The Versatile Chicken | Carmel Valley Chicken Recipe

What is the Carmel Valley Chicken Recipe?

Chicken is one of the most versatile ingredients available.  Carmel Valley San Diego community residents can use it in just about anything. Soups, appetizers, hors douvers, entrées, salads or sauces, you just can’t beat chicken.  When using the Carmel Valley Chicken Recipe, chicken can be baked, roasted, stewed, fricasseed, boiled, tacoed, broiled, grilled, fried, steamed, fajitaed, stuffed, stir-fried, casseroled, marinated, burritoed, parmesaned, smoked, souped and barbecued.

It’s always available at Ralphs (our “Ralphs Fresh Fare” is one of only four in San Diego…bigger, better with much more variety than the regular Ralphs) or Vons and it’s usually on sale at both stores.  Buy the store brand rather than the national brand; chicken is chicken regardless of what the Foster Farms ad says.  And be sure to check the date on the package…the current day’s date is the best.  Always look for a package toward the back of the cold case.

And talk about value, a whole chicken purchased and cut up prior to cooking will cost about $5 on sale.  That’s only $1.25 per person for four diners.  If you are into making your own chicken stock there is plenty left to do that.  Purchase it in any other form and it’s still a great buy.  You can buy the whole chicken cut into pieces, the breasts and thighs with or without the bone.  You can buy the whole leg (great for stuffing) or leg pieces; and you can buy the “tenders”.  Check YouTube or The Food Network for a video on how to cut up the

bird …it’s a snap.

Yes, there’s more to the Carmel Valley Chicken Recipe.  Chicken can be frozen and tastes as good when thawed as it does when it’s fresh.  You should always have it on hand in your freezer.

Chicken will pair well with just about any sauce you can make and with just about any side dish.  Chicken appeals to everybody and can be cooked only one way….well done.  And don’t forget, you get white meat AND dark meat.  And chicken cooks relatively quickly.  Most kids love chicken, especially with a little teriyaki sauce splashed on it.

Chicken deserts are probably not a good idea and chicken tar-tar or sushi is are definitely off the menu…no raw chicken please.

So try creating some new recipes using chicken, you’ll be surprised at the great tastes that will come out of your kitchen.

Carmel Valley Chicken Recipe

PAN SEARED ROASTED CHICKEN BREASTS with WHOLE GRAIN MUSTARD SAUCE and SPINACH PARMESAN MASHED POTATOES

SPINACH PARMESAN MASHED POTATOES

Recipe follows

Preheat to 250 degrees

Chicken

4 medium boneless skinless chicken breast halves, rinsed and dried

Kosher salt and fgp (fresh ground pepper)

2 tsp unsalted butter

2 tbls canola oil

Cut off the thin end of the breast halves, about 1/3.  Pound the remaining pieces until uniform in thickness, about ½ inch.  Season with salt and fgp.

In a large frying pan (not nonstick) over medium high heat melt butter with oil.  Add the chicken breasts without crowding and sear for 2-2½ minutes per side depending on thickness until they are just browned and almost cooked through.  Transfer to a dish, cover with foil and hold in the oven while making the sauce.

Mustard Sauce

2 tbls minced shallot

½ cup dry white wine

¾ cup heavy cream

1 tsp dried tarragon

3 tbls whole grain mustard

Salt and fgp to taste

Fresh herb sprigs for garnish.

Add the shallots to the pan used to sear the chicken and sweat for about a minute over low heat.  Add wine and raise heat to medium high.  Simmer stirring with a wooden spoon to scrape all the brown bits from the bottom of the pan until the wine is reduced to about 3 tablespoons.  Stir in the cream, salt and fgp and bring to a boil.  Turn down the heat and simmer for 1-2 minutes.  Remove from heat and immediately stir in the mustard.

Put a large spoonful of spinach mashed potatoes in the center of a plate; lean the chicken breast next to the potatoes.  Spoon the sauce over; garnish with fresh herbs.

4 Servings

Recipe adapted from “Sauce”, Williams Sonoma

If you have any questions about the Carmel Valley Chicken Recipe, please feel free to contact me.

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Dave Clegg is a self-taught amateur chef and recipe author who has always been inspired by his Mom’s great cooking. He decided to create “Carmel Valley Kitchen” as a way to share his passion. Our name says everything about our philosophy of cooking great food. We use only fresh, basic, and readily available ingredients and we use only simple recipes where we stress versatility. As Emeril says “we ain’t builden no rocket ship here”. At CVK you’re introduced to cooking for the beginner/intermediate chef that includes a variety of lesson choices including two options for one-on-one learning and two options for creative cooking.