Adapting Pepin (and Beyond?)

In an earlier thread about Lao Sze Chuan, gleam and I discussed the similarity between Tony's Special Three-Chili Chicken and a recipe of Jacques Pepin's in his book "Fast Food My Way".

This particular Pepin recipe, which very likely has roots in home-cookery that pre-date Pepin's publishing, essentially consists of cubed white-meat chicken dredged in flour, pan-fried, with a heavy hand of garlic and parsley added at the end. This is, without a doubt, the most requested recipe in my household (of two people). Above and beyond being simply tasty, there are two other elements that make this one of my all-time favorite work-week recipes:

1) I always have the ingredients. There is absolutely nothing that can prevent me from throwing this dish together. Chicken, olive oil, flour, parsley, garlic, and simple seasonings are always on hand in my home. The only drawback would be the need to defrost chicken if all I have is frozen.

2) This recipe is delightfully adaptable with simple ingredients that are often on hand. You can tweak the flour for dredging, the chicken itself (white or dark meat change the flavor dramatically), the oil, the aromatic and herb, and add some garnishment or accompaniments. Minor tweaks in this recipe cause major changes in the overall makeup of this dish. LSC's chicken is one clear direction. Here are some of the ways that I have adapted it recently:

--The simplest adaptation includes the addition of the leftover pan bits to about 1/3 cup of plain yogurt. The minced parsley and garlic, along with the oil, create a rich sauce. A squeeze of lemon at the table brings some brightness. Not a far stretch from the original recipe, but it changes things quite a bit.

--I enjoy replacing some of the parsley with mint and some of the garlic with minced olives and using the same yogurt trick, but petit pois is not a big olive fan, so this one is not really in rotation.

--I like to ease up on the parsley and garlic and add minced anchovies to the oil along with chopped capers at the end. This completely changes the flavor profile.

--Last night, I used vegetable oil instead of olive oil, substituted chopped jalapenos for most of the garlic, and replaced all of the parsley with cilantro. At the table I added cubed avocado, a squeeze of lime, and warmed corn tortillas. Presto! It's Mexican.

You get the idea. This could go on forever. The amazing thing is that 90% of the time all it takes are common fridge or pantry ingredients to turn things around.

I'd love to hear about any other recipes that people have turned into "baseline" recipes for simple adaptation. The key for me is avoiding specialty items and recipes that take more than a half-hour or so.

Best,
Michael

Funny that you mention it, I made it (in its original form) last night as well. One thing that, as expected, truly helps a lot is to brine the chicken overnight. The quick cooking almost always manages to keep the chicken juicy and tender, but the brine always works. It requires a little bit more planning (but not much -- I usually brine the chicken breasts as soon as I get them home from the grocery), but it's worth it.

And it is, indeed, completely extensible, although I'm such a fan of garlic that I have trouble straying One thing I like to do is add a little white wine to deglaze at the end. With the garlic and herbs you've got a 5 minute chicken vesuvio.

Jacques Pepin is (and has been for quite a few years now) the t.v. celebrity chef whom I most enjoy watching. Almost every time I see him cook, I learn something and that stands in contrast to the situation with most other t.v. chefs, from whom I rarely - if ever - learn something new... I should probably buy his "Fast Food" book...

Concerning the chicken dish mentioned above and in particular the issue of adaptability, that basic method (dredge in flour and pan-fry/sautée) is one I often use and, like Michael (and Ed) I enjoy the flexibility the basic preparation allows for. Two nights ago, as coincidence would have it, I too was using this approach to boneless, skinless chicken breasts and did the following. N.B. I do not cube the chicken but partially butterfly it to even out the thickness a bit.

After browning the chicken, I added some mushrooms (which I had sautéed separately - and rather briefly - with shallot and parsley in olive oil with white wine), then a dose of heavy cream. The chicken finishes cooking in the cream as the cream reduces and thickens. A generous (though not excessive) dose of fresh tarragon is the finishing touch.

I've done virtually the same thing before without the mushrooms and the dish then resembles very closely what EC described above from Pepin's book. But then I use the shallot in the function of the garlic and add the cream and tarragon to make a suace.

I don't cook with cream all that often but this is one way I especially like to use it. Along with boiled potatoes or Salzkartoffeln and a braised vegetable, it makes for a nice meal, seemingly elegant even, but one which is extremely easy and hassle-free to make. Indeed, I tend to make this sort of a dish when I'm too tired to cook but want to cook anyway (if that makes any sense).

Antonius