One Pan, Two Plates (28 page)

3.
Add the chicken to the hot pan and cook until nicely browned on both sides, about 5 minutes total. Transfer the chicken to a plate. (It will not be fully cooked at this point.) Pour off all but 1 tbsp of the hot fat in the pan. (An easy way to accomplish this is to pour the fat over a wad of paper towels in the sink. Once the fat cools, discard the paper towels.)

4.
Add 1 tbsp of the butter to the hot pan along with the onion and garlic and reduce the heat to medium-low. Season with salt and pepper and cook gently until the onion softens and begins to brown, about 4 minutes. The bottom of the pan will be very brown. Quickly add the figs and ½ cup/120 ml of
the chicken broth, raise the heat to medium-high, and bring to a simmer, stirring to scrape up the browned bits from the pan bottom. Add the chicken and any juices accumulated on the plate, nestling the thighs into the juicy contents of the pan. Cover the pan, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes.

5.
Using tongs, transfer the chicken from the pan to two warmed shallow bowls and cover with the hot lid to keep them warm (or put in a low oven). Turn the heat back up to medium-high. Add the vinegar to the pan (there may still be some cooking liquid in there as well) and cook to reduce the liquid by half, about 2 minutes. Mash up the onion, figs, and garlic into a jammy sauce with the back of a fork as it cooks. Season with salt and pepper and pour the sauce over the chicken.

6.
Return the pan to the heat. Don’t bother to wipe it out—the vestiges of sauce will flavor the polenta. Add the remaining 1¾ cups/420 ml chicken broth, bring to a simmer, and whisk in the polenta and ¼ tsp salt. Cook until the polenta thickens, about 5 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper, then stir in the remaining 1 tbsp butter. Spoon the polenta into the bowls so that the sauce mingles with it. Crumble the bacon over the top and serve hot.

it’s that easy:
Here in the Northeast, growers are rare and the fresh fig season is fleeting; on top of that, figs are fragile and difficult to ship from the warmer climates where they thrive from late summer to fall. So jump on ripe fresh figs when you see them! But dried figs are always there for all of us, waiting to be cooked up. Mission figs are a little smaller and darker than the plump, golden or apple-green Calimyrnas, but both are delicious, and generally interchangeable. Look for dried figs that are still pliable and soft. If they’re hard and crystallized, they’re old.

extra hungry?
An escarole salad with a splash of balsamic, a glug of olive oil, and a scattering of goat cheese crumbles and walnuts is just the ticket for this Mediterranean-inflected dish.

in the glass:
The fruity sauce and corny polenta are crying out for a creamy Chardonnay. There are so many to choose from; just pick your favorite and it will be fabulous.

Buffaloed Chicken Legs

with
BRAISED CELERY
and
ROQUEFORT SMASHED POTATOES

There are times when a Buffalo chicken wing is the perfect snack: during a championship game, wing in one hand, beer in the other, and you just don’t care how messy your fingers, face, and clothing get. But I say a Buffalo chicken
leg
is the perfect dinner. The legs are all zesty and zippy with hot sauce, and when paired up with braised celery and tangy Roquefort smashed fingerling potatoes they are a delicious play on that classic nosh. And the bonus? No messy fingers. Just add knife and fork.

........

START TO FINISH
50 minutes

...

HANDS-ON TIME
20 minutes

...

serves 2

........

4 to 6 meaty chicken drumsticks

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp olive oil

1 shallot, chopped

12 oz/340 g fingerling potatoes, scrubbed and thinly sliced

3 celery stalks, trimmed, halved lengthwise, and cut crosswise into thirds

⅔ cup/165 ml low-sodium beef or chicken broth

1 or 2 tbsp Frank’s or Louisiana Hot Sauce (see “It’s that easy”)

2 tbsp sour cream

2 tbsp crumbled Roquefort cheese, plus more for garnish (optional)

1.
Preheat the oven to 425°F/220°C/gas 7.

2.
Pat the chicken dry and sprinkle all over with salt and pepper.

3.
Heat a 12-in/30.5-cm ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. When the oil shimmers, add the chicken legs and brown them on all sides, about 6 minutes total. (Use a splatter screen if you have one, as they will spit.) Transfer the chicken to a plate. (It will not be fully cooked at this point.)

4.
Pour off all but 1 tbsp of the fat in the pan. (An easy way to accomplish this is to pour the fat over a wad of paper towels in the sink. Once the fat cools, discard the paper towels.) Add the shallot and potatoes to the pan and sauté for about 2 minutes.
Scrape the potatoes to one side of the pan and add the celery to the empty half, spreading it in a single layer. Pour the broth over the vegetables and sprinkle with ¼ tsp salt and a few grinds of pepper. Bring the broth to a simmer, then arrange the chicken legs across the potatoes and celery, still keeping them separate. Spread 1 tbsp of the hot sauce all over the legs. Transfer to the oven and roast until the chicken is cooked through and the veggies are tender, about 30 minutes. An instant-read thermometer should read 165°F/74°C when inserted into the thickest part of a leg.

