Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Therapeutic Cooking #1: Chicken and Mushrooms


Now that times are tough, I want to share with you an amazingly cost-effective (and therefore, therapeutic to your wallet) recipe: chicken and mushrooms.  And by "cost-effective," I mean "dirt cheap." Yes, that's pretty much all that there is, chicken, and mushrooms.  No frills, no nothing else.  But it tastes pretty good.

All you need to purchase is supermarket containers of regular white button mushrooms and cremini mushrooms (you know, the ones in styrofoam), four chicken thighs, and use items that you should already have in the fridge or pantry, such as milk, worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper.


First, place four chicken thighs (seasoned with salt), skin down, onto an unoiled skillet set on high heat. While the chicken thighs brown, use a moistened mushroom brush or paper towel and clean off the dirt from the mushrooms. When they are cleaned, slice them, checking on the progress of the chicken, and turning when brown. (You can actually overcook thighs, just make sure that the insides are no longer red.) Take the thighs out of the skillet, drain off all of the grease, and add 1/2 a chopped onion and 3 cloves of chopped garlic to the skillet, and fry until brown and translucent. Then, add the mushroom slices (I like to add the white mushrooms first, and cook them down a little), a splash of worcestershire sauce (~1 tbsp), and milk (preferably whole milk or cream, ~1/2 cup). You can even add ~1/4 cup of white wine, which is what I did here. Then, replace the thighs into the pan, and continue to heat until the mushrooms have cooked down and the chicken meat is cooked all the way through. Add salt to taste, pepper, and serve with rice or baked potatoes.


There you go! With just a few ingredients, you've got a really cheap, foolproof, and satisfying dinner. I would definitely classify something hearty, warming, simple, and as affordable as this, to be therapeutic. To me, at least.

17 comments:

  1. I have mushrooms that need to be cooked and this might be just the ticket. Thanks!

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  2. The dish looks awesome. I love anything chicken, so I definitely will be giving this a go. Btw the mushroom cleaner/brush is heaps cute =D

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  3. Can't go wrong with chicken and mushrooms! This looks fantastic.

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  4. I'm always looking for new chicken recipes to try - this is now on the top of my list. Thanks!

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  5. This looks like a wonderful dinner!
    I love anything w/ mushrooms!

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  6. GREAT looking combination.. I like your Chicken and Mushroom recipe.. I printed it and will try it out...

    Thanks

    Andy
    www.recipebuddys.com

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  7. Thanks for the recipe--it looks great.

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  8. Thanks for visiting Agent713, Linda, Sweet Bird, Chocolate Shavings, Leslie, Andrew Abraham, and PilgrimChick. I am so excited that you are going to try out the chicken + mushrooms. You can cook off more of the liquid (if it is too liquidy for you), or you could also add a bit of flour or cornstarch at the end, and blend it in the liquids to make it more gravy-like.

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  9. I love the crispy skin on the chicken! So awesome!

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  10. Made this last night and my husband called it 'magnificent' and said it was one of the best homemade meals he'd ever had. Generally he doesn't really wax poetic over food, so this one really was an awesome recipe!

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  11. I love crispy skin Mrs Ergül!

    Thank you so much for leaving a sweet message Jen! I think that it was mainly you that made the recipe delicious--I just gave some basic guidelines, but you took that and made an amazing dinner on your own! Good job!

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  12. great recipe! i think i will get the mushrooms and chicken to try it out :) is it ok to skip the wine and just pour the milk?

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  13. Definitely Xin, wine is not necessary. It just adds additional flavor. The mushrooms release a lot of liquid, and the cream (or whole milk) gives it a nice, creamy broth. Just taste it at the end and make sure the chicken is cooked through and the mushrooms are not tough (from being cooked too long).

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  14. 'Stomach Growls' - definitely!!! I'm starving now!!

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  15. absolutely beautiful! I will be adding this blog to my list!

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  16. I was looking for something to do with my chicken thighs tonight and you've given me the perfect idea. Thanks!

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  17. JR Scheeeeeeibe said..... Haven't make it yet but will make it for New Years Eve dinner. We'll see if its good....

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