A Chicken in every pot

"If you'll be my Dixie chicken, I'll be your Tennessee lamb

And we can walk together down in Dixieland"

Little Feat

Hello! Hoping all of you are doing well. As I write this, the dining room is closed and it's not a lot of fun around here. While I can't do very much about outbreaks or save New Year's Eve, I can still try to keep everyone entertained and maybe set the stage for 2025 with some fun dishes.

Let's talk for a minute about the humble chicken. We serve a lot of chicken here at Vi and I'm sure that won't change anytime soon. The very first menu we wrote in 2008 had a roasted Free range Chicken with Pan gravy and that recipe has not changed much in 16 years. I know Chef David makes a pretty mean Fried Chicken with a secret marinade that he refuses to share with me and so I can imagine that you will be seeing that one soon.

Chickens are descended from the Red Junglefowl still found in southeast Asia and were domesticated between seven and ten thousand years ago. Like most birds, these hearty survivors are descendants of Dinosaurs which should in itself raise their status and earn some respect. If you are anything like me you have wondered if dinosaurs tasted like chicken, and how you would cook one. No? Just me I guess.

Typical Chickens

Broiler — All chickens that are bred and raised specifically for meat production. The term "broiler" is mostly used for a young chicken, 6 to 10 weeks old, and is interchangeable and sometimes in conjunction with the term "fryer," for example "broiler-fryer."

Fryer — The USDA defines a fryer chicken as between 7 and 10 weeks old and weighing between 2 1/2 and 4 1/2 pounds when processed. A fryer chicken can be prepared in any manner. The whole chickens that we use at Vi are usually in this category. We find that they are more tender and milder in flavor than roasters, plus the size seems to be about what our residents like to see in a portion.

Roaster — A roaster chicken is defined by the USDA as an older chicken, about 3 to 5 months old and weighing between 5 and 7 pounds. The roaster yields more meat per pound than a fryer and is usually roasted whole, but it can also be used in other preparations, like chicken cacciatore. You don't usually see roasters here but the flavor is really nice.

Broilers, fryers, and roasters can generally be used interchangeably based on how much meat you think you'll need. They are young chickens raised only for their meat, so they are fine to use for any preparation from poaching to roasting. Bear in mind: when cooking poultry, chefs know choosing the right bird will affect the outcome of a final dish.

In 2011, the USDA revised its previous definitions to reflect the decreasing ages of chickens processed in modern poultry-farming and added Rock Cornish Game Hens.

Rock Cornish Game Hens — Despite its name, the Cornish game hen is not game but is a very young broiler chicken, slaughtered after 4 weeks, and weighing between 1 and 1 1/2 pounds. The game hen is a hybrid chicken, a cross between a Cornish Game and a Plymouth or White Rock chicken. It is usually roasted whole or split. We buy whole hens that are 18 ounces and usually serve half of one per order. Very mild in flavor but can easily overcook.

Capon — A surgically unsexed male chicken which develops more slowly and puts on more fat. A capon is about 16 weeks to 8 months old, weighing between 4 and 7 pounds. Capons are usually roasted and yield generous quantities of tender, light meat. Capons are great for roasting but can also be used for braises and poaching. I really love Capon meat but it has become difficult to find.

Poussin (pronounced "poo-sehn") — A young chicken that is no older than 28 days when it is slaughtered. Sometimes called a spring chicken.

Stewing Hen — Stewing chickens are usually laying hens that have passed their prime, 10 months to 1 1/2 years old. They are older and their meat is usually tougher and more stringy. This type of chicken is best used in stews where the meat has time to break down during the long, moist cooking. You really don't see these for sale often.

Rooster or Cock — A mature male chicken with low body fat and lean, ropey muscles. The skin is coarse skin and it has tough, dark meat, and requires long, moist cooking, as in the classic French dish, coq au vin. They're rarely found in chain grocery stores, but can be found in specialty markets and many Asian markets.

Speaking of the French, they’ve practically invented Fricassee, made by cooking browned chicken (how brown it is and the type of stock and wine determine whether it is a light or a dark fricassee) in liquid until very tender, then binding that liquid with a combination of egg yolks and cream. The Blanquette, a first cousin, is the same thing except that the chicken is brought slowly to a simmer in cold stock, giving a more delicate flavor. Here are a few more common menu items that you may have seen at Vi.

40 cloves of garlic chicken is thought to have originated in the French countryside and was popularized in the United States by James Beard in 1954. The recipe is inspired by Provençal cuisine and is an interpretation of the classic French dish poule au pot, which is chicken in a pot. The large amount of garlic in the dish mellows out during the slow cooking process, creating a sweet, buttery paste that can be spread on toast.  I believe Julia Child was the first to really celebrate and bring the dish to America. She made poulet aux quarante gousses d’ail (chicken with 40 cloves of garlic) with James Beard and today’s recipe is inspired from that one. She even wrote an essay stating that forty cloves may not be enough.  We served this one once but simply changed the name to Garlic Chicken as 40 cloves seems like a lot when you write it on a menu .

