Pages

Meyer Lemon-Braised Chicken


Braise — brāz/ verb fry (food) lightly and then stew it slowly in a closed container.

            Braising is a combination cooking method that uses both dry heat (in this recipe that means the chicken is seared at a high temperature in a cast iron skillet) and moist heat (the chicken is covered with a braising base and stewed in a slow cooker). This results: fall-off-the-bone tender and moist chicken that is infused with the delicate, tangy taste of Meyer lemons which have been flavored with roasted California garlic, whole-grain French Dijon mustard, Italian extra-virgin olive oil and California Chardonnay wine.
            Since Barry is considered the “sauce man,” most of the sauces we use in cooking are his creations. However, on our last visit to William Sonoma, we sampled some of their Meyer Lemon Braising Base . . . and Barry immediately added a jar of the base to our shopping cart
      
Meyer Lemon-Braised Chicken   Recipe on jar says it will serve 4 but we seared about 20 pieces of chicken and there was plenty of sauce to do it all – we served 11 and had left overs)
About 4-8 lb+. chicken pieces (the recipe calls for 4 lb. but we doubled the amount using breasts, legs, thighs and wings)
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Olive oil
1 (1 lb. 8.5 oz.) bottle William Sonoma® Meyer Lemon 
Braising Sauce + Barry did add about 1 cup of water when adding the base to the chicken

1. Season chicken pieces liberally with salt and pepper.
2.  In a large skillet over medium-high heat, warm a thin layer of olive oil (enough to sear the amount of chicken you plan to prepare).
3. Working in batches, brown chicken on all sides, 8 to 10 minutes per batch.

4. Choose the method to finish . . .
a. Slow-cooker method: Transfer chicken to slow cooker; add braising base. Cover and cook on low until chicken is fork-tender and pulls apart easily from the bones, about 4 hours. The sauce thickens during the cooking time; we put it in a pitcher and let guests add it to either their chicken or rice.

b. Oven method: Preheat oven to 350°. Transfer browned chicken to a covered casserole or Dutch oven; add braising base. Cover, transfer to oven and cook until chicken is fork-tender and pulls apart easily from the bones, about 1 hour. Sauce thickens as it cooks.
Note: If doing smaller batches, unused Meyer Lemon Braising Sauce may be refrigerated for later use.

   Meyer Lemon Braised Chicken was the entrée for today’s Mother’s Day menu and it was certainly a hit. Wonder if the “sauce man” will be able to recreate the base for our own homemade version of this base sauce?

Mother’s Day Menu:
Meyer Lemon Braised Chicken
Tossed Salad with Celery Seed Dressing
Recipe without photos . . .
Meyer Lemon-Braised Chicken   Recipe on jar says it will serve 4 but we seared about 20 pieces of chicken and there was plenty of sauce to do it all – we served 11 and had left overs)
About 4-8 lb+. chicken pieces (the recipe calls for 4 lb. but we doubled the amount using breasts, legs, thighs and wings)
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Olive oil
1 (1 lb. 8.5 oz.) bottle William Sonoma® Meyer Lemon Braising Sauce + Barry did add about 1 cup of water when adding the base to the chicken

1.  Season chicken pieces liberally with salt and pepper.
2.  In a large skillet over medium-high heat, warm a thin layer of olive oil (enough to sear the amount of chicken you plan to prepare).
3. Working in batches, brown chicken on all sides, 8 to 10 minutes per batch.
4. Choose the method to finish . . .
a. Slow-cooker method: Transfer chicken to slow cooker; add braising base. Cover and cook on low until chicken is fork-tender and pulls apart easily from the bones, about 4 hours.
b. Oven method: Preheat oven to 350°. Transfer browned chicken to a covered casserole or Dutch oven; add braising base. Cover, transfer to oven and cook until chicken is fork-tender and pulls apart easily from the bones, about 1 hour.
Note: If doing smaller batches, unused Meyer Lemon Braising Sauce may be refrigerated for later use.

No comments:

Post a Comment