Chicken 'n' Stuffing - How To Cheat At It...
Okay, I admit it. I take shortcuts. You probably already know it, since some of my "Italian" recipes include a jar or two of pre-packaged pasta sauce. Mom called it "doctoring up" the sauce. Okay, so my "doctoring" is more along the line of full biogenetic reconstruction, but that's as may be...
Now, one shortcut we probably all grew up with was Stove Top stuffing. It's not "real" stuffing, of course, but it's close enough for government work. It's not perfect, but it makes a decent side-dish. Not just for turkey, but chicken, pork, and yes, even beef (takes some jiggery-pokery, but you can make it work). It's far faster than doing the real deal, and it tastes, well, it tastes fairly good. Not great, but good. It's missing a few key elements, but I've found that it's a good starting point. One that you can turn from a side dish into an actual meal.
This recipe is actually a series of cheats. It relies on two key pre-packaged products - boxed stuffing, and a cold rotisserie chicken. Everything else is probably in your pantry (or at least should be). Chicken stock, celery, dried onions, parsley, some spices, and they secret ingredient... schmaltz! Trust me, swap out the butter and replace it with schmaltz, and you have a far more flavorful and chicken-y result.
This recipe is also pretty cheap. Well, cheaper than you might think, anyway. Why, you may ask? Simple. Instead of using actual Stove Top, I use the "store" brand. You can save about a buck a box (this recipe requires two). I also wait until the rotisserie chicken is cheap (i.e. just about out of date and on sale), so instead of spending $6 or $7 for one, I wait until it's about $3.50 or so. Considering what you're going to do to it, this doesn't have to be "fresh" to work.
When I did this recipe, it came out at about 60 oz or so. That's six 10 oz. servings. Chuck a jar of store-brand chicken gravy into the microwave if you want to moisten it a bit more. Served with a good side of veggies, and you've got a filling yet inexpensive meal. One that actually tastes a lot better than you'd expect.
Ingredients:
1 Rotisserie Chicken (on sale if possible)
1 lg. stalk Celery
2 Boxes Stuffing Mix (store brand, not Stove Top)
3 Cups Low-Sodium Chicken Stock (Kitchen Basics is my preference)
4 oz. Schmaltz
0.5 oz. (a cupped handful) Dried Chopped Onion
0.1 oz. (a cupped handful) Dried Parsley
1 Tbsp. Poultry Seasoning
1 Tbsp. Pepper (coarse ground)
Recipe:
Strip the rotisserie chicken of as much meat as you can (yes, even the back meat), and tear/chop into medium sized pieces. Set aside. Dice the celery. Open the two boxes of stuffing mix and dump them into a large plastic container (one with a tight cover). Add the stock, schmaltz, chicken and seasonings into a large saucepan. Heat until boiling. Dump into the stuffing mix, and stir well. Cover tightly. Wait about 10 minutes, then uncover and "fluff" (stir) with a fork. Serve immediately, or reheat for later.
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