Chicken Marsala

Heather says: There’s a rule of thumb when cooking dishes that involve wine: don’t use anything you wouldn’t drink. What if you don’t drink wine or what if you just don’t like the kind of wine called for in a recipe? I know if you look at my wine rack, you’ll usually only find cab, …

Read more

The Frozen Free Range Chicken Dilemma

Dear Home Ec 101, I’m moving to Virginia in about a month, and in my visits I discovered a wonderful little farm nearby that sells free-range, organic chickens. But, the only way to buy them is whole and frozen.  Generally, that’s wonderful!  I love cooking with whole chicken.  But, there are only going to be …

Read more

Chili Honey Chicken Thighs

Heather says: This easy recipe for baked chicken is extremely versatile, not only is it great for chicken thighs, it can be used on a cut-up whole chicken, and boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs. This chili rub and honey brushing sauce would also be fantastic for grilled chicken. [pullshow=”instr”]The recipe is written for 4 …

Read more

How to Cut Up a Whole Chicken, a Knife Skills Tutorial

Heather says:

Why would anyone want to cut up a whole chicken? It’s a useful skill to have, I tend to buy whatever is on sale and if whole chickens are on sale that week, then I load up. By buying a whole chicken, I have not restricted myself to one form of cooking or another. Additionally some people in this house are white meat fans, while others prefer the dark and good luck finding chicken breasts at a reasonable price on their own.

If you purchase whole chickens, come home and cut them up, they can be frozen in pieces. However, do not thaw the chicken, cut it up, and refreeze. That’s a big no on the safety meter.

As some readers of Home Ec 101 are vegetarian and others read their feeds first thing in the morning, I’m putting a cut, just so no one is surprised with pictures of raw chicken. You’re welcome.

Also, give my stepdaughter a big round of applause, she was a trooper and helped me take the pictures for this tutorial. It’s not every teen who’s willing to hang out with their stepmother over a chicken carcass, you know.

Read more

Modifying Chicken Recipes

Dear Home-Ec 101, I’ve seen recipes for 40 garlic clove chicken, but they are mostly for a whole chicken. I’m trying to figure out how I can make it for my husband and I using chicken breasts. Any ideas how I can do this? (I’d like to bake it rather than putting it in the …

Read more