Lemon Chicken, Green Zebra Tomatoes and Black Olives — Poulet au citron avec tomates vertes et olives noires
Je veux de la viande tendre !
Give me some Tender Meat!
When it comes to eating savory food, hearty plat uniques are what I prefer the best. I might be saying this about a lot of dishes thinking about it, but I assume this is bound to happen for anyone as attached to la bonne bouffe (good grub) as I am.
When I resumed my meat consumption a few years ago, instead of favoring lean meats, I developed a pretty clear tie to more fatty meats, as well as red meat versus white. I suppose that because my body was deprived from meat for over eight years, my internal biological clock rewired itself in response to it. “Give me some blood!” is what it cried for. Hence, I currently prefer to eat more fatty meats. Because they are juicier too, aren’t they?
Les plats uniques — Everything in One Dish
Plats uniques, commonly known as Plats complets, have a special place in my cooking. At home, my mum used to prepare this type of food a lot. Not only was it good, and much better réchauffé (reheated) the second day, but it was also a practical way for her to plan meals while she was working a full time job. To this day, despite the fact that she no longer works but enjoys a deserved retraite (retirement), she has not changed her cooking habits. Do I seem to complain? Not at all, I am absolutely in love with it. Between her canard à l’orange, couscous algérien, hachis parmentier, blanquette de veau, pot-au-feu, I do not know which one I can say is my favorite. Whenever I visit, the dilemna to choose only one is always as hard as ever. I want them all.
Brining Meat — Saumurage de la viande
Now that I enjoy meat again, I am yet much more pinailleuse (picky) about it. Above all, I will always rate a dish according to how tender the meat is. Over a year ago, I discovered the brining technique, which I started to use while preparing chicken. The results were instantaneous. In a few words, I would not go back. Fair enough, I might not always plan or have enough time to include this step while preparing my meat, but when I do, it becomes a must. Brining chicken really makes the meat much more tender.
Even if I am not an expert in understanding and knowing the many details involved into the brining process, my research led to some basic steps which I followed successfully. Plus, they are easy: mix water with salt and sugar, immerse your chicken in this broth, cover and place in the fridge before waiting for a few hours. And, the longer the better, with a minimum of 1 hour advised per lb of meat.
Lemon Chicken, Green Zebra Tomatoes and Black Olives — Poulet au citron avec tomates vertes et olives noires
This dish brings together a lot of flavors that I particularly like. Between the lemon, sage, black olives, the French beans and succulent Green Zebra tomatoes, it has to find a place on your table before it is no longer possible to find those wonderfully tasty tomatoes. There is absolutely no difficulty in making the dish. In many ways, it is as if it was making tout seul, on its own. Magic? How can it possibly be so easy?
The brining.
I think.
Many more knowledgeable cooks than myself will tell me whether this is right, but while I am still ignorant as to why it is a successful dish, I just ignore it and enjoy.
You need:
- 4 chicken legs chicken (2 lbs)
- 3 oz black olives
- 1 lemon and a half
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1 Tbsp sage leaves, chopped
- 14 oz green beans
- 4 to 5 green Heirloom tomatoes (Green Zebra)
- Pepper
For the brine:
Count about 1 quart water for 1 lb of chicken.
- 2 quarts of cold water = 8 US cups
- 1/2 cup Kosher salt
- 3 Tbsp sea salt
- 4 Tbsp fine sugar
Steps:
Brining the Chicken:
- Cut your chicken legs in 2 pieces each.
- Mix the water with the salt and sugar, and immerse the chicken in it.
- Cover and place in the fridge for a min of 2 hours.
The Lemon Chicken Recipe:
- Preheat the oven at 350 F.
- In a bowl, mix together the honey, juice of 1 lemon, olive oil and chopped sage leaves, and pour over the chicken.
- Place the chicken legs in an oven dish with the marinade. Add the quartered tomatoes and half of a lemon cut in slices.
- Add the olives. Place in the oven and cook for 1 hour.
- In the meantime, blanch the washed and cleaned French beans for 15 mns in boiling salted water, and rinse them under cold water. Keep them on the side.
- 10 min before the end of the chicken cooking time, add them in the dish.
I served this plat mijoté with plain polenta.
Ingrédients :
- 4 cuisses de poulet (environ 900 g)
- 90 g d’olives noires
- 1 1/2 citrons
- 50 ml d’huile d’olive
- 1 càs de miel liquide
- 1 càs de feuilles de sauge, ciselées
- 400 g de haricots verts fins
- 4 à 5 tomates vertes Heirloom (Green Zebra)
- Poivre
Pour la saumure :
Comptez environ 1 litre d’eau pour 450 g de poulet
- 2 litres d’eau froide
- 100 g de sel Cacher
- 3 càs de sel de mer
- 4 càs de sucre fin
Étapes :
Le saumurage du poulet :
- Coupez vos cuisses de poulet en deux.
- Mélangez l’eau avec les sels et le sucre et placez-y les morceaux de poulet.
- Couvrez et mettez au frigidaire pendant un minimum de deux heures.
La recette du poulet au citron :
- Préchauffez votre four à 180 C.
- Mélangez le miel, le jus d’1 citron, l’huile d’olive avec la sauge et versez sur le poulet.
- Placez les cuisses de poulet dans un plat allant au four avec la marinade.
- Ajoutez les quartiers de tomates et la moitié d’1 citron coupé en quartiers.
- Ajoutez les olives et mettez le plat au four et faites cuire pendant 1 heure.
- Pendant ce temps, blanchissez vos haricots verts dans de l’eau bouillante salée, pendant 15 mns. Rinsez-les sous de l’eau froide et gardez-les de côté.
- 10 mns avant la fin de la cuisson du poulet, rajoutez les haricots dans le plat et remettez au four.