Chicken Coq au Vin

Coq au Vin is chicken braised in an herb-infused red wine gravy, along with veggies and aromatics. I love this dish. When interviewing cooks, I would always ask them a few Culinary questions-not only to test their knowledge but to test their honesty when they didn't know what I was talking about. This dish gets them every time.

Chicken Provencal is chicken braised in white wine, nestled between eye catching olives, plump cherry tomatoes, oh-so French shallots, tangy capers and plenty of garlic and herbs.

Tarragon Chicken: Crispy and juicy pan-fried chicken thighs in a rich and creamy tarragon sauce with Dijon mustard . This one was a favorite here a few years ago but somehow fell out of the menu mix. Maybe David will bring this one back. We have beautiful Tarragon in the herb garden that comes back every year-a gift from a foodie resident.

Chicken Cacciatorre is stewed with tomatoes, mushrooms and herbs. It is thought that the first Chicken Cacciatore was not made with chicken at all, but with rabbit or other wild game sometime during the Renaissance period, so between the 14th and 16th centuries. Chicken Cacciatore’s simple but delicious recipe was likely developed to satisfy the appetites of hunters who may have been on the track of a larger animal or herd of animals for several days, and who needed a tasty, filling stew that could easily be cooked outdoors to keep them going. The spices used, such as parsley and oregano, would have also been readily available to humble hunters. The fact that tomatoes were not common in Europe at that time casts doubt on the timeline but it's a good story anyway.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Made with chicken breasts wrapped around ham and Swiss, breaded, and fried crisp. The French term cordon bleu is translated as "blue ribbon". According to Larousse Gastronomique, the cordon bleu was originally a wide blue ribbon worn by members of the highest order of knighthood, L'Ordre des chevaliers du Saint-Esprit, instituted by Henri III of France in 1578. If you are picturing a knight on horseback swinging a chicken instead of a sword you are not alone By extension, the term has since been applied to food preparation to a very high standard and by outstanding cooks and that is where the name comes to us. .By the way, both Switzerland and Russia also claim this dish as their own and there really is no historical reason why they shouldn't.

Chicken pot pie is a classic comfort food dish that has been enjoyed for generations. While the exact origin of the dish is unclear, it is believed to have originated in medieval England. The dish was originally called "chicken pie" and consisted of a pastry crust filled with chicken, vegetables, and a thick gravy. The Pennsylvania Dutch have a strong claim to this one as well, although they add thick noodles and a touch of saffron which sounds both delicious and wrong.

Coq au Riesling Tender chicken thighs, bacon, and mushrooms simmer in white wine until the chicken reaches utmost tenderness. Finally, it gets a touch of indulgence with the addition of luscious heavy cream. It's really nice and of course would go great with a glass of it's namesake wine.

Chicken Marengo: This vintage one-pot recipe is full of delicious flavors and ingredients like chicken, tomato and mushroom, which go just perfectly with each other. This dish was created after the battle of Marengo in 1800. Napoleon asked is Chef to create a dish to celebrate the victory over Austria but supplies were short. The Chef had to hurriedly improvise a recipe and sent the troop’s officers to find ingredients in the marshes and villages settled around the battlefield: one soldier returned with tomatoes and fresh herbs, another with chicken and eggs and one with crayfish he fished in a swamp. I swear I am not making this up. Napoleon loved the dish and wanted it again but by then the Chef had better supplies and substituted mushrooms for the crayfish and added a lot more wine.

Smothered Chicken: While this southern classic first appeared in Lettice Bryan’s 1839 cookbook, The Kentucky Housewife, it’s almost the same as South Carolina’s Low Country Stew Chicken. However, in these dishes, the chicken is cooked for longer periods of time, which allows it to break down, tenderize, and ultimately shred apart. Some also point to Cajun and Creole cuisine as its foundation since etouffee translates to “Smothered.” Regardless of its origin story, this is one of the most comforting dishes you can make.

Chicken Diablo, The devil's chicken is not a possessed recipe, and no it's not loaded with a lot of heat, but it's coated with red seasonings. Diablo in Spanish means devil. However, when this term is used in connection with food it can mean hot as hell, or really spicy.

Fried chicken, also called Southern fried chicken, is a dish consisting of chicken pieces that have been coated with seasoned flour or batter and pan-fried, deep fried, pressure fried, or air fried. While the basic concept of fried chicken remains the same, there are countless variations across the American South. In Kentucky, for instance, using a thicker breading and a mix of flour and cornmeal creates an extra-crunchy crust. Meanwhile, in Nashville, the famous Nashville Hot Chicken packs a fiery punch and is coated with a spicy blend of cayenne pepper and paprika. In the Carolinas, a tangy coating with a vinegar-based marinade is the local style. My fried Chicken marinates overnight in buttermilk with basil and honey before being dredged in flour and fried. In Japan, millions of families celebrate Christmas each year by ordering American-style fried chicken in what has become a national tradition. In China, where chickens were once considered sacred and able to predict the future because they announced daybreak, the most popular fast food chain by far is now KFC. Fried Chicken on the menu at Vi almost always sells out and is one of our most popular dishes.

Feeling hungry? I hope that our dining rooms will reopen soon, and if they do by next Monday then I will see all of you at the culinary Corner at 10 am.

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