Ever since I saw a mouth-watering photograph of pastitsio, I’ve been more than a little preoccupied with Greek cooking.  I was trolling Recipezaar for ideas and stumbled across this incredible recipe for chicken pieces marianted in lemon juice and braised in a rich tomato sauce with white wine, allspice, cinnamon, and cloves.  

Credit: John Carrington/Savannah Daily News

The recipe’s author, ”evelyn/athens,” is an accomplished cooking teacher in Greece who has almost 1,400 recipes posted to the site.  I trust this one is solid, and hope to give it a shot later this week.

-1 (3 lb.)  whole chicken, quartered
-1/4 c. fresh lemon juice
-1 small dried red chili
-1/2 tsp. ground allspice
-1/2 tsp. oregano, crumbled
-1 small cinnamon stick
-1 bay leaf
-3 peppercorns
-2 whole cloves
-1 (1 1/2 lb) can whole tomatoes, drained and chopped
-1/2 c. water
-1/8 c. tomato paste
-1/4 c. dry white wine
-scant 1/4 c. olive oil
-1 Tbsp. butter

1. Arrange chicken in single layer in baking dish. Cover with lemon juice and salt and pepper. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour, turning occasionally.

2. Combine all the remaining ingredients in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook until sauce thickens, stirring occasionally, 40 minutes.

3. Heat oil with butter in large skillet over medium-high heat. Drain chicken and pat dry; brown on all sides. Return to baking dish.

4. Preheat oven to 350°F.

5. Pour sauce over chicken, cover with foil. Bake until chicken is tender, about 40 minutes.

6. Discard spices and serve with buttered pasta, such as penne or rigatoni, or steamed rice.

Note: I’ve seen other recipes that include 1 choped onion, a potentially nice addition.

I don’t know how authentic this recipe is exactly—it started with a wikipedia entry* and combines elements of various recipes I found online.  Regardless, pork carnitas is the perfect recipe for a Saturday or Sunday.  It takes a while to cook, but most of that is “passive” time in the oven.  And the result?  Tender, crispy, intensely flavorful shredded meat for your tacos, enchiladas, or sandwiches!

-pork butt (aka Boston Butt; approx 2-3 lbs.)
-salt and pepper (lots)
-vegetable oil
-3/4 lg. onion, chopped
-4 cloves garlic, minced
-3/4-1 c. white wine
-1 c. beef broth
-2-3 c. milk (or enough to cover the meat halfway AFTER you’ve added the broth)
-3 bay leaves
-4 cloves
-4-6 juniper berries (optional, but they’re good)
-1 tsp. dried oregano
-1/2 tsp. cinnamon
-1/2 tsp. ground coriander
-1/2 tsp. cumin
-chipotle pepper, jalapeno (fresh, not pickled), or hot pepper sauce, to taste

garnishes:
-a few sprigs cilantro
-tomato
-salsa
-crema or sour cream
-lime

1. Preheat oven to 250F. Liberally salt and pepper the roast on all sides. Brown well in a deep oven-safe casserole dish on all sides (this takes about 10 min.) Remove roast.

2. Add sliced onions to the rendered fat. Cook until translucent. Add garlic, cook until fragrant (don’t brown).

3. Deglaze pan with white wine and broth, scraping up brown bits. Return roast to pan.

4. Pour milk over meat (it might curdle; don’t worry). Add in the remaining spices. Bring to a boil. Cover.

5. Move to preheated oven. Cook covered on low heat for 3-4 hrs. Baste occasionally.

6. When meat is falling apart, remove from pot using tongs (leave fat and broth). Shred into bite-size pieces on a large cookie sheet.

7. Broil meat 8-10 min. until beginning to brown and crisp up.

Serve in small tortillas with chopped cilantro, tomato, salsa, crema or sour cream, and lime wedges to squeeze over.

*wikipedia mentions that cola (Coke) can be substituted for the milk. que tradicional!

Let me preface this recipe by saying, if you’re a French food purist, you might want to look away.  I’m sure this recipe isn’t 100% authentic, but I’m also sure it’s delicious.  So just…deal.

That said, I hope you enjoy!  This one is worth the work.  If you’re feeling really extravagant (read: can consume tons of calories in a sitting), it’s also delicious made with turkey wings.

 -4 chicken thighs and 4 chicken legs, skin intact (add or subtract a piece depending on the size of your skillet/casserole)
-2 med. carrots
-1/2 med. turnip
-3/4 of a pint of white mushrooms
-1/2 a med. Vidalia onion
-1/3 of a pound of bacon (easier to slice if semi-frozen)
-2 small shallots, peeled
-3 large cloves garlic, peeled
-several sprigs of fresh thyme
-1 sprig fresh rosemary
-a few sprigs parsley
-4 bay leaves
-3/4 can chicken broth
-3/4 bottle French red— a cheap Cotes du Rhone works well
-1 tsp. margarine or butter
-about 1/3 c. vermouth or brandy, or sherry or a sweet white wine (can be omitted)
-fresh ground black pepper

-1 1/2 tsp. cornstarch dissolved in water

-a large heavy bottomed skillet or enameled stovetop-safe casserole, ideally cast-iron

1.  Cut 1/3 lb. of regular American bacon into fine dice. Fry in the pan until golden. Remove to a dish, leaving the drippings.

2.  Salt and pepper the chicken. Cook in the bacon drippings until lightly golden on both sides. Remove the chicken to the bacon dish.

3.  While the chicken colors, dice the onion, carrots, and turnip. Slice the garlic. Add all three to the pan with the drippings. Cook until the onions are translucent.

4.  Return the chicken and bacon to the pan. Pour in 3 cups or so of the red wine and deglaze the pan, scrapping the bottom. Add 1/2 a can of the chicken broth.

5.  Halve or quarter mushrooms and shallots (they will cook down considerably). In a small pan, sautee them in the margarine and deglaze w/the vermouth/liquor. Add to the pan w/ the chicken and vegetables.

6.  Add the rosemary sprig, bay leaves, chopped parsley, and de-stemmed thyme. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer 45 min-1 hr. Add more red wine and broth as needed to keep everything almost submerged. Stir and turn chicken periodically.

7.  Remove the chicken and strain out the vegetables (reserve). Add more wine and broth, if you like, to make more sauce. Turn the heat up to high and rapidly boil the sauce to reduce, about 8 min. For thicker sauce, stir in some cornstarch dissolved in a little cold water.

8.  Return the chicken and vegetables to the pan, heat through. Remove bay leaves and rosemary sprig.

Serve with spaetzle, rice, boiled potato, or your favorite noodle.  Barley might even be good.