My friend’s son, who will be off to college this fall, made a request for a simple recipe that he can cook easily in his dorm kitchen. This was his chant to me.
“No more than four ingredients, Auntie Mira, and I mean salt already counts as one.” (This is tough, but not too tough.)
“And not one of your elaborate, two-to-three-hour deals.” (You seemed to enjoy them a great deal.)
“I will be cooking in a ‘dormitory kitchen’, you know. They have less equipment than my mom’s pantry, or your garage. A one or two burner electric stove, a microwave, a sink, that’s it. Do you understand?” (Oh, great to know this, kiddo!)
“I probably won’t have a variety of pots or pans, either. In fact, I probably have to bring my own. No spatula either.” (After all these manners your mother taught you over the years, you are going to end up eating with your hands, like your daddy…oh Lord!)
“I can always invite a girl to my dorm kitchen.” He was so excited! (Wait until you know that girls don’t normally go to the boy’s dormitory unless it’s right after the big cleaning day.)
“Not anything from a jar that you or mom made for me—I can’t impress a girl with s**t from jars—you guys KNOW that!” (Agree, kiddo! “Pie” in the TV show “Ray Donovan” also confirmed this principle!)
So I dedicate this recipe to all the college dudes and anyone who wants a simple but delicious meal.
It’s beyond simple. It’s failure-free and it will look like you know s*** you don’t! Hopefully, boys, you can impress girls with this recipe, but to get pussy with chicken is quite far-fetched. I would suggest waiting three more years and using real alcohol to assist. 😉
Ingredients: (for two)
Chicken breast, with bones in and skin on 1 piece
Salt approximately 1 tablespoon
Tarragon leaves, 1 bunch (You can substitute the tarragon with basil, rosemary, oregano, thyme, sage, cilantro, green onions (scallions), onions, shallots or garlic.
Butter 1-2 tablespoons (Also you can replace the butter with olive oil or vegetable oil, or even mix them together, but you know butter would give the best taste, right?)
As promised, kiddo, only four ingredients!
Method
1) WASH the chicken and the tarragon leaves. (Not in the tub together!)
2) RUB the chicken breast with the salt, all over every side and under the skin, wherever your finger can go. Rub it throughly. (This is sounding like a porno film.) Spend some time with the rubbing. At least THIS is a breast you can really fondle however you like without risking a slap in the face or a kick in your nuts.
The chicken already got a full spa treatment, including bath and salt rub.
3) Melt the butter in a pot that has a lid cover over medium high heat. You could use a pan if your pan has a lid and, after you place the chicken in it, you can still close the lid tight.
Melt butter over medium high heat.
4) Put the chicken in the pot, skin side down, and cook until the skin is brown and crispy, approximately 3-5 minutes, depending on your stove and your pot material. Cast iron with a high-heat gas stove (which usually yields the best result) would take about 3 minutes.
While you’re waiting for the chicken to be cooked, tear the tarragon into pieces, and take the stems off. If you have a knife, you can chop it.
Put the chicken in, skin-side down first, and cook until the skin is crispy and slightly brown.
5) Flip the chicken piece so the bone side is down and the crispy skin side is up.
The skin should be crispy and nicely golden, like this, before you flip it.
6) Put the herbs on top of the crispy skin and close the lid. Continue to cook over the medium high heat for another 2-4 minutes. Turn off the heat and LEAVE THE POT ON THE STOVE WITH THE LID ON for another 20-30 minutes.
Pile torn or chopped tarragon on top and close the lid. This is the last picture before the lid went on.
The chicken will continue to cook from the heat inside the pot, the leftover heat from the stove, and the heat in the chicken itself from the fire earlier.
The cooking time varies depending on many factors. I recommend a rehearsal before showing off to a girl so you would know the exact time for your particular pot and stove.
While you wait, I would recommend guarding your pot or the contents might disappear. Dormitory ghosts are quite hungry and shamelessly take unattended food on a regular basis. Some of them even take the pot!
This is the finished breast.
7) After the waiting period is over, use a fork or a knife to pierce the side of the chicken piece and see the juice that runs out. If it runs clear, no pinkish color, you are good. If it is pink, put it in the microwave for 1-2 minutes. This also means you need to increase the initial cooking time next time around.
Why don’t I cook the chicken until it’s cooked through before turning off the heat? Well, technically, you could do that. All you have to do is to reduce the heat to low and continue cooking, but the result will be a drier chicken. I like my chicken juicy and this is the way to keep the chicken juice inside the piece. Try it once and you will understand.
I actually slightly overcooked my chicken here. With my enamel cast iron pot, I should cook the bone side for two minutes and then leave it for only 20 minutes. I let it sit for 30, but it’s okay. As I said before, it’s a failure-free meal. Overcooked chicken is still delicious and when cooking it with this method there’s no way of burning it.
