garlic and cinnamon. The beets got flavorful but not too much so I used that flavorful liquid to brine the raisins. Then I made the spiced walnuts and an earthy vinaigrette. Added a little mint and where’re done. Please remember to save at least 1/3 cup of the beet braising liquid to pickle the raisins.  They came out really great and taste better than the majority of beets I eat out. Don’t use yellow beets for this recipe. Yellow beets only come out nice on the stove top.

Ingredients for about 8 servings

2 lbs beets – (just the beet) (about 6 beets)

1 cup sugar

1 cup red wine vinegar

2 cups water

1 Tablespoon course sea salt

1 large sweet onion – cut in 8 slices

3 garlic cloves

1 cinnamon stick – break in three pieces

1/2 medium lemon – just the juice for vinaigrette

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil – for vinaigrette

1 teaspoon cumin – for vinaigrette

1 teaspoon paprika – for vinaigrette

1/2 teaspoon course sea salt – for vinaigrette

1/4 cup golden raisins

1/3 cup of hot beet braising liquid  – (to pickle the raisins)

1 cup walnuts – (for spiced walnuts)

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil – (for spiced walnuts)

2 Tablespoons sugar – (for spiced walnuts)

1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper – (for spiced walnuts)

1/4 teaspoon cumin – (for spiced walnuts)

1/4 teaspoon course sea salt – (for spiced walnuts)

1/4 cup mint leave – loose – and lightly torn

Directions

Set oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large pan add the beets (well scrubbed and clean), a sliced onion infant of and behind each beet. Garlic and one third of cinnamon stick in three different parts of pan.

Add sugar, vinegar, water, 1 T sea salt.

Cover pan very well and leave in the oven till beets are fork tender. Around two hours. (during this time you should be preparing the walnuts…or if not you need to turn the oven back on for when you do the walnuts.

Let the beets cool on the counter but remove about a third of a cup of the hot beet liquid to pickle the raisins.

In a small bowl whip up the vinaigrette by adding lemon juice, cumin, salt, paprika and oil together and set to the side.

Now make the Spiced Walnuts.

In a small bowl add the walnuts and to that add 2 T olive oil, sugar, Aleppo pepper, 1/4 teaspoon cumin and 1/4 teaspoon sea salt. Spread them out evenly on a baking sheet. They only need ten minutes in a 350 degree F oven. Remove after ten minutes and set to the side.

Now you have to put it all together.

By now the beets are cool enough to handle. you either peel the skin off or use a vegetable peeler. Cut them up in whatever shape you like.

Pour the vinaigrette, drained raisins, and mint leaves over the beets. Carefully stir. WAIT to add nuts to serve so they don’t get soggy. It’s not a lot of vinaigrette for all these beets but it’s enough to be flavorful.

It looks like this

Braised Beets with Pickled Golden Raisins. Mint and Spiced Walnuts

Braised Beets, Pickled Golden Raisins, Spiced Walnuts and Mint

These beets are interesting, flavorful and do differ from others I’ve tried….

The Forking Truth

Cucumber Cabbage Salad

I was paging threw a Food Magazine and saw this recipe for Cucumber Cabbage Slaw. I thought this recipe was made for me because I happened to have a few cucumbers and cabbage lying around that I had to use. I did the recipe as written…Wow it sucked…..It came out tasting worst than I imagined. I don’t think too many people would eat this salad…..It is so boring one note and bland. This salad is pretty much tasteless. So I had to fix up my bowl of Cucumber Cabbage Slaw. I added SEVEN ingredients and changed the proportions of the seasonings.

Ingredients for about 8 servings

1/2 head of cabbage – shredded thin

2 cucumbers – peeled – seeds scraped out and sliced up

2 carrots – grated

1/4 cup scallions – sliced thin

1 cup small sweet tomatoes – either half or quarter depending on size

1 red bell pepper – chopped

1/4 cup fresh cilantro – chopped

1/4 cup fresh mint leaves – chopped

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup yogurt (or sour cream)

2 Tablespoons dijon mustard

3 Tablespoons white wine vinegar

1 Tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon hot sauce

1 lime (just the fresh squeezed juice)

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon course sea salt

1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Directions

In a large bowl add the cabbage, cucumbers, carrots, scallions, tomatoes, bell pepper, cilantro and mint. Set the bowl to the side while you make the dressing.

In a small bowl combine remaining ingredients. Pour dressing over the slaw and mix well.

Taste and adjust salt and pepper if necessary.

Cucumber Cabbage Salad

The Forking Truth