My freezer is packed with mostly convenience foods, my favorites are frozen pizzas, buckwheat waffles and ice cream. Then comes a list of frozen staples, such as vegetables, peas, spinach, fruits like blueberries and you guessed it—frozen chicken.
So you have a solid block of frozen chicken, what next?
To make the most of chicken, or really any dish, the flavors are so much better by being cooked properly. Caramelization is a technique we’ve discussed, like in Mary Malouf’s recent recipe post about onion soup, which adds to its sweetness and flavor enhancement. With chicken, it’s all about roasting. That is making sure the skin and outside surface is crispy and browned, while the meat stays moist and is fall-off-the-bone tender. Another key to good-tasting chicken is to carefully select its source, making sure it’s raised ethically and organically.
Beyond that, I’d advise you to invest in an enameled cast-iron dutch oven or skillet to do the heavy lifting for this recipe. That’s right, not an Insta or crockpot, fire up your oven to 425° and get out the kitchen-duty oven mitts.
Skillet-Roasted CHICKEN with Veggies
- Follow the safe-handling instructions to defrost your chicken, and preheat the oven to 425°.
- Into a cast-iron skillet or dutch oven place: 2-3 TB. unsalted butter or EVOO with 3-4 pieces of on the bone or boneless chicken (on-bone & dark meat preferred). Hey, and if you’re vegan or vegetarian—swap out the chicken with winter squash, field roast… capiche?
- Select your herbs and seasonings (not all of them), and sprinkle or add to the chicken:
- Salt
You can trim fresh herbs from a potted rosemary plant year-round. - Black Pepper
- Fresh Rosemary
- Thyme
- Poultry Seasoning
- Red Pepper Flakes
- Sage
- Garlic Powder
- Curry
- Paprika
- Smoked Paprika…
- Lemon
- Capers
3. Place in the oven without the lid for 30 minutes. Remove pan with sizzling chicken and add in any of the following:
- Diced potatoes
- Diced Sweet potatoes
- Diced Cauliflower
- Sliced mushrooms
- Root Veggies: beets, carrots, turnips, radishes
- Celery, Celeriac, Fennel
- Sliced onions or garlic
- Asparagus (I like to combine with sweet potatoes and lemon)
4. Lower the oven heat to 375°, add a LID (or foil) to your pan/skillet and cook for another 45 minutes.
5. Test for tenderness, turn off the oven and let sit in the pan for 10-15 minutes.
6. If you choose, you can remove the chicken/veggies to a serving dish and deglaze the pan with a brandy (you can use wine but brandy or cognac deepens the flavor) and create a delicious stovetop reduction sauce to serve with your meal.
7. VOILA!!
Do you enjoy reading our posts? We hope to keep supplying them. Consider a subscription to Salt Lake magazine today.
