As I was wandering thru the meat isles at Coppas, these chicken legs started winking to get my attention. Organic, humanely raised, nice and golden they were. Love at first sight it was, yes. Now, you fine folk already know our diet has lately skewed towards being more vegetarian and with less, leaner protein due to health issues but there’s only so much “regular” chicken one can eat before one starts climbing the walls of one’s own kitchen. I’m looking to have some decent variety in our meals, especially considering some of our restrictions. Variety in preparation is also welcome as well and one of the easiest is baking or roasting in a sheet pan. One of the best things you could own is a pair of inexpensive half-sheet pans. They are perfectly adept at pulling multiple duties, from baking cookies or roasting meat to dehydrating fruits and everything else in between. You will see how easy it is to pull dinner using one of those pans in a jiffy.
NYT Cooking had this pork recipe with grapes, so I thought there’s absolutely no reason why it won’t also work with skin-on, bone-in chicken, especially if judiciously marinated overnight in Spanish smoky paprika, Worcestershire sauce, a ton of garlic, apple cider vinegar, a pinch of raw plantation sugar and a bit of salt. So, what to pair it with apart from seedless grapes? The apple cider vinegar calls for some fennel. Shallots, red onions, sliced lemon and rosemary will complete the picture.
Well, I promised you simplicity and there it is. The prep is minimal, apart for some peeling and cutting. All that’s needed is to line the pan with some wax paper and to place the legs nicely apart. Fill the spaces with the trimmings. You’re done! Essentially all that’s needed here is to throw the dish components on the half sheet pan with a modicum of haphazard method, nothing more. You can whack that in the oven and by the time the meat is done nicely, everything else is as well. Enjoy! If you have time to spare, however, it pays to start with a cold oven an cook this on two stages as I explain below.
These legs are actually quite nice and fatty, it’s a pity not to render as much of it as possible. Starting with a cold oven which gradually heats to 300F and stays there for around 20 minutes, renders enough of it to toss the fennel and shallots thru and have leftover to reserve for future roasts. Once this step is done, set the oven to roasting and raise the temperature to 425F. I usually go by inner temperature here and not by oven time, but the rule of thumb is to keep them in until you have crispy golden skin and juices running clear when pierced. Blood coming out of either the legs or your fingers is not a good sign, OK?
Houston, the Chicken has landed! Nice, salty crispy skin, sweet leeks and onions, doubled by flavourful dehydrated grapes. That’s not too bad in my book, especially with a side of potato and celery stalk salad made by Sandra. Oh, and a small glass of Ontario white. Perfect! So there you have it, one of the easiest dinners to throw together with the help of a half-sheet pan. Or tray. Call it what you wish.
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