Oregano and White Wine Marinated Chicken Breast

I decided on chicken early because I wanted fresh stock.  When I got home I boned the breasts and started the stock.  I was going to put the breasts in a plastic bag in the fridge but I stopped and reached for the marinator instead. What have I got to marinate chicken with.....fresh oregano! I cut a handful of oregano in the garden and got out several cloves of garlic. I finely chopped both together. First I salted the breasts all over then added the herbs, 1-2 tablespoons olive oil, generous quarter cup white wine and some mixed ground pepper.  I sucked the air out of the marinator with the Seal-A-Meal and let the chicken steep for 1 to 2 hours. Longer if time allows.

The rice had salt and olive oil but this time I also added maybe 5 drops of lemon juice.  The broccoli was steamed and finished in olive oil.  The salad was different too.  I forgot to buy a tomato so I decided to completely change the salad.

Vinaigrette

1 tbsp olive oil

1-2 tsp white wine vinegar

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp chopped fresh oregano

mixed fresh ground pepper

1 clove garlic, smashed and chopped

Whisk and toss the lettuce and cucumber to dress.

I cooked the breasts over the burner on the BBQ for 2 minutes each side, then put them off the heat in the centre to roast. The BBQ thermometer read 400-450ºF so it was hot.  It took 25 minutes to cook the breasts.

We have been eating food with dry herbs all winter so my first taste of the chicken was a real surprise. It was moist with the taste of Chardonnay cooked into it and sweetened with the fresh oregano. The garlic hid in the background supporting the main characters. I couldn't taste lemon in the rice but it tasted better than white rice ever has before.  I think I got just enough acid from the 5 drops of lemon to bring out the natural flavour in the basmati rice.

I managed to not over cook the broccoli this time and Fern never complained it was cold, finally I got it right. The chicken and rice were so good I can't wait to make it again.  I really liked the salad this way too, although a tomato wouldn't hurt.

Sole with Lemon Sauce

I went to the store with some kind of fish in mind.  Save On Foods had some nice sole on special so I picked up a couple of small packs. While I was preparing the fish I realized that one of the sole fillets was in fact a snapper fillet. I quickly pulled all the bones out and prepared it the same way, salt, pepper and flour. I already had potatoes boiling and carrots steaming. I tore up a head of lettuce and sliced a third of an English cucumber into the salad bin. I diced up a tomato and readied the dressing.

Vinaigrette

1 tbsp olive oil

1-2 tsp white wine vinegar

1/2 tsp salt

pepper

1/4 tsp dijon mustard

Whisk and toss.

I made a lemon sauce to go under the fish.  One teaspoon flour and two teaspoons olive oil in a sauce pan. Cook the flour taste off for a minute then remove from heat and add a tablespoon of stock, lemon juice and some water.  Back on the heat, add some salt and have a taste. Thin the sauce out with lemon juice, water and salt tasting as you go. 

I plated the sauce first and put the fish on top so it looked it's best. It was nice, almonds might have helped a bit but the toilet and sink are in the new bathroom, fully functional, so nothing could spoil my mood. Fern just mentioned that he liked the taste of snapper better than sole. That makes it easier to decide at the fish counter. A few short years ago I would have laughed if you asked me, "Does Fern have a favourite fish?"

Breaded Chicken Breast

Sanding and painting that bathroom, almost done. I boned my chicken breasts, fried the skins for the dogs and disposed of the bones. I haven't been making many sauces lately so don't need fresh stock all the time. I mixed up a teaspoon of onion powder with half a teaspoon of poultry seasoning and if I'd stopped there I would have been better off. I decided to add the flour to the herbs which robbed the mix of most of its flavour.  I salt first then should have coated with onion and poultry seasoning and then coat with flour. Next time. Anyway, I whisked up an egg and dipped the floured breasts in it then rolled them in bread crumbs. I sprayed the bread crumbs with oil so they'd brown a bit, it worked fairly well. I served my breast on a bed of mayonnaise. 

The rice is basmati done in the microwave. I put soy sauce on mine, Fern likes his plain. The broccoli was steamed for 3 minutes then run under cold water to stop cooking. Five minutes before plating I put the broccoli back in the pot with olive oil and a pinch of salt to finish cooking. The salad was a plain vinaigrette.

1 tbsp olive oil

1-2 tsp rice vinegar

1/2 tsp salt

black pepper

1/8 tsp mustard

It all tasted good and that's what counts. 

Cumin Cod

Frozen corn, mashed potatoes with a chive flower and fresh cod fillet. I wanted something a little different so I decided to try cumin on the fish.  I salted then sprinkled cumin over the fillet. Then I thought, onion powder would go well with the cumin so I sprinkled onion powder over top. Finally, I sprinkled flour over the fillet so it would brown. I should have put the onion powder on first because not enough came through. Otherwise it was a very pleasant meal. Fern said the fish was delicious.

Reheated Chicken

Same chicken, same buns. I didn't eat the buns so I don't know why I put them on the plate. The vegetables were steamed and finished in olive oil.  Mashed potatoes have just butter, salt and milk. 

Vinaigrette

1 tbsp olive oil

1-2 tsp white wine vinegar

salt

pepper

1/4 tsp dijon mustard

It feels like cheating but it's still a good meal.

Safeway Roasted Chicken Dinner

I got the tiles up in the shower ceiling. No time to shop or cook so I bought a Safeway Roasted Chicken Dinner with one whole chicken, two side dishes and four of the worst buns in town. Your local Safeway may have good buns so it's worth tasting one, once, just in case.  Their roasted chicken is always the best in town, I don't know why, maybe it's just better chicken to start with. I do prefer Safeway meat over the other chains.

Regular vinaigrette on the salad.  

1 tbsp olive oil 

1-2 tsp white wine vinegar

salt

pepper

1/4 tsp dijon mustard

Whisk, toss and serve.

Save On Pork Cutlet Again

For the  most part I prefer to season my own meat but so far Save On Foods meat department has managed to outdo me with their own pork breading. Since cutlets are on sale and I'm still tiling the bathroom, (No wonder it costs a fortune to put in a bathroom) I need fast and simple. This meal is even easier than prawns'n pasta.

The mashed potatoes are boiled in salted water then drained, mashed and hand whipped with butter, milk and a little salt. Don't over process potatoes as they turn to thick, unpalatable paste.

Right after peeling potatoes I peeled a carrot to go in the microwave with the frozen peas. They cook with a little water and teaspoon of olive oil. A little salt when they are done.

The secret to cooking breaded cutlets (or anything else for that matter) is to get the pan really hot before adding the meat.  If the pan isn't hot enough the meat sinks through the oil and sticks to the pan. A hot pan will cook the breading or meat before it sinks. Really hot but not smoking. Overheating olive oil turns it bitter. There must be heat blooms in the oil when you rock the pan, then add the meat. If the oil smokes, get another pan or wash that one and start again.

Vinaigrette

1 tbsp olive oil

1-2 tsp white wine vinegar

1/4 tsp dijon mustard

1/2 tsp salt

pepper

Slice up a tomato, whisk the vinaigrette and toss the salad and tomato till evenly coated. The cutlet is served with Fern's home made ketchup.

This is an under 30 minute meal, costs less than $3 per serving and tastes fantastic.