Braised Chicken with Porcini Mushrooms, Prunes & Shallots

February 11, 2008
Braised Chicken with Porcini Mushrooms, Shallots & Prunes
Braised Chicken with Porcini Mushrooms, Shallots & Prunes
With happy hour ending at six o'clock most places, who has time between working, working more and commuting (besides me) to make it? My solution? Have happy hour at home. I find that it's nice just to have a girls' night IN once in a while. A few bottles of wine and a cozy meal and you're well on your way to a successful home happy hour. Friends can catch up without screaming over techno music or spending all their time waiting at the bar. This way you can go into lounge mode and really catch-up on the haps.
On this night, the crock pot was my best friend. I was able to stay out of the kitchen and right next to my glass of pinot. :) I picked up a few organic free-range chicken legs and breasts on my way home from work. A quick browning and into the crock pot they went along with some re-hydrated prunes and Porcinis (soaking liquid and all). I also sauteed a few whole shallots in the chicken fat and threw those in. To go along with the sweetness of the prunes, I paired it with some purple sticky rice. It has a great chewy texture and a cool color too.
I learned a lesson on that night. I was under the impression that the crock pot was a sort of magic cooking machine, but boy was I wrong. The legs turned out juicy and flavorful (as expected), but the breasts.. ugh. Dry, dry, dry. You really have to watch out for white meat drying out, even in a crock pot. I should have taken them out sooner. A big food blooper on my part. Very embarrassing, especially with company over. Lesson learned.

The moral of the story:
Host a happy hour at home, using a tried and true recipe. Dark meat reigns supreme.

9 Comments

  • Purplesque

    12 Feb 2008 04:02 am

    [this is good] Gorgeous. Love the contrast of the rice with the chicken.

    Reply

  • Food Rockz Man

    12 Feb 2008 06:02 am

    It really is bizarre how similar our tastes are.  An hour ago, before reading this post, I posted on my blog about the braised chicken I made Saturday–though it was a very different braise than this one.  But this looks delicious . . . much prettier plating than mine, with the doily and all!

    Reply

  • ♥ Lady M ♥

    12 Feb 2008 11:02 am

    [this is good] sounds like a fun time at home…great idea!

    Reply

  • reesie

    13 Feb 2008 12:02 am

    Dark meat rocks!!

    Also, great food photo. I’ve been meaning to tell you that I’ve noticed that your food photos just get better and better!

    Reply

  • Singing Horse

    13 Feb 2008 08:02 pm

    Yeah, I agree with what reesie said.  How do you make your photos look so good?  What camera do you use?  I was wondering if I should get a SLR camera.  Is it necessary?  Or I should just study photography? 😛

    Reply

  • julie

    13 Feb 2008 10:02 pm

    Thanks Singing Horse. :) Being a newbie photographer, that really means a lot. The way to go, especially for food photography, is an SLR with full manual control (I use a Canon 20D). Hope that helps.

    Reply

  • Singing Horse

    16 Feb 2008 06:02 am
    Thanks for the tip!  I guess I’ll get an SLR camera soon then.  I’ve been considering it for a while now.
    Reply

  • Olivia

    19 Feb 2008 06:02 am

    YAY for Girls’ Night IN!!! It’s my favorite thing to do!

    Reply

  • Ivysgrandkid

    27 Feb 2008 05:02 pm

    [this is good] you area a killer chef!

    Reply

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