J’ai servi ce plat mijoté avec de la polenta nature.
Hi Bea, how tasty this looks. I don’t care about fat or not, I luv meat. I will eat any meat at any time. Fatty meat is delicious. I wish I could have a tasting of your so simple and elegant dish. Wow!
Dianka
Comment by Dianka — On September, 19th, 2006 at 6:35 pm
Bea, you know exactly how to make my mouth water! This is the perfect plate, everything you need and want all in the one dish, its perfect.
Comment by jenjen — On September, 19th, 2006 at 10:16 pm
Ah–so lovely. The colors are brilliant. And I like fatty meat too! If I’m going to eat it–I want it to be full of flavor and juicy!
Comment by sher — On September, 19th, 2006 at 11:32 pm
I feel badly for the vegetarians out there that might “cringe” at all of the words pertaining to MEAT and how YUMMY it is.
Me loves meat too!
Now Bea I’ve never heard of green zebra tomatoes. Will have to look into that to see if I can find seeds…
Comment by rowena — On September, 20th, 2006 at 1:27 am
WAOW Bea!! Les photos sont magnifiques, il ne me reste plus qu’à imaginer le goût!!! Je suppose que c’était succulent!!! Peux-tu me dire quel appareil numérique tu utilises?
Comment by Clairechen — On September, 20th, 2006 at 1:42 am
Les bons parfums méditérranéen envahissent déjà ma cuisine!
Comment by Mayacook — On September, 20th, 2006 at 2:01 am
Des plats complets ainsi cuisinés, je suis toujours partante, quelle chance d’avoir une maman qui t’as ainsi appris les basics de la cuisine du terroir! moi, je suis totalement novice et là, je viens d’apprendre en te lisant l’utilité de la saumure,et tu penses bien,je me suis empressée de noter, toutes ces saveurs me donnent l’eau à la bouche de bon matin!
Comment by Alhya — On September, 20th, 2006 at 2:12 am
very nice! I’ve seen those tomatoes in magazines, but never knew what they were called, thanks for sharing!
Comment by Kat — On September, 20th, 2006 at 2:13 am
trés appétissant ce poulet, il faut que je trouve des tomates vertes et j’essaie.
Comment by sylvieaa — On September, 20th, 2006 at 2:45 am
c’est très créatif, bravo !
Comment by elodie — On September, 20th, 2006 at 2:51 am
Ca fait longtemps que je vois ces techniques de saumure sur les blogs anglo-saxons, surtout aux alentours de Thanksgiving, tu me donnes vraiment envie d’essayer.
Comment by Gracianne — On September, 20th, 2006 at 5:14 am
scrumptious looking chicken bea! i simply love this one
Comment by Evan — On September, 20th, 2006 at 6:00 am
The photos just get better and better, Bea. Thank you.
Comment by Lucy Vanel — On September, 20th, 2006 at 8:06 am
This looks sensational – the colours in your photographs are sensational, as is the arrangement and the food itself. Oo, that bit of chicken with the crispy skin is making me drool!
Comment by Ellie — On September, 20th, 2006 at 8:24 am
After my fiasco with chicken legs, I think I’ll be sticking with thighs for a while!
Comment by Jeff — On September, 20th, 2006 at 8:33 am
Mais pourquoi chez toi les plats sont si beaux et que chez moi, ça fait potée ?!!! Plus sérieusement, il est difficile de prendre une belle photo de plat mijoté, donc bravo ! Pour la recette, elle est top, je tremperais bien un bout de pain dans la sauce
Comment by Lilo — On September, 20th, 2006 at 8:39 am
Meat rocks! I might have to give brining a go soon…
Comment by Eggy — On September, 20th, 2006 at 10:07 am
Hmmm, this is perfect reading for scrummy lunchtime fantasy!
Comment by s'kat — On September, 20th, 2006 at 11:42 am
Wow….this looks so delicious…I enjoy eating chicken and will try this! Happy Cooking
Comment by Jann Mumford — On September, 20th, 2006 at 7:45 pm
Very simple and nice. If you didn’t feel like brining then sub with preserved lemons.
Comment by James Van Dyk — On September, 20th, 2006 at 8:54 pm
your recipes are gorgeous … I love olive, tomatoe, olive oil and lemon combinations.
Comment by Becca — On September, 20th, 2006 at 11:16 pm
such vibrant colors! the lemon and the green beans look beautiful together
Comment by connie — On September, 21st, 2006 at 6:38 am
Thanks to all for your comments. I am glad you enjoyed the chicken recipe. I also hope you will give brining a try, as it really makes a difference. Make sure NOT to add more salt, as one thing I forgot to mention, the meat is then salted with the brine!
Comment by Béa — On September, 21st, 2006 at 7:48 am
Mmmm yum… bring on those summer tomatoes!
Comment by Bron — On September, 21st, 2006 at 2:27 pm
I made it. Used canned green beans, canned sliced olives, and canned whole tomatoes. It was still incredible. Plus des plats complete, s’il vous plait.
Comment by Russ — On November, 2nd, 2006 at 8:04 pm
[...] – 4 – Lemon Chicken, Green Zebra Tomatoes and Black Olives [...]
Pingback by La Tartine Gourmande » Blog Archive » Favorites 2006 — Favoris 2006 — On January, 12th, 2007 at 11:03 pm
mmm…this looks so good! i was looking for ideas for the luscious green zebra tomato i got in my CSA box. And this recipe uses my sage and haricots verts too!!! i’m going home to make this a tout de suite!
Comment by christine — On September, 5th, 2008 at 5:48 pm
[...] and I remembered the old recipe. I found another recipe to replace the lost one on a website called la tartine gourmande, I did not really keep to the recipe or quantities and added the [...]
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