Frozen chicken don't have to taste like frostbit ass.

We buy bags of frozen chicken because they are convenient and in the long run cheaper. I don't know why I feel the need to defend myself but hey I do so...

I've been making fairly quick and tasty dish: Chicken in a pan. With vegetables. Don't go nuts all at once now. Here's the break down.

Frozen chicken breast(s) - not thawed.
A cup or two of vegetable or chicken stock.
A liberal dose of oil - olive, whatever you want.
A good splash of vermouth.
A good splash of Rose's Lime Juice.
A punch of Kosher Salt.
Black pepper.
A couple of good doses of Top Secret spice mix.
A fistful of crushed garlic cloves...or less if you're not a garlic fan.
Some kind of herb - whatever you have sitting around and want to use.
A skillet/saute pan with a lid.

Heat up your skillet over med heat, crush the garlic, heat the oil, brown the garlic, gently place the frozen (not thawed) chicken breasts in the pan. Add everything into the pan, cover the chicken in spices and herbs, leave the heat where it is, cover the pan. Go smoke a cigarette or switch out the laundry or watch Robot Chicken then come back. Turn the chicken over, add more stock/broth, spices, herbs. Cover. Prep whatever vegetables you want - I like to use red peppers and onions but I'm sure anything would work. Start your rice or pasta or whatever you want. Look at the chicken, does the chicken look done? Does the liquid on the bottom look kind of good and browned and kind of saucy? OK, take the chicken out and put it aside on a plate. Put the prepped vegetables in the pan and move them around until they are done. I usually slice up the chicken and add it back to the mix and turn off the heat and cover until my rice or pasta is done. Add your chicken to whatever and eat. Yay! Dinner!

Iron Cook is da joint!

The end-of-the-monthly competition is going to be finger food/appetizers. If you're in the Austin area you should get in on this. It's a good excuse to cook...like we need an excuse. It's also a pretty relaxed atmosphere to just hang out and bullshit about food and assorted goodness.

Here's the link. Go there. Now. Shoo.

Neat-o kitchen crap you didn't want but now do.

I try to avoid being all sucked in by gimmicky or pretty much useless kitchen junk but sometimes form over function gets me. The Zero Gravity Spice Rack from Zevro one http://www.organize.com/ is pretty darn neat and only $24. Personally I am kind of a sucker for well designed organization doodads - everything in its place and what not. The prices are pretty reasonable as well when compared to Williams-Sonoma or something comparable.

Zero Gravity maybe all well and good but this chrome spice rack is something I would like to have in my stainless steel, chrome, and black marble futuristic dream kitchen.

Sigh.

My Secret Ingredient (the first)

My Secret Ingredient #1:
Compound Butter

To those out of the know, compound butter is basically butter with herbs in it. Yep. That simple. Deelish on anything grilled, especially fish. Make different varieties and store them in your freezer so they're on hand!

My Method:
Take 2 sticks of UNsalted butter, and set them in a glass bowl. Set them atop your stove while something is baking or just pop them in while it's warm. I know this takes a while, but a little patience goes a long way. If you want to irradiate them instead, for gods' sake put your box on the lowest setting! Our goal here is to soften the stuff, not melt or clarify it. Mix in about a tablespoon of olive oil as well to soften even further.

Meanwhile, pick out which herbs you want in there. For each stick of butter, use about 2 tbsp of herbs. If fresh, dice as finely as possible. If dried, crush to release oils. Fresh herbs look and taste better, but we can't always get them on a shoestring budget, now can we? You can also use liquid extracts, about 1/2 tbsp. Yes, I said extracts! They're not for Grandma anymore!

Good Herb Pairings:
Dill, black pepper and lemon juice (or lemon extract); cilantro, chiles and lime juice; herbs de provence (That's marjoram, thyme, savory, basil, rosemary, sage and fennel, for the non-foodies out there). Shallots are good for a more intense onion/garlic flavor. Oh, and PLEASE don't use raw garlic! Roast, roast, roast!

I love plain ole roasted garlic. Cut off the tops of garlic bulbs, drizzle with EVOO and roast @ 400 until brown. Now, the roasted garlic is all smooshy, and we want our butter to have a nice consistency instead of chunks of garlic, so I recommend throwing the garlic into a Cuisinart and adding the softened butter & olive oil a little bit at at time. Add parsley or black pepper for that speckled herby look.

You also can make a sweet butter with sugar, cinnamon, and a dash of vanilla extract for baking or just spreading on toast. You can take this butter-for-toast idea and run with it! Think fruit butter, mmm...

Back to The Method:
So basically, toss the herbs into the softened butter and mix. An electric beater is best to get the butter nice and creamy and everything evenly distributed. A spoon or whisk and elbow grease works too. You can add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil at this stage if you'd like a softer butter.

Now we're wrapping it up. Sprinkle water on the counter and lay down a nice layer of cling wrap. (Love that trick!) Then glop your compound butter down onto it, keeping it roughly in an oblong shape. Then pick up the wrap and, well, wrap. Our goal here is a rolled, sausage sort of shape. Twist the ends tight, and then wrap again in heavy aluminum foil so it keeps its shape. Now pop it in the fridge/freezer to cool. Store in the freezer and cut off slices whenever you need em!

That's it!

Now taking requests for the Summer spice mix.

That's right. There was a Christmas mix...okay a mix that came out around Christmas but didn't have any funky "holiday" peppermint or nog or anything mulled. Now I think I'm gonna make a Summer batch. Something probably spicier than last time. Let me know if you want something a lot spicier and I'll put something together for ya.

Just let me know and send a mailing address and I'll get something out to ya.

Good Eats win a Peabody.

Is there anything Alton Brown can't do?

Brussels Sprouts

Most people don't like Brussels Sprouts then again most people like American Idol. I like Brussels Sprouts, in particular I like them roasted. Here's a simple way to do it. I actually stole this recipe from Playboy a million years ago and only half remember it.

Get a bag of Brussels Sprouts.
Boil some water.
Preheat the over to about 400...give or take depending on your oven.
Blanch the Brussels Sprouts for a couple of minutes - about 5 or one cigarette.
Drain and rinse off whatever loose leaves or dirt is left.

So far so good? Here comes the hard part.

Toss the Sprouts in olive oil, bread crumbs, coarse ground pepper, kosher salt, and "shakey" cheese.

Put the sprouts on a baking sheet. Personally I put a layer of tin foil on the sheet so I don't have to clean up afterwards.

Put the baking sheet and the sprouts in the oven. Cook for a half hour. Shake them around, throw some more breadcrumbs on them if you want, put them back in the oven for another 20-30 minutes.

Poke them with a fork. If they look done then they are done.

Serve with whatever you feel like eating with Brussel Sprouts. Chicken's a safe bet.