New culinary terms Yang learnt today...
1. dredging - coating moist foods with a dry ingredient before cooking.
Just a light coating for greater color and flavour. Aside from plain flour, you could use breadcrumbs or cornstarch as well.
2. Buerre manie - a dough consisting of equal parts of butter and flour, used to thicken soups and sauces.
Now I know I had already tried buerre manie when I prepared the sauce (Step 10 of the recipe) for my apple balsamic chicken the other day.
So I cut my 1st portobello mushroom, potatoes into wedges (i.e. halves into halves, into halves), and did both dredging and buerre manie.
The colors (brownish cap, cream-coloured flesh, blackie gills), smell and flavour of a Portobello mushroom simply exude a rustic 60s charm, to Yang. Am I crazy to say I really love the feeling of slicing it. It's like slicing some supple meat that's totally seamless and homogeneous (unlike the flesh of chicken or pork which have layers). A little like slicing zucchini, but without the crunch. It's just unique. O do scrape out the blackie gills before you slice it.
I thought I did an ok job in dredging the chicken breast halves today - nice tinge of brown on lightly-floured surfaces, with some browned bits or "fond" in the wok to be deglazed. I used the broccoli blanching liquid for deglazing today.
1. dredging - coating moist foods with a dry ingredient before cooking.
Just a light coating for greater color and flavour. Aside from plain flour, you could use breadcrumbs or cornstarch as well.
2. Buerre manie - a dough consisting of equal parts of butter and flour, used to thicken soups and sauces.
Now I know I had already tried buerre manie when I prepared the sauce (Step 10 of the recipe) for my apple balsamic chicken the other day.
So I cut my 1st portobello mushroom, potatoes into wedges (i.e. halves into halves, into halves), and did both dredging and buerre manie.
The colors (brownish cap, cream-coloured flesh, blackie gills), smell and flavour of a Portobello mushroom simply exude a rustic 60s charm, to Yang. Am I crazy to say I really love the feeling of slicing it. It's like slicing some supple meat that's totally seamless and homogeneous (unlike the flesh of chicken or pork which have layers). A little like slicing zucchini, but without the crunch. It's just unique. O do scrape out the blackie gills before you slice it.
I thought I did an ok job in dredging the chicken breast halves today - nice tinge of brown on lightly-floured surfaces, with some browned bits or "fond" in the wok to be deglazed. I used the broccoli blanching liquid for deglazing today.
 Dredging chicken breast halves... |  Browning dredged chicken breast halves... |
But I had thickened and reduced the cream of mushroom soup a little and it doesn't seem enough to cook the 3 bottom layers of broccoli, potato wedges and buna-shimeiji mushrooms in the slow cooker. Oh no! How? Will they be undercooked?
Homemade cream of mushroom soup
I think I gotta remove the chicken later, add 2 tbsp of milk, stir the broccoli, potatoes and mushrooms around, then flip and return the chicken to the cooker for another 15 mins of cooking on high?
Just as I thought hard about saving the dish later, my worries were unfounded!
I peeped into the cooker and saw the veggies cooking well in the mushroom soup. Phew! Still cooked them on high for the last 15 mins to 4 hours of cooking and I got a dish of chicken breast in mushroom-broccoli sauce. Pretty unexpected that the broccoli broke down, but it was a blissful combination of green florets and brown mushroom bits.
Couldn't resist and I licked up the caramelised bits that got adhered to the insides of the slow cooker, after a satisfying dinner. Hahaa... you know enough Maillard reactions took place in there.
Just as I thought hard about saving the dish later, my worries were unfounded!
I peeped into the cooker and saw the veggies cooking well in the mushroom soup. Phew! Still cooked them on high for the last 15 mins to 4 hours of cooking and I got a dish of chicken breast in mushroom-broccoli sauce. Pretty unexpected that the broccoli broke down, but it was a blissful combination of green florets and brown mushroom bits.
Couldn't resist and I licked up the caramelised bits that got adhered to the insides of the slow cooker, after a satisfying dinner. Hahaa... you know enough Maillard reactions took place in there.
