No really, sometimes I think it’s more fun when I only have a vague idea of what I am going to do before I go into the kitchen to test it.
Now, I usually go into the testing phase of a recipe with, at the very least, an ingredient list and a general idea of how to cook the ingredients that I am using. At that point, I’ve done my research, figuring out which ingredient combinations to use, different methods for incorporating a variety of flavors, and even contingency plans (because yes, there are times where things don’t quite go as they should).
But, as much as I love researching, once I walk into the kitchen, that’s when the real fun begins. Cooking is, in its essence, a rather fantastic science experiment. You start with an ingredient – and thus a predominant flavor – and build from there.
Not too long ago, I began a journey to stock my pantry with a variety of grains, beans, spices, and other non-perishables, to give myself the maximum amount of possibilities in turning out dishes. In that buying spree, I purchased 4 bags of course polenta. I’ve always meant to use it, but it never really felt right until this recipe.
Since this is “meat week,” I knew I wanted to start with chicken. First, because its ubiquitous and everyone eats it, and second, since my husband has a red meat allergy and, well, I could be allergic to anything at any given time, our meat options are currently limited to birds.
Side note – did you know that pork is technically considered a red meat? We found out the hard way that “the other white meat” was a marketing conspiracy. Yup.
Anyway, chicken. Specifically, chicken breast. You know, the one everyone eats but everyone secretly hates, because no one really cooks it well to begin with. I actually happen to love the flavor myself (I’m weird – I also hate dark meat chicken). When I decided upon chicken, it just became the perfect time to make the polenta.
Many people prefer fine-grain polenta, because the end result is more silky (think cream of wheat cereal). I actually find the course-grain polenta to be much more interesting to eat. It retains more texture, and therefore is much more interesting and fun to eat.
What goes well with chicken and polenta? The simple answer is greens – thick, meaty greens that stand up to cooking. It so happens that chard is in season in Arizona at the moment, and they looked beautiful at the market – chard is amazing raw, but it also gets super tender when cooked.
Between the chicken and chard and polenta, we have a lot of sweet, earthy notes. I wanted something acidic to add another layer of flavor into the dish, as well as brighten it up a bit. The obvious choice here would be wine. Except, neither my husband nor I drink, and I have pretty bad reactions around alcohol, so I can’t use it in cooking.
Enter verjus. Verjus is the juice of unripe grapes, best known for its use in making Dijon mustard (it’s what gives the mustard its distinct flavor). It also happens to be a great replacement for wine in recipes (though it is a bit more tart, so you’ll have to adjust accordingly), and it comes in red and white varieties! I get mine from Amazon (because, you know, Prime is life).
For this recipe, I used red verjus, and added some balsamic vinegar for a touch more sweetness. If you have never gotten real balsamic (which is more of a syrup than a liquid), you are missing out. It will change your life.
All in all, the recipe was actually quite simple to make, although, in full transparency, it’s time consuming (mostly because of the polenta, which takes an hour or two to cook). The results? Magical.
Roasted Chicken with Braised Chard and Polenta
Ingredients
For Mushroom Stock
- 25 cups water
- 1 oz porcini mushrooms dried
- 1 onion, medium cut in half
- 10 sprigs thyme fresh
- salt to taste
For Polenta
- 2.5 cups polenta course
- 12 cups Mushroom Stock above
- 2 tbsp olive oil
For Braise
- 1/2 lb mushrooms European (crimini, chesnut)
- 2 shallots diced
- 4 cloves garlic sliced thinly
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 2 bunches red chard center ribs removed, sliced thin
- 3/4 cup red verjus
- 2-3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- salt to taste
- 1 cup pine nuts toasted
For Chicken
- 1 lb chicken breasts skinless/boneless
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
Instructions
- Season chicken breast with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside in refrigerator at least 30 minutes
- Prepare stock: place dried mushrooms, onion (cut in half), and thyme into stock pot with 25 cups of water (at least). Bring to boil, and then simmer until desired flavor strength is reached (usually 45-60 minutes). Strain stock.
- While stock is cooking, slice garlic thinly, and dice shallots. Remove the center rib from the leaves of chard, and slice thinly so chard is in ribbons. Set aside.
- Place 12 cups of stock into a pot and bring to boil. Once boiling, add polenta in a steady stream, whisking vigorously to incorporate. Turn heat to low. Once mixture starts to thicken, stop whisking and leave at low simmer to cook until tender (usually 1-2 hours, depending on polenta used - cooking times may differ if fine polenta or instant polenta is used. Consult package directions). At end of cooking, mix in 2T of olive oil or butter. Set aside - do not cool completely, or polenta will become firm and hard to serve.
- In a separate pot, sweat the shallots in 2T of olive oil at medium heat (season with salt). Once onions are translucent, add garlic and mushrooms, stirring frequently. Once mushrooms are mostly cooked, add in leftover olive oil, and chard in sections. When chard begins to wilt, turn heat down and add verjus. Stir until chard is completely tender. Add 2-3T of balsamic vinegar, to taste, and season with salt if needed. Set aside.
- In a saute pan, add 2T of olive oil and bring pan to medium heat. Once pan is hot, place chicken breast in pan, and leave until outside is seared (brown). Flip and repeat. Transfer chicken to oven-safe dish and cook at 350 degrees until chicken is cooked through (juices are clear).
- Plate: spoon polenta down, then chard mixture, and top with chicken. Garnish with toasted pine nuts and scallions.
