How To Make Slow-Roasted Chicken

May 7, 2012 (Updated April 16, 2014) by
Fowl ,

Have I mentioned lately how much I love our Dutch oven? (Even though Le Creuset insists on calling it a French oven.) You can throw just about any big hunk of meat in there and a few hours later you've got an amazing dinner. The funny thing is, the more we use it the more we go in two opposite directions: More seasoning (potted chicken with tomatoes and Italian herbs), and less seasoning. And both directions are great. I'm starting to think the secret may be a well-cooked piece of meat. Who … [Read more...]

How To Make Potted Chicken with Chicken Stock

October 12, 2010 (Updated March 20, 2014) by
Dinner, Fowl , ,

This is a variation on the potted chicken with tomatoes that I did for the Aetna Healthy Food Fight. Actually, I should call the tomato recipe the variation, since other versions are much more like this one. For instance Susan at "Cooking to Save" has this version, that starts out almost exactly like mine. Then there's this one at DVO, which uses the whole chicken like in my previous version. (Though roasting it first before adding to the Dutch oven seems like just a way to dirty another … [Read more...]

Review: Le Creuset Round French Oven

September 24, 2010 (Updated March 20, 2014) by
Review

Is it wrong to get emotional about a pot? 'Cause if it's wrong, I don't want to be right. I've seen people rave about their Le Creuset pots for years. I know cast iron is good. I know enameled cast iron is better. (For some things.) But this? This thing will make you understand why people used to eat pot roast every Sunday. It's just that good. … [Read more...]

How To Make Pot Roast

September 9, 2010 (Updated March 20, 2014) by
Beef, Dinner ,

Yes, I've done pot roast before. But that was in a crock pot. (Oops, I mean a "slow cooker". Crock-Pot is a brand name.) Now that I've got a Dutch oven*, I've got a new method. It's faster, easier, clean-up is easier, and the results are at least as good. Gotta love that. * Technically Le Creuset call theirs a "French oven". Find me anyone outside their company who calls it that and maybe I'll be number 2. But until then ... it's a Dutch oven. So let it be written, so let it be done. … [Read more...]

How To Make Potted Chicken

September 7, 2010 (Updated January 30, 2015) by
Dinner, Fowl , , ,

My first thought when I tasted this was, "This doesn't taste like Italian to me. Maybe French." Jenn agreed. But her father, Lou -- whose mother and six sisters were all born in Italy -- said, "No, that's what Italian tasted like when I was growing up." I cook tomato sauce with beef or sausage in it all the time. I don't usually do it with chicken. But this, the ingredients and the method, is exactly how Nana, Sentina, Coca, Josephine, Bertha, Nora and Perrina used to cook. … [Read more...]