Upgrade weeknight chicken game
It happens to all of us. We finish our commute after a long day of work with no idea what to have for dinner. All too often, I pop into the local supermarket and settle on a rotisserie chicken. And I mean settle. Dry, bland, boring. Plus, all that plastic packaging feels wrong.
This fall, I vow to stock up on fresh chicken parts so I have some on hand for weeknight cooking. I timetested myself: I can roast half a dozen chicken pieces in less than 30 minutes — the same amount of time it takes to drive to the market, pick up a cooked bird and drive back. If I line my roasting pan with foil, the cleanup is barely more than rinsing the plastic containers to recycle.
I’ve gained a lot in those 30 minutes, too. The house smells great, the oven warms the room and I have delicious, moist and juicy pieces left over for the next night’s meal.
My absolute favorite cut of chicken? The thigh. The meat has great flavor, stays juicy and reheats well.
All a chicken thigh needs for a great outcome is a rub-down with seasonings. Salt and fresh pepper yield versatile meat, but employing all the rubs I procure on vacations and at specialty shops keeps things interesting.
You can master fast roast chicken pieces with just a couple of tries. Then, you’ll wonder why you ever settled for supermarket rotisserie
chicken.
BASIC, BUT DELICIOUS, ROAST CHICKEN THIGHS
Makes: 4 to 6 servings
4 to 6 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, about 2½ pounds total
1 tablespoon favorite spice rub ½ teaspoon salt (if spice rub does not contain salt)
Heat oven to 375 degrees on convection or 400 degrees on conventional. Line a baking sheet with foil.
Rinse the thighs, and pat dry. Put them onto the prepared baking sheet, bone side up. Sprinkle with the spice rub. (Sprinkle with salt if the rub has no salt.) Turn the thighs over, skin side up, and sprinkle with more of the rub and optional salt.
Roast in the middle of the oven, rotating the pan halfway through the cooking time, until the juices run clear, 20 to 25 minutes. If desired, broil, 6 inches from heat source, until skin is golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Let rest a few minutes before serving. Refrigerate covered for up to 3 days.
PER SERVING: 251 calories, 16 g fat, 4 g saturated fat, 144 mg cholesterol, 0 g carbohydrates, 0 g sugar, 25 g protein, 304 mg sodium, 0 g fiber
FRIED TOGARASHI CHICKEN WITH WASABI MAYO
Makes: 4 servings
2 cups grapeseed, sunflower, safflower or expellerpressed canola oil 2 eggs 2 tablespoons half-and-half 1 cup white whole-wheat flour or all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon togarashi spice mix
8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, about 2 pounds total Wasabi mayo:
¼ cup mayonnaise 1 to 2 teaspoons wasabi paste, to taste
1 teaspoon store-bought lemongrass purée, optional Salt Small Thai basil leaves, optional
Togarashi spice mix, salt and/or sesame seeds, for garnish
Position a wire rack over a baking sheet. Pour the oil into a deep, 10-inch cast-iron or other heavy skillet.
Crack eggs into a shallow bowl or pie plate. Add half-and-half, and beat with a fork to mix well. Put flour, 1 teaspoon salt and spice mix (or one of its substitutes) into another shallow bowl or pie plate. Mix well with a fork.
Rinse chicken thighs and pat dry with paper toweling. Use kitchen shears to trim excess flaps of skin from the thighs. Reserve the skin if desired; it is delicious battered and fried.
Dip one chicken thigh at a time into the flour mixture to coat it well. Shake excess flour back into the bowl, then slip the thigh into the egg mixture, and turn to coat it with egg. Put the thigh back into the flour and coat it again. Set the coated thigh on the wire rack and repeat to coat all the chicken. If desired, coat the trimmings of skin the same way and place those on the rack.
For wasabi mayo, mix the mayonnaise, wasabi paste and lemongrass purée in a small bowl. Season to taste with salt. Scatter the basil leaves over the top if using. Set aside.
Turn on the exhaust fan. Heat oven to 200 degrees, and place baking sheet inside.
Set the heat under the pan of the oil to medium. When the oil is shimmering and starting to have an aroma, the oil temperature should be about 325 degrees. Gently dip chicken skin into the oil; it should bubble furiously. If not, let the oil heat a few minutes more. At no point should the oil smoke. If it does, then it’s too hot, and you’ll need to cool it down a few minutes. When the oil is the right temperature, carefully slip 3 or 4 pieces of the chicken skin into the oil if you are using them. Cook, turning occasionally, until crisp and golden, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove with tongs to a plate.
To cook chicken, carefully add 4 thighs to the heated oil. Cook, without turning, until the bubbling has calmed down a bit (adjust the heat if chicken is browning too much) and the chicken is beautifully golden, about 10 minutes. Use tongs to carefully turn the chicken over. Continue cooking until the underside is golden and no pink juices are visible, 8 to 10 minutes more. Remove first batch to a baking sheet in the oven. Cook the rest of the thighs, and place on a paper towel-lined plate.
Transfer the hot chicken (and fried skin pieces if you made them) to a serving platter. Sprinkle with a little salt and more togarashi mix. Pass the wasabi mayo for dipping.
PER SERVING: 801 calories, 56 g fat, 12 g saturated fat, 361 mg cholesterol, 20 g carbohydrates, 0 g sugar, 52 g protein, 353 mg sodium, 3 g fiber