Thursday, 26 February 2015

The Endless Variety Of One Dish Chicken Recipes

By Earlene McGee


Feeding the family has never been more challenging. Not only is it getting harder to stay within the budget, everyone seems to have different dietary needs. One has gone paleo, while another one has discovered a gluten sensitivity and Dad has decided to go on Atkins. You could buy individual pre-packaged meals, but this is expensive. Save money and keep everyone happy, apart from maybe the vegetarians and vegans, with one dish chicken recipes.

Chicken is readily available and easily affordable. Even some vegetarians are willing to stretch their principles for the occasional meal. There are few meats that are as versatile as poultry, too. You can buy it as a complete bird, cut into parts or fileted and either sliced into strips or cut into cubes.

When the butcher cuts it into parts for you, there are four types of piece: drumsticks (a children's favorite), wings, thighs and breasts. These may be sold with the skin or without the skin, with bones left in or with bones taken out. All are equally nutritious and equally versatile.

A word of caution. Do not rinse it in water before cooking. Food hygiene experts say this only increases the possibility of contaminating your kitchen with Campylobacter, a bacterium that causes severe food poisoning. It does this by being splashed around in the water used to clean it. You may think you are protecting your family, but the diseases Campylobacter can cause can be deadly to small children and older adults.

Roasting a whole bird is the most basic cooking method. You may stuff it or leave it unstuffed. Bear in mind that if you decide to stuff your chicken, duck, goose, or turkey, this adds extra minutes to the cooking time. To make a full meal in one pot, roast with vegetables, like potatoes, carrots, and other root vegetables.

Boneless fillets are extremely versatile. Breasts and thighs can be pounded flat, dipped in a milk and egg mixture (like you are making French toast) and then coated in seasoned flour, panko or other types of crumb and shallow-fried on the stove top. Cut the pieces up and stir fry them in a wok along with noodles and a selection of vegetables. Add a sauce if you are feeling adventurous.

You can make chicken stew with just about anything. For the diet conscious, make up a basic cabbage soup, brown the chopped or diced meat and then add to the soup. Serve with bread, or not, for the carb-free clan. You can stir fry it or toss it with endless permutations of vegetables and flavorings. It's great on the barbecue. Marinate in whatever sauce you can get your hands on. To really save time, buy pre-made sauce and serve with rice or pasta.

Cooking with poultry is cheap, versatile and healthy. It has lots of protein, little fat and contains those omega-3 fatty acids that everybody is always raving about.




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