The Mediterranean Slow Cooker Cookbook (14 page)

½ cup/60 g pitted picholine or other green olives, for garnish

½ cup/60 g pitted niçoise olives, for garnish

¼ cup/15 g finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for garnish

Sprinkle the chicken with 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper. In a large skillet, heat 2 tbsp of the olive oil over medium-high heat and brown the chicken on all sides, a few pieces at a time, being careful not to crowd the pan. Transfer the browned chicken to the insert of a 5- to 7-qt/4.5- to 6.5-L slow cooker.

Add the remaining 2 tbsp oil to the skillet and sauté the ham, letting it brown a bit. Transfer to the insert of the slow cooker. Add the onions, garlic, and bell peppers to the skillet, and season with 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper. Cook until the onions begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes to the skillet and bring to a boil, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Transfer the contents of the skillet to the insert of the slow cooker, covering the chicken with the mixture. Cover the slow cooker and cook on high for 3 hours, or on low for 5 to 6 hours, until the chicken is cooked through.

Skim off any excess fat on the sauce, taste for seasoning, and add salt or pepper if necessary. Serve the chicken garnished with the green and black olives and parsley.

Chicken Hunter’s Style

Cacciatore,
Loosely translated as “hunter’s style,” has come to mean chicken drowned in tomato sauce at red-sauce Italian restaurants. An Italian hunter wouldn’t have a can of tomato sauce in his pouch. But he would have garlic, a bit of wine or vinegar, maybe some bacon or pancetta, and herbs picked in a nearby meadow for the dinner he would cook over an open fire. This dish could be made with whatever the hunter happened to catch that day: rabbit, pheasant, boar, or wild turkey. My
nonna,
Aleandra, would make this chicken, and it was all I could do to keep my fingers from pulling pieces of succulent chicken off the bone, right from the pan. In the slow cooker, the chicken is juicy, tender, and redolent of garlic, rosemary, and balsamic vinegar. It cooks along with a few fingerling potatoes, so all you need to finish off this meal is a green ueggie or salad.

SERVES 6

1 lb/455 g fingerling potatoes, scrubbed

4 tbsp/60 ml extra-virgin olive oil

2 tsp salt

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

3 lb/1.4 kg bone-in chicken pieces
(such as 3 breast quarters and 4 leg quarters),
skin removed

4 slices pancetta, finely chopped

6 garlic cloves, sliced

1½ tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary

⅔ cup/165 ml balsamic vinegar

½ cup/120 ml chicken broth

Arrange the potatoes in the insert of a 5- to 7-qt/4.5- to 6.5-L slow cooker. Sprinkle with 2 tbsp of the olive oil, and then 1 tsp of the salt and ½ tsp of the pepper. Stir the potatoes to coat them with the oil mixture. Sprinkle the chicken with the remaining 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper and set aside.

In a large skillet, over high heat, sauté the pancetta in the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil until crisp and the fat is rendered. Add the chicken to the skillet, a few pieces at a time, and brown on all sides. Transfer the chicken to the insert of the slow cooker. Add the garlic and rosemary to the skillet, and cook for 2 minutes, until the garlic is fragrant and begins to soften. Add the vinegar and broth to the skillet and bring to a boil, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Pour the contents of the pan over the chicken. Cover the slow cooker and cook on high for 3 hours, or on low for 6 hours, until the chicken is cooked through.

Carefully remove the chicken from the slow cooker using tongs, and transfer to a serving platter. Arrange the potatoes around the chicken, spoon the sauce over both, and serve.

Saffron-Braised Chicken Thighs Stuffed with Serrano Ham

Boneless chicken thighs are readily available in your supermarket. Serve them with a bread stuffing made with salty Serrano ham, and a creamy, saffron-scented sauce, and your dining room will be transformed into an elegant Spanish restaurant. Similar to prosciutto, Serrano ham is salt-cured and then dry-aged. (Some people feel Serrano ham is superior in flavor because it’s made from lberian pigs.) If you can’t find Serrano ham, prosciutto will work here.

SERVES 6 TO 8

6 tbsp/85 g unsalted butter

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

3 thin slices Serrano ham, finely diced

½ cup/30 g finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

2 cups/110 g fresh bread crumbs

½ cup/60 g finely grated Manchego cheese

8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp saffron threads, crushed in the palm ofyour hand

½ cup/120 ml dry white wine, such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc, or dry vermouth

1½ cups/360 ml chicken broth

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

½ cup/120 ml heavy cream

Melt 2 tbsp of the butter with the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté the garlic and ham for 2 to 3 minutes, until the garlic is fragrant and the ham begins to soften. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl, and stir in ¼ cup/ 15 g of the parsley, the bread crumbs, and cheese.

Spread out a chicken thigh on a cutting board shiny-side (skin-side) down. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and mound 2 tbsp of the filling in the center of the chicken. Roll the chicken around the filling, and secure with a toothpick or silicone bands. Repeat with the remaining chicken and filling.

In the same skillet, melt another 2 tbsp butter and brown the chicken all over. Transfer to the insert of a 5- to 7-qt/4.5- to 6.5-L slow cooker. Add the saffron and wine to the skillet and bring to a boil, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Pour the wine mixture over the chicken and stir in the broth. Cover and cook 5 to 6 hours on low, until the chicken is cooked through.