Slow cooker chicken In mushroom-broccoli sauce
Slow cooker chicken in mushroom-broccoli sauce
(Adapted from recipe by Taste of Home)
Makes 2+1 toddler servings
2 Chicken breast halves
1/4 tsp kosher salt & close to 1/4 tsp black pepper (to season the chicken)
3 tsp plain, all purpose flour (to dredge the chicken)
1+1/2 tsp canola oil (to brown the chicken)
1/4 cup of broccoli blanching liquid (to deglaze pan)
Homemade cream of mushroom soup*
About 120g of broccoli florets, blanched
50g of buna-shimeiji mushrooms, sliced into halves
2 small red potatoes, cut into wedges
1/8 tsp kosher salt (to season the broccoli, potatoes & mushroom layers)
* Homemade cream of mushroom soup:
(Adapted from recipe by Simply Scratch)
2 +1/2 tsp butter, softened
1/4 of a yellow onion, finely chopped
1 mini portobello mushroom, gills removed & stemmed, finely chopped
2 + 1/2 tsp of flour
1/2 cup of homemade chicken stock
1/4 cup of low fat milk
Close to 1/8 tsp of kosher salt
Sprinkles of garlic powder & ground black pepper
1. Heat the homemade chicken stock on low heat. Add the milk and seasonings and stir around. Continue to heat for say 2 mins then off heat.
2. Season the chicken with kosher salt and black pepper. Lay a big plate with a thin layer of plain flour (use a small metal spoon to tap and spread evenly), place the seasoned meats on 1 side, pat lightly, then flip over to the other side, patting lightly again.
3. Heat the canola oil in a wok or skillet over medium-high heat and brown the chicken well (you'll know it's ready when it released easily from the wok). Transfer browned chicken to plate.
4. Deglaze the wok with the blanching liquid for broccoli. Pour the almost evaporated liquid into the prepared chicken and milk mixture.
5. Melt butter in the wok on moderate heat.
6. Add the onions and saute till just about soft, 2 to 3 mins.
7. Add the chopped Portobello mushrooms and saute for about 2 mins.
8. Sprinkle in flour a bit at a time, stirring around to mix well.
9. Ladle in the chicken and milk mixture.
10. Lower the heat to a simmer and stir the mixture until it thickens, about 3 to 5 mins. Taste and add salt, if necessary.
11. Layer the potato wedges, buna-shimeiji mushrooms, then blanched broccoli, seasoning each layer with kosher salt.
12. Pour about half of the soup over the layers in the slow cooker.
13. Lay the browned chicken in a single layer and pour the remaining soup over chicken.
14. Cover and cook on low for about 3.5 to 4 hours.
Notes:
i. I skipped the carrots, green chillies in the recipe from Taste of Home and added broccoli. Also replaced the cream of onion soup with cream of mushroom soup.
ii. I had laid the blanched broccoli, potato wedges, then the mushrooms (as can be seen from the picture in slideshow below). However, I thought it might be safer to lay the potato wedges, mushrooms at the bottom, since the broccoli had already been cooked.
iii. I removed the chicken, stir around the potatoes, mushrooms and broccoli, flipped and returned the chicken, then cooked on high for the last 15 mins. But I guess 4 hours of low and moist cooking is good to give tender chicken.
(Adapted from recipe by Taste of Home)
Makes 2+1 toddler servings
2 Chicken breast halves
1/4 tsp kosher salt & close to 1/4 tsp black pepper (to season the chicken)
3 tsp plain, all purpose flour (to dredge the chicken)
1+1/2 tsp canola oil (to brown the chicken)
1/4 cup of broccoli blanching liquid (to deglaze pan)
Homemade cream of mushroom soup*
About 120g of broccoli florets, blanched
50g of buna-shimeiji mushrooms, sliced into halves
2 small red potatoes, cut into wedges
1/8 tsp kosher salt (to season the broccoli, potatoes & mushroom layers)
* Homemade cream of mushroom soup:
(Adapted from recipe by Simply Scratch)
2 +1/2 tsp butter, softened
1/4 of a yellow onion, finely chopped
1 mini portobello mushroom, gills removed & stemmed, finely chopped
2 + 1/2 tsp of flour
1/2 cup of homemade chicken stock
1/4 cup of low fat milk
Close to 1/8 tsp of kosher salt
Sprinkles of garlic powder & ground black pepper
1. Heat the homemade chicken stock on low heat. Add the milk and seasonings and stir around. Continue to heat for say 2 mins then off heat.
