blue artichoke

Did you know that Missouri has a state dinosaur?

I saw it last weekend, wandering around Powell Gardens, just east of Kansas City. The Hadrosaur or "duck billed" dinosaur is one of the least fearsome of dinosaurs. Big, yes, but a herbivore with 1,000+ teeth to tear through tough vegetation. It wandered around Missouri 75 million years ago. I'm glad that our state legislators can find things to keep themselves busy. Designating official state dinosaurs, fossils, vertebrates, butterflies and the like are a great way to earn their salaries during the slow months.

Saturday was an ideal day for wandering around a botanical garden discovering dinosaurs. The temperature was in the low 80s and windy. There wasn't a whole lot in bloom, but even the dead and dying plants were really interesting. My favorite was a field of thick grasses with seed pods that rattled like maracas. I was tempted to bring home a few seed pods to plant in my yard, just to see what they look like alive; I refrained.

Saturday night I went to see Peter & the Wolf, aka Red Hunter, a guy GC and I have known for years. He plays shows here fairly often, always with a different line-up and usually with a new album to promote. He played in another friend's back yard; again, it was the perfect night for clearing aside the acorns and sitting on the ground with friends to listen to some good music. The host had made some chili, cornbread and apple pie. I skipped the chili and cornbread, but sampled the apple pie. I'm not usually a fan of apple pie, but this one was great. Maybe I'll have to try making one of my own sometime.

Sunday was spent doing massive amounts of laundry and helping GC inventory his clothes and organize his dresser and closet. I've been working on rearranging the basement, so we reconfigured and repositioned the weight bench for maximum utility. Once I get in the cleaning/organizing mode, I lose track of time, and so, as I too often do, started dinner late. When I gathered the ingredients for our Wandering Gullet meal, I discovered the chicken was still partially frozen. I put it in a pan of water in the sink for an hour, but that didn't fully thaw the thighs, so I defrosted them in the microwave. I love braising, mostly because I love the flavor and texture of braised meat, but also because the bulk of the preparation is at the beginning, so I'm free to clean up, then sit down on the couch, put my feet up and flip through a cooking magazine or watch some tv while dinner busily braises away on the stove top. I started so late, though, that we didn't sit down to eat until almost a quarter to nine. Dinner was really good, and would have been even better had I been able to start earlier and enjoy preparing it. By the time we ate, I was beyond starving.

Chicken Do-Piaza is a classical Indian curry dish. "Do" means double and "piaz" means onion; this dish is characterized by lots of onions, usually added in two stages. The first, in this recipe, is spicy curry-onion broth, which acts as the braising liquid; the second stage is thinly sliced onions added at the end, just long enough to lose their bite but retain some crunch. Though the recipe doesn't call for it, this would be good served over rice.

Chicken Do-Piaza, Indian-Spiced Chicken Smothered in Onions

All About Braising: The Art of Uncomplicated Cooking by Molly Stevens, 2004

1 c. plain whole-milk yogurt
2 large white or yellow onions, ~1#
½ c. freshly squeezed oj
¼ c. water
1 T. grated fresh ginger
3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
2 t. coriander seeds, lightly toasted and ground
1 t. ground turmeric
¼ t. cayenne, or to taste, or 1 small dried red chile
Coarse salt
8 bone-in, skinless chicken thighs, ~3#
2 T. ghee, clarified butter or veggie oil

Draining the yogurt, 4-6h in advance: Set a small mesh sieve over a tall med bowl so that the bottom of the sieve sits at least 1 ½” above the bottom of the bowl. Line the strainer with cheesecloth or sturdy paper towels; pour the yogurt into the sieve. Set the assembly in the fridge to drain. After 4-6h, the yogurt will be the consistency of soft cheese and will have released ~ ¼ c. of liquid. Discard the liquid.

The onions and braising liquid: Thinly slice 1 onion, place the slices in a strainer or colander and rinse thoroughly with cold water. Set aside to drain over a bowl or in the sink. Coarsely chop the other onion and place it in a blender. Add the oj, next 6 and 1 t. salt. Blend on high until it becomes a smooth puree. You can also do this in a food processor. The texture of the sauce will be a bit coarser but the flavors will be the same.

Browning the chicken: Rinse the chicken pieces with cool water; dry thoroughly with paper towels. If not thoroughly dry, they won’t brown and may stick to the pan when you sear them. Season with salt. Heat the ghee in a heavy-based lidded skillet or shallow 4-qt braising pan over med-high heat. When the fat is almost shimmering, add the thighs in batches so as to not crowd the pan, and brown lightly on both sides, 6-8m total/batch. Transfer to a large plate to catch the drips. When all the chicken is browned, pour off all but about a tablespoon of fat from the pan. Because the chicken is skinless, there wont’ be many browned bits on the bottom of the pan, but there will be some, don’t pour these out with the fat.

Heating the braising liquid: Return the pot to med-high heat; gradually our in the onion-orange puree. Stand back, b/c it will sputter and splatter. Simmer 5m, scraping the bottom and stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.

The braise: Add the chicken to the sauce, along with any juices that accumulated. Turn the pieces with tongs to coat with the sauce and return to a soft simmer. Cover tightly, reduce the heat to low and simmer gently. Check the pan after 10m to make sure that the simmer is quiet and not turbulent; turn down heat if necessary. After 20m, turn the chicken piece sand continue braising until the chicken is fork-tender, 40-45m total time.

Finish: Transfer the chicken pieces to a platter to catch any drips; cover loosely with foil to keep warm. Add the reserved onion slices to the pan and stir gently, working the onions evenly into the sauce. Replace the cover and set aside, off the heat undisturbed for 5m. This gives the raw onion slices just enough time to lose their bite while remaining crisp and mildly pungent.

Stir in the drained yogurt with a wooden spoon, working the thickened yogurt through the onions and sauce. Heat the sauce very gently over med heat until the yogurt is warmed through. Don’t let the sauce boil, or it will take on a curdled look. Taste for salt and cayenne. Return the chicken pieces to the pan, turning them to coat with the sauce and onions. Serve the chicken, spoon the onions and sauce over the top.

Serves 4.

Variation: Chicken Breasts Do-Piaza
Use bone-in skinless chicken breasts in place of the thighs. Braise for only 30-35m in step 5.

Variation: Chicken Do-Piaza with Undrained Yogurt or No Yogurt
Skip step 1 and use undrained yogurt. The sauce will be a bit thinner in taste and texture. It is also good without any yogurt at all, but it will be less creamy and rich.

Wine Notes: Fruity white that’s off-dry to slightly sweet without any oak flavors, such as Chenin Blanc from CA or WA, or a slightly sweet Riesling from Germany.

Getting to Know All About You: What's your favorite dinosaur?