Chicken with Ginger

This recipe is courtesy of Mark Bittman of The New York Times.

We were lucky to get lots of fresh ginger this season from Dan of The Lone Acre farm in Southold. I use our cast iron skillet to make this dish.

Yield 4 servings
Time 40 minutes

Ingredients
1/2 pound ginger, the fresher the better
1 Tablespoon of sugar, optional
1 Tablespoon of sesame, peanut or olive oil
1 3-4 lb chicken, cut into pieces
salt and pepper
1/2 cup chicken stock or water
1 Tablespoon of soy sauce
Juice of 1 lime
Chopped cilantro for garnish

1. Pre-heat oven to 500 degrees. Peel ginger, and mince 1 Tablespoon; set aside. Thinly slice remaining ginger. (If extremely fibrous, put it in a small saucepan with sugar and 2 cups of water , and bring to a boil; simmer 10 minutes then drain.)

2. Put oil in an ovenproof skillet large enough to hold all the chicken, and place on stove over med-high heat. Add chicken, skin side down, and cook, rotating pieces and adjusting heat as necessary, until chicken is well-browned on one side -- about 10 minutes. season with salt and pepper, then scatter sliced ginger around pieces; turn and season again. Transfer pan to oven; cook 20 minutes, or until all pieces cooked through.

3. Return skillet to top of stove, drain off any excess fat and add stock or water along with soy sauce. Cook over med-high heat until sauce is slightly reduced, then stir in lime juice and minced ginger. Taste and adjust seasoning. Garnish and serve.

Chicken Casserole with Mustard & Tarragon

I made this hearty dish twice in the month of December. It is really satisfying on snowy days!

1/4 cup cup extra-virgin olive oil
4# chicken, cut into pieces (I cut each chicken breast into halves)
1 onion, finely chopped
1 leek, sliced
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
11 oz mushrooms, sliced
1 Tb chopped tarragon or 1/2 tsp dried (I have also used sage in place of tarragon)
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
3/4 cup whipping cream
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp Dijon mustard

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat 2 Tb of olive oil in a flameproof casserole dish over medium heat, and cook chicken in batches until golden. Remove from dish.

Add the remaining oil to the casserole and cook the onion, leek, and garlic over medium heat for 5 minutes or until soft. Add the mushrooms and cook 5-7 minutes or until they are soft and browned. Add the tarragon, chicken stock, cream, lemon juice, and mustard, bring to a boil, and cook for 2 minutes. Return the chicken to the casserole dish and season well. Cover.

Place the casserole dish in the oven and cook for 1 hour or until the sauce has reduced and thickened. Season to taste and serve over rice or with potatoes.

Serves 4-6.