I actually prefer chicken cooked slightly less than this. The flesh should have a trace of pink left (just a little) and be more tender, but this is still juicy and delicious.
If you don’t eat the skin, peel it off (I’m sure your roommate or dorm mate would be happy to eliminate it for you.) Cooking with the skin and bone make the chicken meat taste better.
Showing off!
Good luck! Text me the pic of the chick 😉
I’m in Vancouver this week for a wedding ceremony, 3 days Indian style. I will be exploring Vancouver and of course the food scene here. You can follow me on Instagram or my Facebook page for unofficial updates of my gourmet investigations.
I love the simplicity of this recipe, just like my rosemary/olive oil roast chicken thighs!
Additionally, I enjoy and make me smile with the tips in the preparation, and post cooking where dormitory ghosts are hungry :-), and the rehearsal … go girl, oftentimes your blogs are always fun to read!
This looks yummy! And so easy 🙂 thanks x
I do know a thing or two (or three or five) about ghosts in dorm who eats any kind of food (good or rotten). But I’m so going to try this. I’ve never cooked with tarragon before and this looks amazing. I love simple recipes like this. Thanks for sharing! And enjoy the wedding and lots of photos if possible 😉
yum, yum, yum!
Great post, frisky writing, very entertaining 🙂
Ummm….yum! That does NOT look like your average boring chicken!
This is a great post “High Heeled Person.” I must try it.
I have the same recipe and it’s been a great classic of my family for years!
Your blog is top notch and professional. I can see it becoming big and you getting a cooking show from it. My prediction, unless of course you are in law school, or on America’s Next Top Model,.
Fantastic looking dish~ The food looks good too! lol
Namaste
Sindy
Girl, you kill me! Love the recipe, love the tips you give your “nephew”. You made me LMFAO!
You always have such wonderful food with incredibly beautiful photos. Love it!
Looks tasty. Great images.
I love chicken roasted with butter and tarragon, this looks like the same but in a better size, great recipe and photos!
Wow, looks good.
The recipe is simple but I am sure it taste very good. Would it work okay with thigh fillets?
Looks delish! And I just love fast and easy in the summer!!
What a fantastic looking chook! And who could believe that this was all cooked up in a dorm room. I loved your humour in here… Must give this a try at some point. Thank you for sharing 😀
G’day! LOVE tarragon, true!
Don’t think it is a herb most people who with it to do!
Your recipe looks YUM and might have to put this on my list to do! Thank you!
Cheers! Joanne
http://www.facebook.com/whatsonthelist
Yummmmmmmmm. Have fun in Vancouver, I lived there for many years! There’s some great food to enjoy.
Here it is! 4 ingredients to stop procrastinating how and where to use our lush tarragon herb. Thanks a lot!
Loved reading the narration to the post!!! The clicks are awesome as well!!
I think my husband could handle this one, too. And my college age daughter would like it just as much in her dorm suite. So I’m passing it along!
I love simple and straightforward recipes. Makes life so simple and uncomplicated. I have bookmarked it. Thank you for sharing!
Sounds very manageable. Should be easy to get the ingredients too.
This is certainly risk-free for a bachelor, but I am married. The rubbing and fondling part sounds like my wife could become angry, so I see a certain risk for married men here… 🙂
For your other dishes, you should still come to Cologne and open a Thai restaurant here. I will be one of the regular guests! There are also nice shoes available here. 🙂
Ah! Just what I need with school starting and my summer away from teaching coming to a close! Thank you! And also, thank you for giving me permission to rub a breast besides my own. ROFL!!
Wow..i have to try this recipe!!!
Yum, looks delicious. I’ll have to try this one, thanks.
Rubbing the thigh, does is sound better than rubbing the breast so it doesn’t sound like porno. 😆 Four ingredients, my kind of recipe.
Simple is always nice…looks healthy too… 🙂
Luscious. Looking forward to trying your tips to vary my usual chicken with herbs preparations. Bon voyage and tahnk you!
What a wonderful recipe! I love tarragon with chicken.
Thank your friend’s son for me, since he inspired you to create a post with a recipe that even I can make, lol! Your recipe looks delicious!
A real favourite of mine…a very sexy dish…love it!!
stunning looking chook! Great photos, too.
I’ll try this recipe! 🙂
It looks really good!
Reblogged this on Things I have learned… and commented:
A simple no nonsense recipe you can cook easily in you dorm kitchen. No more than four + ingredients. Definitely a best practice and sense of humour recipe worth sharing!
Sorry M. I’ve not been following very closely but when I finally got around to some of your latest post they all sound JUST YUMMY!!!! Keep on “Clicking”. dru