Perfect Chicken or Perfect Chicken Soup
As a private chef, I constantly have to multitask. Catering to New York’s elite leaves me running around like a chicken with it’s head cut off: shopping 3 times a day (for each meal), running errands for my clients, pop up 6-course dinner parties for 12 with only a 3-hour notice, etc… You get the picture. Speaking of chickens with their heads cut off, here is one of my personal all-time poultry faves that requires little effort and gives you enough free time to work on other important tasks. Feel free to serve the chicken on it’s own (as a main course) or pick the meat off the bone, placing it back into the poaching liquid to make a tasty soup
Perfect Chicken (serves 4-8)
Perfect Chicken Soup (serves 8-12)
Chickens in the pot
***Cooking the chicken with this method is fun. It also leaves the stock unbelievably flavorful and the meat, profoundly silky and moist…
Ingredients:
2 3-pound chickens, washed and giblets removed
2 bouillon cubes (optional)
2 medium onions, medium diced
2 celery stalks, medium diced
2 large carrots, peeled and medium diced
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
3 bay leaves
8-12 sprigs, fresh thyme, tied with twine
2 lemons, juiced
3 Tablespoons, sea salt + 1/4 teaspoon, ground white pepper
Enough water to cover 1-inch above chickens in the pot
8 Tablespoons, fresh chopped dill (optional)
1. Add all ingredients (except the dill) to an 8-quart pot. Remember to cover ingredients with water 1 inch above the chicken.
2. Bring contents of the pot to a rolling boil and allow to boil for 1 minute. Uh, turn the burner on high. Cover with a lid and turn off the heat. Yes, leave the pot covered and off the heat for 3 hours. This is an important step: DO NOT LIFT UP THE LID FOR 3 HOURS! Leaving the lid closed traps in the heat and cooks the chicken to proper doneness.
3. Now you have ample time to multitask: set the table, arrange the flowers, make vegetable side dishes, go to the gym or off to the salon to get your hair and nails done.
4. After 3 hours have passed, remove chickens and discard the thyme. If you decide to use the chicken for soup, remove the meat from off the bone and add it back to the poaching liquid, along with the chopped dill. Adjust the seasoning of the soup to your taste.
