the concept

the concept

The idea came from some friends, Lucy Jason & George, who were back home briefly & raved about a chef in London's East End...http://fridaynightakeout.blogspot.com/
I thought it was such a good idea, the best thing to do would be to bring it to life here where I live in New Zealand.
So...I'm also a freelance chef, each week I cook a different dish, depending on what's in season, what's good now, or just how I feel. Lately I've been cooking a lot of my mother's dishes

Dish descriptions will be posted here online early in the week, recipes later over the weekend, with links to:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Pabloskitchen/130053437081945 & http:/twitter.com/#!/pabloskitchen

As I play with the idea through the week, the dish maybe evolves a little, but that's half the fun. Meals will be priced at $20, incl delivery & orders can be made anytime up to roughly lunchtime Thursday, which is when I go shopping. Simply get in touch, email or txt, you can order as many as you like!
Afternoon Friday I'll deliver dinnerboxes warm/cooling/cold, locally in & around my base, which admittedly does change a bit - currently I'm north of Auckland, living by the beach in Mangawhai (just let me know where you are when you get in touch).

tel: 021 676 123
email: pabloskitchen@yahoo.com

I've recently included an email subscription option at the bottom of this page &, while I have no idea how it works, the hope is that it automatically sends to subscribers email notifications each week about the dish...so, sign up!

disclaimer:
From time to time, when the wanderlust takes over, I hit the road & disappear in search of dishes, tastes & ingredients elsewhere. Then this blog takes on a different kind of persona; a travelling recipe book of notes, pics & stories, ideas to inspire & for me to return to, once I get back home.

Tuesday 11 December 2012

recipe: chicken marbella, garlic potato mash

An all round hit, Chicken Marbella is a dish that just works: equally suitable served up in summer or in winter, a simple dish to prepare, a great dish for preparing a day in advance, an easy dish to cook, a dish that keeps well for the next day. In other words, the perfect fridaynightdinnerbox.

For me, Chicken Marbella falls into the comfort food category. When the weather isn't so flash outside, or I need a bit of a pick-me-up, or perhaps it's just a really busy time & there isn't opportunity to spend too long in the kitchen, this is one of those recipes I turn to. A dish that can be thrown together in no time, set aside to marinate, & then when you're ready, put into the oven in a casserole dish an hour or so before guests arrive, it's a good one to have tucked away for the right occasion.
Ingredients:  
1 free-range chicken, jointed into 8 pieces
an onion, 3 or 4 wedges of garlic
a handful of olives, I prefer kalamatas
a handful of pitted prunes
a handful of capers
a stem of fresh oregano
a splash or so of olive oil
1 whole lemon, zested & squeezed
1/4 cup of red wine vinegar
a cup of white wine
a handful of brown sugar
method:
*joint the chicken into legs & thighs, breasts & wings, keeping the carcass too
*roughly slice the onions & garlic
*stone the olives & slice the prunes in half, lengthways
*place all into a good sized mixing bowl, together with the remaining ingredients
*mix around then cover & sit in the fridge to marinate overnight
*next day, preheat the oven to 220 degrees
*place chicken & friends in a sturdy casserole, adding also some of the liquor, cover & into the oven for somewhere between 45mins & an hour, checking from time to time & basting the chicken pieces with the juices in the pan
*after 15 minutes, lower the heat to 180 degrees
*take the lid off, sprinkle with a little brown sugar, & back into the oven to allow the juices to reduce, the skin to brown, the sugars to caramelise
*to serve, some mashed potato, roasted garlic crushed & mixed in along with just the right amount of butter & cream then put through the mouli 

That there is basically the dish. There are variations of course, loads of them, for example the original recipe calls for green olives (though no variety is suggested) & my mother used to use the big fat ones, with the stone in, which she'd have in the fridge in olive oil with orange & cardamom. Honey, too, is a nice substitute for brown sugar. Salted capers replace those in brine, another. To accompany, I like mashed potato - mainly because I think mashed potato makes pretty much everything better & improves the world in general every time it's eaten, but with rice is fine too.

However, I am at present purging the pantry at home so, while I am practising these dishes through the week I have decided to use the things that are available to me here without going to the supermarket. There's much to be said for being able to look on the shelves at home & find the bits & pices required for a delicious meal. Chicken Marbella, I can't help wondering, may even have its origins in such a state of practical necessity.
When I'm pushed for time Chicken Marbella is one of the dishes I like to keep on hand. Using zip-lock bags for the job, I prepare in advance the chicken pieces & marinade, freezing the mix in a bag until I need it. Pulled out then into the fridge to be left overnight sitting on a plate while it thaws, still in the zip-lock bag, is all that's required to be ready for cooking the following day.

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