2. Season the chicken with kosher salt and black pepper. Lay a big plate with a thin layer of plain flour (use a small metal spoon to tap and spread evenly), place the seasoned meats on 1 side, pat lightly, then flip over to the other side, patting lightly again.
3. Heat the canola oil in a wok or skillet over medium-high heat and brown the chicken well (you'll know it's ready when it released easily from the wok). Transfer browned chicken to plate.
4. Deglaze the wok with the blanching liquid for broccoli. Pour the almost evaporated liquid into the prepared chicken and milk mixture.
5. Melt butter in the wok on moderate heat.
6. Add the onions and saute till just about soft, 2 to 3 mins.
7. Add the chopped Portobello mushrooms and saute for about 2 mins.
8. Sprinkle in flour a bit at a time, stirring around to mix well.
9. Ladle in the chicken and milk mixture.
10. Lower the heat to a simmer and stir the mixture until it thickens, about 3 to 5 mins. Taste and add salt, if necessary.
11. Layer the potato wedges, buna-shimeiji mushrooms, then blanched broccoli, seasoning each layer with kosher salt.
12. Pour about half of the soup over the layers in the slow cooker.
13. Lay the browned chicken in a single layer and pour the remaining soup over chicken.
14. Cover and cook on low for about 3.5 to 4 hours.
Notes:
i. I skipped the carrots, green chillies in the recipe from Taste of Home and added broccoli. Also replaced the cream of onion soup with cream of mushroom soup.
ii. I had laid the blanched broccoli, potato wedges, then the mushrooms (as can be seen from the picture in slideshow below). However, I thought it might be safer to lay the potato wedges, mushrooms at the bottom, since the broccoli had already been cooked.
iii. I removed the chicken, stir around the potatoes, mushrooms and broccoli, flipped and returned the chicken, then cooked on high for the last 15 mins. But I guess 4 hours of low and moist cooking is good to give tender chicken.
***********************************************************************************************************
K this is a messy 1st attempt at a bowl of YY for "Yang's Yoghurt". Of strawberries, seedless grapes, dried cranberries, pumpkin seeds, half a square of 78% Frey extra dark bittersweet chocolate...
... and a sheep stolen from 小雨's Leibniz zoo biscuits bought by papa Kirin.
K this is a messy 1st attempt at a bowl of YY for "Yang's Yoghurt". Of strawberries, seedless grapes, dried cranberries, pumpkin seeds, half a square of 78% Frey extra dark bittersweet chocolate...
... and a sheep stolen from 小雨's Leibniz zoo biscuits bought by papa Kirin.
YY, art-in-Yang's-yoghurt #1
And Kirin bought me Twelve cupcakes!!
After I'm done with YY, I sunk my teeth into one with brown cream cheese frosting. It was chocolate banana, a flavour that's usually available but I never thought of getting for myself. I would have bought it for Kirin though, he likes bananas and chocolate.
Eh Ok now I know why it's here... Sorry Kirin! I took yours... Hahaaa
After I'm done with YY, I sunk my teeth into one with brown cream cheese frosting. It was chocolate banana, a flavour that's usually available but I never thought of getting for myself. I would have bought it for Kirin though, he likes bananas and chocolate.
Eh Ok now I know why it's here... Sorry Kirin! I took yours... Hahaaa
(From left) Vanilla chocolate, strawberry vanilla, chocolate banana, Twelve Cupcakes
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