5.
Remove the pan from the oven and drizzle the chicken with the remaining 1 tbsp hot sauce if you like it spicy. Transfer the chicken and celery to two warmed plates. Mash the potatoes with a potato masher, mixing in any juices in the pan, then mash in the sour cream and cheese. Season the potatoes with more salt and pepper if they need it, then scoop the mash onto the plates with the chicken and celery. Scatter more Roquefort on top, if you love it. Serve hot.

it’s that easy:
Frank’s Hot Sauce isn’t as hot as some hot sauces, so if you’re using something already opened in the fridge door, taste it first to check the heat. Any hot sauce will probably do; it all depends on how hot you like it.

extra hungry?
How about a salad of baby greens and cucumber slices tossed in ranch dressing? That should cool off those hot sauce—burned lips.

in the glass:
Sorry guys, it has to be a glass of beer. But that’s all right, you can take your pick, since there are so many great brews out there. Try a hoppy, zippy IPA (India Pale Ale) with the Buffalo legs—choose a bottle from one of Dogfish Head’s India Pale Ale series if you don’t already have a favorite.

Rosemary Chicken Leg Quarters

with
ORANGE GREMOLATA

I say, let’s celebrate the orange. When many other fruits are unavailable or not so great, oranges are there waiting, juicy and bright, to be made into something wonderful all winter long. For an extra-sweet punch for this dish, I use orange zest in a twist on the classic gremolata; usually a mix of parsley, garlic, and lemon zest. The orange flesh is then used to echo the flavor in the sweet carrots and pearl onions that simmer along with the rosemary-flecked chicken and a touch of wine. Celebration dinner, anyone?

........

START TO FINISH
55 minutes

...

HANDS-ON TIME
25 minutes

...

serves 2

........

1 navel orange

1 tbsp minced fresh flat-leaf parsley

2 garlic cloves, minced

1½ tsp minced fresh rosemary

2 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 whole chicken leg quarters (legs and thighs connected, see “It’s that easy”)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp olive oil

1 shallot, thinly sliced

3 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced

½ cup/55 g frozen pearl onions, thawed

⅓ cup/75 ml dry white wine

1.
Zest the orange, then peel and dice the orange flesh into bite-size pieces. Set the fruit aside. In a small bowl, combine the zest, parsley, and half of the garlic and stir to mix well. This is the gremolata; set aside.

2.
Combine the rosemary, butter, and remaining garlic in another small bowl and mash it together with fork. Slide your fingers between the skin and the meat of the chicken pieces to gently separate them. Still using your fingers, spread the
rosemary mixture all around under the chicken skin, covering the meat and tucking it into the corners. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper.

3.
Heat a 12-in/30.5-cm skillet over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. When the oil shimmers, add the chicken to the pan, skin-side down. Cook, undisturbed, until browned on the first side, about 4 minutes. Don’t try to turn the chicken if it’s stuck to the bottom of the pan; it will release once it is sufficiently browned. Turn and brown on the second side, another 3 minutes or so. Lots of the butter will seep out from under the skin and brown in the pan; that’s okay. Transfer the chicken to a plate. (It will not be fully cooked at this point.)

4.
Carefully pour off all but 2 tbsp of the fat in the pan. (An easy way to accomplish this is to pour the fat over a wad of paper towels in the sink. Once the fat cools, discard the paper towels.) Add the shallot, carrots, and pearl onions to the hot pan with ¼ tsp salt and a few grinds of pepper and sauté until the shallot begins to soften, about 1 minute. Add the wine to the pan. It will bubble up. Return the chicken to the pan, cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the chicken is cooked through and the carrots are tender, about 30 minutes. Stir in the orange flesh and half of the gremolata. Raise the heat to medium, uncover, and cook to heat up the oranges and thicken the sauce, another 3 minutes or so. The oranges might break down and become one with the sauce, which is fine.

5.
Divide the vegetables between two warmed plates and place a chicken piece on top or alongside. Sprinkle with the remaining gremolata and serve hot.

it’s that easy:
Cooking chicken on the bone may take a few more minutes, but the flavor of the juicy meat will take you back to your grandma’s table, when chicken tasted like, well, chicken. The bones offer up scads of flavor to the meat as it cooks, so when you have the time to cook chicken bone-in, it’s well worth it.

extra hungry?
A couple of cornbread muffins from your local bakery will effortlessly add heft to this hearty meal.

in the glass:
A Chardonnay is delicious with this dish. Look for the Concannon Conservancy Chardonnay for a rich and creamy glass of wine with lots of fruit and enough backbone to stand up to the rosemary.