IMPROVED Idahoan boxed Au Gratin Potatoes

 So ... I was making shake and bake pork chops and needed a starchy side and wanted boxed Au Gratin potatos ... and discovered I had no milk.  And I had no good alternatives. We are recently moved back in after the fire and not all staples, supplies and routines are back to 100% so OF COURSE there was no damn milk.

The Idahoan Au Gratin boxed potatoes call for 3/4 C milk.  I had no milk, but I did have Fage 5% Greek Yogurt.  I figured 1/4 - 1/3  C of the whole milk greek yogurt  with enough water to equal 3/4 C would do ... and of course I went with 1/3 C Greek Yogurt with water to equal 3/4.

Then I followed the rest of the package instructions - except for temperatures because I had those shake and bake pork chops to cook to.  So ... preheat to 450*, cook au gratin potatoes for 10 min - cut temp to 400*, add thiccccc shake n bake coated pork chops, cook 23 min, remove potatoes and pork chops from oven - rest both about 5 min befofre serving.  

Oh holy hell ... I will never bother with milk again and ... I am on the verge of recommending using only 1/4 C of Greek yogurt because using the 1/3 C ... these were RIDICULOUS. But only on the verge - it would be fine either way but these are not uncomfortably over the top ... just enough!

Chicken with Mushroom Cream Sauce

Based heavily off:

https://www.spendwithpennies.com/creamy-mushroom-sauce/

and

https://www.onceuponachef.com/recipes/chicken-marsala.html

Pretty much chicken marsalla with sauvignon blanc instead of marsalla in the sauce

Ingredients 

2 Chicken breasts, boneless skinless, sliced to half thickness and pounded out to 1/4" thickness
3 T Flour
3/4 t salt
1/4 t pepper
2 T Butter
1 T olive oil

2 small/med shallots
1 T butter
12 oz mushrooms, any kind, sliced
salt and pepper to taste
3 sprigs fresh thyme
1/2 C white wine
1/2 C chicken broth
2/3 C Heavy Cream

1 T cornstarch + 2 T water or broth
3 T fresh parsley

Directions:

Place the flour, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper in a ziplock bag. Add the chicken to the bag; seal bag tightly and shake to coat chicken evenly. Set aside.

Heat the oil and 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. (Use a stainless steel pan for the best browning. Nonstick will work too, but you won’t get that nice golden color on the chicken.) Place the flour-dusted chicken in the pan, shaking off any excess first, and cook, turning once, until the chicken is golden and just barely cooked through, about 5 to 6 minutes total. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside.

Saute shallot in 1 T butter until softened, about 3-5 minutes.

Add mushrooms, salt, and pepper. Cook until mushrooms have released juices. Add thyme and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Add the wine to deglaze and loosen any bits off the pan and simmer a few minutes until the wine has almost evaporated.

Add the chicken broth and cream. Simmer 5 minutes or until reduced by half.

To thicken the sauce further, combine cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water (or broth) and mix well. Add cornstarch mixture into the broth a little bit at a time to reach desired consistency. You may not need all of the cornstarch mixture.

Let simmer 1 minute.

Season with parsley, salt and pepper to taste.

Notes - used 20 oz mushrooms so upped to 1 C cream + 3/4 c each of wine and broth - could have used more acid - more wine or finish with lemon.

Knife cut on chicken went wild - wound up with several thin slices each breast, no pounding, great result - I will do this on purpose going forward.

Do the mushrooms the correct way - do not add salt and pepper until they release liquid and then don’t add the additional liquids until the pan is near dry.

Use thickener sparingly

Sherry or Marsala would have been better! Lol

Freezing? Some people say this would freeze well, just be sure to stir continuously while reheating. Have not tied it myself, note for posterity in case I decide to.

Reheating - I packaged the leftovers in a Foodsaver bag and was going to toss it in the freezer only to realize I am running short on freezer space ... so I tossed it in the fridge.  It is 9/15/23 and time for leftovers.  I am reheating sous vide - its already in the bag - it is 100% cooked, it is thin chicken breast cuts in cream sauce ... 155*??? Thinking lower than 165* because of the cream sauce.  We'll see - hopefully I will remember to add notes.  Since I am sous vising which is as passive as it gets, may as well make the asparagus I was too lazy to make the other night and some pan friend yukons ... recipe (read: random musings) incoming.

Japanese Cooking Terms & Techniques

My notes from Harumi Kurihara's cookbook, Harumi's Japanese Home Cooking.

mijingiri - finely minced into tiny cube shapes
sengiri - julienned, or into strips
hangetsugiri - cut into half moons
koguchigiri - cut into fine slices - for round ingredients like spring onions
nanamegiri - cut on the diagonal
Ichogiri - round pieces cut into quarters
Usugiri - finely sliced

Drop lid - Traditionally made out of wood, they are placed in a pan, directly on top of food as it cooks. It is a technique frequently used in Japanese cooking to ensure the even distribution of flavor. You can make one from amuminum foil or greaseproof paper with a hole in the middle - make a disk slightly smaller than the inside of the pan.

Grilled Eggplant

Peel and slice eggplant in 1/2" rounds - sprinkle both sides with salt and let it sit for about 20 minutes. Rinse out the salt and give the eggplant a squeeze to remove as much moisture as you can. Toss slices with balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper and a little olive oil and preheat George Foreman grill. Grill slices in batches, turning once while cooking - they should take a minute or two on each side, just long enough for grill marks.

Grilled Pineapple

Just like it sounds - pineapple cooked on a grill. You can marinade the pineapple and toss it on a gas or charcoal grill (Fred once combined OJ, soy sauce, garlic, and a few other things and it was fantastic) or even just toss a few plain slices on a George Foreman grill. It's really sweet and juicy - an entirely different entity from its raw form.

Baked Sausage

The easiest way to cook sweet Italian sausage

Preheat oven to 350

Line cookie sheet with aluminum foil (this is to aid cleanup - skip if you prefer)

Puncture casing of each sausage with fork or knife slit and arrange on cookie sheet so they are not touching.

Cook 45 minutes - you *should* turn them at least once, but I forget to do this all the time and they come out fine.

Toasted Almonds

Preheat oven to 350 - spread chopped/slivered/whatever almonds in single layer on ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden.

Caramelized Onions

• Enough onions to mostly fill a crock pot
• Olive oil, bacon fat, whatever you have - no more than 2 T, and it's almost optional
• optional but nice - salt, pepper, herbs (I like Thyme - goes well in Vidalia & Swiss quiche)

Slice onions thin and add to crock pot - mix well with oil/fat and seasonings. Cover and let it go on low for up to 24 hours or on high for as few as 4-5. Crock pots tell you never to lift the lid and stir - I disagree. Don't do it often, but if you don't check on these occasionally, they may start to burn around the edges. When they are done, I like to let them drain through a fine meshed sieve and cool a bit before refrigerating.

How to prepare Lotus Root (renkon)

• Peel the skin
  
• Slice about 1/8 " thick and put immediately into vinegared (or lemon) water to keep from turning color


• If using fresh or with only very little further cooking, they must be parboiled in vinegared water for about 4 minutes to get rid of the tannins.