Chicken in a Pot "Jambalaya" Style

Bad-bird-in-a-pot meets Tom's Jambalaya. Yum.

In this dish, the classic Jambalaya ingredients and flavors play the supporting cast for the chicken. The rice is an accent, rather than the base of the dish, and small amounts of ham, sausage, and shrimp add texture and flavor. Tom also held back on the heat, using crystal sauce but no cayennne. The crystal sauce goes in most of our chicken-in-a-pot dishes--the acidity helps brighten braised and pressure-cooked dishes and we like the extra kick of the chiles.

How much the sauce is reduced at the end is a matter of preference--sometimes we serve this type of dish with a bunch of brothy sauce, other times it's reduced to just coat the pieces. Largely depends on how much liquid you start with and how patient you are at the end.

Ingredients:

• 2 Chicken legs/thighs and 2 1/2 breasts


• Holy trinity: Chopped green bell pepper, 1/2 onion, 1 or 2 stalks celery


• Garlic


• Tomato Sauce


• Parsley


• Ham (1/2 c cubed)


• Andouille Sausage (1 3oz link, sliced)


• Converted Rice


• Medium White Shrimp (1/4 lb, cut into pieces)


• Wine/Beer


• Herbs & Spices: oregano, bay leaf, clove, allspice, cumin, pimenton, black pepper


• Crystal Sauce

Process:

1. Season the chicken with salt, pepper, pimenton


2. Brown chicken in heavy pot & offload


3. Brown sausage and ham and add tomato sauce & veggies


4. Deglaze with wine/beer


5. Season with oregano, bay leaf, cumin, tiny amount of clove & allspice, crystal sauce, black pepper. (Salt, if needed, but remember the cured meats add a lot.)


6. Return chicken to pot


7. Add water to almost cover


8. Bake covered for 45 minutes in a 425 oven


9. Return to stove and simmer uncovered


10. Add a small amount of converted rice


11. Cook until rice is cooked and liquid is reduced to desired consistency


12. Season to taste and finish with chopped parsley

Puerco al Coloradito

First time we've done this from scratch instead of starting with leftover Coloradito sauce. Got the pork tri-tip from Lunardi's again--it's the perfect cut for this dish.

Ingredients:

• Pork tri-tip, cut into rough slices & seasoned w/salt & pepper


• 1 strip bacon, diced


• 2 jalapeno peppers, diced


• 1/2 onion, diced


• Garlic, minced


• Cilantro, chopped


• Veal stock


• Posole (just a little)


• New mex and guajillo peppers, reconstituted & peeled


• Canned pinquito beans, drained


• 1/2 Can of tomatoes, chopped


• Thyme, Oregano, Cumin, Ground Clove, True Cinammon, Cocoa powder (and salt, pepper, & crystal sauce to taste, of course)


• Honey


• White wine

Process:

1. Blenderize the chile flesh w/2 cups stock


2. Saute pork in pressure cooker with bacon (don't over-brown, do in batches if needed)


3. Add chile sauce, chopped tomatoes, posole, crystal sauce, and aromatics (onion, garlic, thyme, oregano, cumin, clove, cinammon, cocoa) to pressure cooker


4. Pressure cook for 30+ mins (until meat is shreddable)


5. Plate meat & keep warm


6. Return sauce to blender and process until smooth. (Cover blender with parchment with a couple holes & a towel.)


7. Return sauce to pan, whisk in some ground chimayo chile, if needed


8. Season to taste and reduce to desired consistency


9. Finish with honey, serve over meat, and garnish with cilantro

Wine:

1. Hansen 2005 Viognier--not subtle, but a good apertif


2. Up-A-Ritas w/the food (Casadores tequila, hangar one mandarin, orange bitters, lemon juice, splenda)