Braised Moroccan Chicken (w/ lemon mint couscous)

i am starting to not hate chicken.

turns out, i just hate dry/badly prepared chicken. (did i ever mention how much i hate white meat?) but epicurious saved me once again. i’ve finally found a chicken recipe i actually like! and you know it’s a solid recipe when you’re thinking about when you can make it again before you’ve even finished eating.

recipe follows. (adapted from Bon Appetit )

INGREDIENTS (serves 3)

• ~1.75lb chicken (2 large whole legs + 3 pieces of thigh)
• ~1 lb shallots, peeled and minced
• 5 or 6 dates
• ~1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp ginger
• 1/2+ tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 1/4+ tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp curry powder
• 3 tbs lemon juice
• 1/4 cup almonds, toasted and chopped
• parsley
• 1.5 cup chicken broth.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. salt and pepper chicken thoroughly
2. heat 1 tbs olive oil in 3.5 qt dutch oven
3. brown chicken in batches, skin side down first, until crispy. then flip and brown other side. ~ 3-5 min each side.
4. remove chicken from heat. drain out excess oil/fat.
5. saute shallots until golden brown. mix in most of the seasonings. (i added a small pat of butter ’cause the shallots got dry. and butter just tastes good.)
6. deglaze bottom of pot with a few dashes of chicken stock.
7. add rest of chicken broth (a little less than a 15oz standard sized can) and 2 tbs lemon juice. bring to a boil then immediately reduce heat to simmer (i dont like my onions/shallots too soft.)
8. return chicken to pot (i added the whole legs first for 10 min, then added the thighs.) spooning over plenty of broth/shallots. sprinkle on more season right over the chicken. cover and simmer for ~30min or until juices from center of thickest leg runs clear, flipping chicken over at 15min mark.
9. remove chicken from pot, cover it and set aside. then add dates and remaining lemon juice to pot and reduce broth for 5 min on med/high uncovered until sauce thickens.
10. serve topped with chopped almonds and fresh chopped parsley, w/a  a side of lemon mint cous cous*!

*Cous Cous: i used whole foods pre-prepared, added a few squeezes of fresh lemon juice, mixed in whole mint leaves, covered and nuked it, then removed the mint.) i’m getting lazy/busy these days…

forgot to add the almonds! one more shot:

Sage Butter Trout w/ Pumpkin Risotto

i’ve had a container of kobacha squash in my freezer since october. taking advantage of the recent cold weather to use it. it’ll be warm again before you know it! and by that i mean uh, February.

or next week. hard to tell sometimes in this city.

INGREDIENTS (serves 2, w extra risotto to spare)

trout:

• ~1/2 lb steelhead trout
• 1 tbs butter
• fresh sage
• truffle salt

risotto:

• 1 cup arborio rice
• handful of crimini mushrooms
• 1-2 handfuls of spinach, stems removed
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 cup pumpkin, cooked and pureed (other squash varieties work as well)
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 1/2 glass white wine
• cheese, grated. i used a hard gouda
• nutmeg

INSTRUCTIONS:

risotto:

1. heat pan on high. add tbs olive oil. fry garlic until fragrant. add and saute mushrooms until soft. remove from heat.
2. in a small saucepan (i used the same saucepan to saute the mushrooms), heat chicken stock. reduce heat and keep on simmer.
3. toast rice in dutch oven over medium heat
4. spoon in a ladle of chicken stock. stir.
5. once liquid is mostly absorbed, ladle in more stock. repeat. stirring constantly.
6. taste rice. once it is a little harder than al dente, add mushrooms, pumpkin puree, and spinach. stir and add more chicken stock if needed to thin it out. sprinkle in a pinch or two of nutmeg. salt to taste.
7. add white wine. stir and let rice absorb excess liquid. cover and set aside while preparing trout

trout:

1. in a large frying pan, heat olive oil on high.
2. salt and pepper trout on both sides.
3. reduce heat to medium high. place trout in pan, skin side down. ~5 min until fish is cooked about half way up from the bottom.
4. flip and continue frying ~3 min.
5. add butter to pan, along with sage leaves. coat fish in sage butter. remove from heat.
6. throw away sage leaves and plate trout over risotto, skin side up. sprinkle on a pinch of truffle salt. top with fresh sage leaves for garnish.

my sage leaves were also dug out from the back of my freezer. hopefully that helps explain why they are a lovely shade of ashy grey. (: