Sunday, February 16, 2014

Easy Meal: Poached Eggs and Toast +

My roommate turned me on to this amazing and easy meal with infinite variations. The basics are poached eggs and toast and then you make it interesting.

Poached eggs
Boil water in a deep pan (about 3 inches deep) and add some vinegar. Turn down the heat until just before boiling. Break an egg into a cup. Swirl the water to create a vortex and pour in the egg from the cup. Cook about 5 minutes and then pull out with a slotted spoon and leave on a piece of paper towel to dry.

What goes between the bread and the eggs (and on top!)
- Sautéed spinach
- Butter
- Goat cheese
- Hot sauce
- Mashed avocado with salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper
- Cheddar cheese
- Roasted red peppers (broil until mostly black/crispy, run under cold water and remove skin)

Chicken in Milk

Wanting to feel like a grown-up, I scoured the internet for a recipe for a whole roast chicken. Also not wanting to do too much work, I sought a low-effort dish. Here is the seemingly strange but actually delicious and interesting recipe I found (original recipe), and my suggested variations.

Ingredients
1. Whole chicken
2. Butter
3. Seasonings (salt, pepper, paprika, fresh sage leaves, zest of 2 lemons)
4. 0.5 to 1 onion (I used a red onion)
5. 1 pint (~500mL) milk
6. Optional: garlic, small potatoes, carrots

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Wash and clean chicken (no yuckies on the inside!) and brown in butter on all sides, using an oven-safe pot that has a lid. As you turn the chicken you can season each side with salt, pepper, and paprika.
3. Before putting it in the oven add fresh sage leaves, lemon zest, coarsely chopped onion, and milk and optional extras (whole garlic cloves still in skins, half a lemon inside the chicken, small whole potatoes and/or chunks of carrot).
4. Cook for 45 minutes with lid on and 45 minutes without lid, basting occasionally.
5. Serve over rice and/or with delicious crusty bread and butter.

Note: The milk will separate into some delicious cheesy curds. It is supposed to do that and the gravy is really good!