How To: Simple Shredded Chicken

Courtesy of: melskitchencafe.com

*Makes 3-4 cups of cooked, shredded chicken

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon olive oil

4 (about 2 pounds) boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Salt and pepper

3/4 cup water or low-sodium chicken broth

DIRECTIONS:

In a large 12-inch nonstick skillet with a lid, heat the olive oil over medium heat until hot and rippling. Pat the chicken dry and season with salt and pepper on both sides. Place the chicken top-side down in the hot skillet and let the chicken cook for 5 minutes until golden brown on top. Flip the chicken, add the water or chicken broth, cover the skillet and let the chicken simmer gently over medium heat for 7-10 minutes until the chicken is cooked through (it will register 160 degrees on a thermometer). Don't overcook or it might be dry. While the chicken is simmering, add additional water 1/4 cup at a time if the liquid evaporates too quickly. Remove the chicken from the skillet. Let it cool slightly before shredding. The cooked chicken will keep well-covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or can be frozen for up to 2 months.

Hard Boiled Eggs

Place your eggs, right out of the refrigerator in a pot of water. Bring the the pot to a rapid boil. As soon as it starts to rapidly boil...turn off the stove, place the lid on the pot and let them sit for 13 minutes.

For easy peeling, add salt to the water.

Turkey Gravy Tips

Gravy Making TIps by Kelsey Nixon

1. Reserve your pan juices. After you have transferred your turkey to a serving platter, and set it aside to rest, focus on your gravy. Pour all of the pan juices into a fat separator or a large liquid measuring cup. If using a fat separator, the fat will rise to the top as the liquid cools and the dark drippings (which are full of flavor) will stay at the bottom and easily pour out of the spout. If using a large glass measuring cup, simply skim the fat off the top leaving only the dark brown juices.
2. Don’t pass on the DEGLAZE. Deglaze your roasting pan to get the most bang for your buck when it comes to flavor. While the turkey roasts, it is simultaneously giving off lots of flavorful juices. The browned bits (aka FOND) at the bottom of your roasting pan are the key to an outstanding gravy. After removing your turkey from the roasting pan to rest and pouring off the juices, place your roasting pan over a burner on medium-high heat and add some wine or stock to pull up all of those browned bits with a wooden spoon; bring to a boil. Once you’ve pulled everything up and strain it to ensure a silky gravy.
3. Heat your stock or low sodium broth before adding it to your gravy. This may mean dirtying an extra pot, but it’s worth it. This is one of the best ways to insure that you won’t have lumpy gravy.
4. Thicken your gravy the classic way, without any bells or whistles. Make a classic roux that is equal parts fat to flour. I typically always melt 4 tablespoons of butter over medium heat in a large skillet and add 4 tablespoons of flour and cook it down. You are going for a nice “blonde” color to cook out the flour and infuse some nuttiness into your gravy. From there, slowly add your HOT stock or low sodium broth whisking vigorously. Whisk quickly and slowly add the stock to ensure that your gravy will be as smooth as possible. Now it’s time for those lovely pan drippings that have been separated from the fat and don’t forget about the fond. Add the pan drippings tasting along the way until your satisfied. From there, bring to a boil and cook until you’ve reached your desired consistency. Lastly season generously with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Give your gravy the finishing touch by whisking in a pat of butter and a splash of heavy cream just before serving to give your gravy a rich, satiny texture.

Buttermilk Substitute

Ingredients:

Milk (just under 1 cup)

1 Tablespoon white vinegar or lemon juice

Preperation:

1. Place white vinegar or lemon juice in a liquid measuring cup.

2. Add enough milk to bring the liquid up to the one-cup line.

3. Let stand for 5 min then use as much as your recipe calls for.

Steamed Rice

1 cup dry short grain brown rice

1 1/2 cup water or stock

a bit of salt (optional)

In a bowl, rinse the rice once or twice until the water runs clear.

Bring the rice to a boil over medium high heat.

Cover the rice, reduce the heat to low, and allow to simmer for about 40 minutes without lifting the cover.

Season as you like - rice vinegar and brown sugar for sushi (if you used sushi rice), a little oyster/soy sauce and drop of sesame oil for fried rice, a bit of butter and garlic to pair with beans, or a little sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg with some milk.

a few more rice steaming tips:

- if the rice is still a little wet after cooking, keep the heat on low and allow to cook uncovered until the extra liquid is gone.

- when you are reheating rice, add a couple Tablespoons of water to the rice and gently heat until warm.

- certain types of rice don’t require washing before cooking, check the instructions on the bag or bin it came in. As a rule I always wash my rice at least once to remove any loose objects that mightn’t be… rice related.

- my mother in law shared a tip for cooking rice in a rice cooker. After rinsing, place your finger at the top of the rice and add enough water so it comes to your first knuckle. We get perfect rice every time, no matter who measures.

- because different types of rice require different amounts of water, here’s a great rice chart from martha stewart clarifying what measurements go with each type.