Rosemary Chicken

I justed watched Jacques Pepin in an old episode of Jacques and Julia Cooking at Home cut up a whole raw chicken. I had to pick my jaw up off the floor seeing him master this feat in less than 30 seconds. How I envy that skill...and that knife!

This recipe calls for chicken thighs that have been deboned, skin kept on. I don't think that I have quite the touch that Jacques does, unfortunately. In the time that it took me to remove one thigh bone, I think he could have cut up 21 chickens. The saddest part was that despite all my work, my sauté pan proved once again to be my mortal enemy. The majority of the skins stuck to my pan and ripped off. And let me tell you, though not the healthiest thing you can eat, the crispy skin of this chicken is what makes this recipe. Not only is it golden brown and beautiful, but it tastes amazing.

Rosemary Chicken

8 chicken thighs

3 tbsp dried rosemary

2 tsp dried lemon zest

2 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp freshly ground pepper

olive oil cooking spray

2/3 cup dry white wine

1. Remove bones and excess fat from chicken thighs, leaving skin intact. Combine rosemary, zest, salt, and pepper in a small cup; rub mixture over chicken.

2. Spray a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and place over medium heat. Add chicken, skin side up, and cook 5 minutes. Turn chicken skin side down. Place a heavy cast-iron skillet over chicken (I used a dutch oven) and continue to cook for 10 to 12 minutes, or until skin is crisp and chicken is cooked through.

3. Transfer chicken to serving plates. Pour wine into skillet, raise heat to high, and boil 2 minutes, scraping up browned bits from bottom of skillet with a wooden spoon; spoon over chicken.

The Verdict: I need a new skillet. Because while the thighs remaining without skin were delicious, the cripsy-skinned thighs were to die for.

I was lucky to have company over for dinner this night. My friend described the crisped chicken as having an almost maple syrup taste. I love citrus and salt together; the two together make tastes really pop. The kids seemed to enjoy the chicken as well. My friend's toddler ate quite a bit without hesitation. My child was too busy showing off for the other toddler to really tuck into the meal.

Another thing I like about this recipe is that if you get yourself a bottle of dried lemon peel (which I'm finding I'm using constantly), you probably have everything on hand. The original recipe, from Redbook, called for fresh rosemary. I hardly bother with fresh, though I can appreciate the differences in taste. Too often I find fresh herbs go to waste, though I suppose that I could freeze them. I'll consider that for next time and let you know how it works out.

Now to buy a new skillet...