Category Archives: fine dining

Roast Chicken Redux

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The weather outside is frightful, but inside the chicken roasting is so delightful. And if you’ve got no place to goooo… bake it slow, bake it slow, bake it slow… 

It’s finally roast chicken season. And, I can’t really think of a more welcoming and comfy scent to come home to than slow-roasted chicken that’s been lounging in the oven for hours. 

Nearly every week in the fall and winter seasons, I roast chicken. In the recent past, I would use Ming Tsai’s spectacular crispy roasted chicken with very high heat for 30-40 minutes then covering the bird and turning the oven down, but lately I’ve been into slow roasting. 

I turn my oven on 375 F and I carefully clean and rub the bird with butter. Then I season the chicken with salt, pepper, and organic poultry seasoning. I cover loosely with foil and allow it to cook, basting every 20 minutes till the last 10 minutes. Throwing its cover off, I allow it to brown to a beautiful and delicious roasted chicken.

All the effort that I put into roasting chicken is appreciated over and over again. 

For instance, my eight-year-old loves tender and gourmet-tasting shredded roast chicken sandwiches for his quick lunch break. 

Also, for the whole family during cold weather, transformed into an immune-boosting soup, roasted chicken adds a much deeper flavor than steamed or broiled chicken. The soup with roasted chicken broth will be always 10 steps ahead of a soup made with quick-cooked chicken.  

For satisfying lunches, I prefer to use roast chicken in mayo or non-mayo based salads over greens or on a baguette.

Having had the pleasure of tasting so many wonderful versions of roast chicken at French restos throughout NYC—savory, cooked in vinegar, garlic and onions, coated with a honey-dijon mustard sauce, and rotisserie-d—I can’t say which roast chicken recipe is the most authentic, exciting, or deserving of a best in class title. 

But, as they qualified for being one of the best dishes—if not the best dish—on a restaurant’s menu, all of them were inspirational for me in roasting chicken at home. 

Over the years, I’ve relished in figuring out a special roast chicken recipe. A simple recipe is always best—the least number of ingredients allows the chicken to win the superstar status that it naturally deserves—but following my mom’s advice and some food network tips, I felt confident in my ability to choose a flavor that would elevate a simple roast chicken recipe. 

Lately, probably in part because of their abundance at our market, I’ve been craving citrus. I noticed it’s also clementine season, which is a frequent French cuisine ingredient, and I thought a clementine glaze on roast chicken would add the perfect sweet and tangy complexity. 

Cooked with onions, a little bit of red wine vinegar and honey, the brightness and caramelized depth of the clementine flavor have exceeded my expectations.

Hope you try it and enjoy it.

Roast chicken in Darlin’ Clementine Glaze

Ingredients
One 3 ½ pound whole chicken
1 tbsp canola oil 
1 tbsp butter
Sea salt, pepper, and garlic powder
¼ cup shallots, chopped
3 Clementine, segmented
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp oregano
¼ cup chicken broth 
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp butter 
2 tbsp maple syrup

Instructions
1. Preheat ovent to 375 degrees F. Spray baking dish or roasting pan with oil. 
2. Clean chicken normally and ensure that there are no leftover tiny pin feathers. Run your small knife over the skin to make sure. Rub canola and butter all over chicken and under the skin on the breast. Sprinkle salt, pepper and garlic powder. 
3. Put chicken in the oven and allow to cook for 30 minutes.
4. Heat a small bit of canola oil to a saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and honey. Sauté until golden brown, making sure not to burn. Lower the heat and mix in oregano, chicken broth, and clementine segments. Let simmer for 10 minutes. Pour in red wine vinegar and add the butter. Fold in the maple syrup and let simmer another 10 minutes. Turn the heat up and make sure the glaze is bubbling. 
5. Pour the sweet glaze over the chicken. Let chicken cook covered for another hour or until desired doneness. Alternate covering and uncovering every 10 minutes, as you baste the chicken. Note that in the last 10 minutes of cooking time, the chicken should be uncovered.

The Rise of Chocolate Lava

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There once lived a brilliant French chef in New York City. He created what he referred to as “simple cuisine,” but what was really spectacular classical French cooking that people all over the world applauded. He won accolades from top food critics, celebrities and the Michelin Star decision makers. One of his signature creations, originally a mistake, was the most decadent, sinful chocolate dessert that I’ve ever had: chocolate lava cake. 

Usually topped with a hefty sprinkling of powdery sugar, lava cakes aka molten cakes are often baked in 6 oz ramekins. These individual cakes come out of the oven extra cute. When you dig into the center…

The puffy, souflee-ish little cloud of chocolate loses its innocence and all of its secrets come oozing out. The rich, phenomenal flavor is unique. The texture is luscious. I’ve had it from the master chef himself Jean Georges in NYC during a birthday dinner—and at other restaurants a countless number of times—and thoroughly enjoyed it. 

I made the following chocolate lava cake recipe for my son and the rest of my chocoholic family. Although it was too “dark chocolate” for my LO, he ate most of it without provocation. Next time I’ll add a bit of almond milk or cream substitute to the chocolate. My sister, who’s been in love with chocolate since she was a toddler, loved it. Mom, who used to pay for and keep our fundraiser chocolate for herself, said the chocolate lava cake was a bit too rich for her but ate all of it as well.

I loved it too… the soft, spongey outer cake. The rich frosting-like center. The taste of really pure chocolate. I love the bitter undertones of real dark chocolate. Not many additives. I made it twice. The first batch was a little over and not as runny as I like them to be, but the second try was just right and all it took was to watch the baking time and take them out at 6 minutes exactly. The baking time depends on the size of the ramekins. 

Without further ado here’s an easy recipe for one of the best French desserts ever! Hope you enjoy it.

Chocolate Lava Cake Recipe 

Ingredients
½ cup butter, unsalted 
6 oz unsweetened chocolate
2 eggs 
2 egg yolks 
¼ cup sugar 
1 tsp angostura bitters (optional)
1 pinch salt 
2 tbs flour

Instructions 
1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Butter and flour ramekins.
2. Melt butter with chocolate over a double broiler or in a microwave. Whisk until smooth and lump-free.
3. Preferably with an electric mixer, blend eggs, egg yolks, sugar, angostura bitters, and salt until thick and lemon-yellow pale.
4. Add melted chocolate and butter combo to egg mixture. Pour the batter into four ramekins and bake for about eight minutes. The baking time is dependent on the oven and the size of the ramekins. Tip: If the ramekins are smaller than 6 ounces, then a shorter baking time might work better.
5. Let the cakes cool in the ramekins for a minute before covering each with a dessert plate. Turn each one over, let stand for 10 seconds and then unmold. Top them off with powdered sugar and the most perfect chocolate cake is ready to enjoy.