While the chicken is cooking, allow the remaining 2 tbsp butter to soften. Care- fully remove the chicken from the slow cooker using tongs, and transfer to a cut- ting board. Cover with aluminum foil and allow to rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Knead the softened butter and flour together in a small bowl. Pour the sauce from the cooker into a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Whisk in the butter mixture, 1 tsp at a time, and continue whisking until the sauce returns to a boil and is smooth and thickened to your liking. Stir in the remaining parsley, taste, and season with salt and pepper if necessary. Stir in the cream. Bring to serving temperature. Cut each chicken thigh into two pieces, and serve in a pool of the sauce.

Chicken Stuffed with Serrano Ham in a Creamy Onion Sauce

Salty, slightly spicy, and sweetened with creamy caramelized onions, this dish is worthy of your next fiesta! Serrano ham is a salt-cured, aged ham from Spain. The onion sauce soaks up its flavor and gives the dish a lovely texture. Serve this over sautéed spinach, rice, pasta, or mashed potatoes for a special meal.

SERVES 8

8 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, tenders removed (see Slow Cooker Savvy)

8 thin slices Serrano ham

8 thin slices Manchego cheese

6 tbsp/85 g unsalted butter

1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

6 medium sweet yellow onions, such as Vidalia, thinly sliced

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp sugar

½ cup/120 ml dry white wine, such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc, or dry vermouth

1 cup/250 ml chicken broth

2 bay leaves

1 cup/240 ml heavy cream

¼ cup/15 g finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

On a cutting board, spread out a piece of plastic wrap as large as the board. Trim the chicken breasts of any excess fat, and lay one breast shiny-side (skin-side) down on the plastic wrap. Place another piece of plastic wrap over the breast, and pound with a meat pounder, flat-bottom wine bottle, or rolling pin to an even thickness, about ½ in/12 mm. Repeat with the remaining chicken.

Lay a slice of ham over a chicken breast half, and cover with a slice of cheese. Roll up the chicken, beginning at the widest end and tucking in the sides. Secure with a toothpick or silicone bands. Repeat with the remaining chicken, ham, and cheese.

In a large skillet, over medium-high heat, melt the butter with the olive oil. Add the chicken breasts, a few at a time, and brown them all over. Transfer the browned chicken to the insert of a 5- to 7-qt/4.5- to 6.5-L slow cooker. Put the onions in the same skillet; sprinkle with 1½ tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper, and the sugar; and sauté over medium-high heat until the onions begin to turn golden. Add the wine and broth and bring to a boil, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Transfer the contents of the skillet to the slow-cooker insert, and add the bay leaves. Cover and cook for 2 hours on high, or 3½ to 4 hours on low. The onions should be practically melted into the sauce, and the chicken should register 160°F/71°C on an instant-read meat thermometer.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken to a cutting board, and cover with aluminum foil. Remove the bay leaves, pour the sauce into a saucepan, and bring to a boil. If you prefer a smooth sauce, using an immersion blender, purée the sauce. Either way, add the cream, return to a boil, and season with salt or pepper if needed. Stir in the parsley and keep warm.

Cut each chicken breast on the diagonal into three pieces. Serve the chicken in a pool of the sauce, or nap the chicken with some of the sauce on a serving platter, and serve with the rest of the sauce on the side.

SLOW COOKER SAVVY

The tender, or tenderloin, of the chicken breast is a small flap of meat under the breast. Sometimes the tender is attached to the breast, and other times it’s missing. I recommend that you remove the tenders so the chicken breasts have a more uniform thickness and will cook more evenly. Store the tenders in the freezer, to use later for kebabs or chicken salad.

Spinach and Feta-Stuffed Chicken Breasts in Lemon-Dill Sauce

Emerging succulent, juicy, and flavored with salty feta, this chicken dish pairs well with rice, pasta, or mashed potatoes, which soak up the lemony dill-flecked sauce.

SERVES 6

4 tbsp/55 g unsalted butter

2 tbsp finely chopped shallot

1 garlic clove, minced

One 1-lb/455-g package frozen spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

⅛ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

1 cup/120 g crumbled feta cheese

6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

½ cup/120 ml dry white wine, such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc, or dry vermouth

2 cups/480 ml chicken broth

Lemon-Dill Sauce
, for serving

In a large skillet, melt 2 tbsp of the butter over medium-high heat, and sauté the shallot and garlic for 2 minutes, until the shallot is slightly softened. Add the spinach, 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp pepper, and the nutmeg to the skillet. Sauté the spinach until the liquid in the pan has evaporated and the spinach is dry. Remove from the heat, cool the mixture slightly, and stir in the feta cheese. Set aside.

On a cutting board, spread out a piece of plastic wrap as large as the board. Trim the chicken breasts of any excess fat, and lay one breast shiny-side (skin-side) down on the plastic wrap. Place another piece of plastic wrap over the breast, and pound with a meat pounder, flat-bottom wine bottle, or rolling pin to an even thickness, about ½ in/12 mm. Repeat with the remaining chicken.

Lay a chicken breast half on a flat surface and season with salt and pepper. Place about 2 tbsp of the filling in the center of the breast. Roll up the breast, beginning at the widest end and tucking in the sides, and secure with a toothpick or silicone bands. Repeat with the remaining chicken and filling.

Melt the remaining 2 tbsp butter in the skillet over medium-high heat, and brown the stuffed chicken breasts in batches, transferring them to the insert of a 5- to 7-qt/4.5- to 6.5-L slow cooker when they’re done. Add the wine to the skillet, scraping up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Pour the wine and broth into the insert. Cover and cook for 2½ hours on high; 4 to 5 hours on low, until the chicken is cooked through and registers 160°F/71°C on an instant-read meat thermometer.