Chicken

Here’s another good old Louisiana dish we transported north for our menu. We thought its distinctive spicy, earthy taste was just what our customers were cravin’. Our gumbo is thick like a good hearty stew, and although we’ve personalized it, we’ve still kept it related to all other gumbos by thickening it with Brown Roux (page 139). The flour toasted in oil makes a dusky mix that binds all the veggies, meats, and seasonings into a veritable swamp of broodin’ flavors.

Back in the early days of the Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, I made a pilgrimage to New Orleans, and it seemed natural to bring some of the wonders of the Big Easy back up north. The thing that really grabbed me was jambalaya, a dish with infinite possibilities. There’s no one recipe for jambalaya because its whole reason for bein’ is to let the cook get personal and real creative with the bits of meat or fish hangin’ around in the fridge. You can give it your personal touch any way the spirit moves you. Try makin’ it with other veggies, throwin’ in some shellfish, messin’ with the seasoning—this is your chance to be a link in the evolution of one truly great leftover dish.

If you were wonderin’ what to do with all that leftover pulled pork or brisket you smoked, or if you have some nice roast turkey hangin’ around, give this a try. It’s our only breakfast item and it goes great with a couple of eggs on the side.

This one-skillet dinner is loaded with flavor and easy to prepare. Serve over some steamin’ Perfect Rice or your favorite macaroni. You can also substitute boneless, skinless chicken thighs for some real concentrated chicken flavor—love that dark meat!

If you love good fried chicken, this is the quick version. It’s just like its namesake, “chicken-fried steak.” Breading up and frying a nice boneless flat piece of meat, whether it’s beef or chicken, will give you a meal in minutes. It makes a great main course, or try slappin’ the finished product in a crusty roll or even slicing it over a mess of salad greens.

This is a variation on an old Italian dish called Chicken Scaparello, which is made with cut-up chicken, sausage, onions, and peppers simmered in a tomato sauce. Out of respect, we gave our version a different name and spiced the dish up a bit usin’ sausages from Louisiana and a good dose of the Mutha Sauce. Either way it’s good home cookin’. So make it yourself and eat hearty.

The last time I was in Chi-Town, I got the history of my favorite Chicago dish. It seems that the Italian immigrants who grew up in the shadow of Mount Vesuvio and then came to settle in Chicago developed this chicken and potato dish to celebrate the abundance of meat available in their new country, as well as their Neapolitan roots. We’ve given it a Dinosaur twist to get Vesuvio really smokin’.

Home cooking doesn’t get any easier than this. So if you’re serious about getting maximum flavor for a minimum amount of effort, this Cuban way of preparing chicken is for you. The onions and Mojito Marinade melt together into a tasty sauce that mingles well with some of our Perfect Rice.

Indian spices and tandoori cooking inspired this one. The spicy, yogurt-based marinade tenderizes skinless chicken breasts to perfection. They cook up so tender you won’t even need a knife.

I’m very partial to chicken thighs, with their silky, succulent flesh. Slathered in a BBQ sauce spiked with good Hungarian paprika and made velvety with sour cream, this is a sensuous dish on a cold winter night, especially when served with buttered noodles to sop up all the good sauce.

Just like the name says, this is a big chicken dish. Grilled whole boneless chicken breasts are layered with eggplant, prosciutto, basil, provolone, and BBQ sauce for a heaping meal-size portion. For those with dainty appetites, the same approach can be applied to half chicken breasts. You might even want to come up with your own grandiose combinations, like grilled zucchini, oregano, and feta; grilled portabella mushrooms, bacon, sautéed onions, and Cheddar; or grilled tomatoes, sliced sausage, chopped cilantro, and pepper-jack cheese. Remember, just think big.

This dish perfectly combines the bright, bold flavors of Asian spices, fresh lemon, and BBQ sauce. All you’ve gotta do is fry up some chicken thighs and dress them in a tart, clingy sauce. The result is some powerfully provocative flavors. This sauce also works well with grilled chicken.

As far as Dinosaur patrons are concerned, anything with goat cheese is kinda suspicious. Add some asparagus and you’re tippin’ the highbrow scale—hence the name of this dish. Many have discovered the tangy difference goat cheese makes when matched up with our Mutha Sauce.

The bite of chiles combined with the sweet crunchiness of toasted pecans give this saucy chicken dish lots of flavor and textural dimension. In other words, you’re gonna love it!

Because we smoke most everything at the Dinosaur, when I get home I really enjoy the flavor that cooking over plain old charcoal brings out. It’s that delicate chicken flavor touched with spice and caramelized barbecue sweetness that I’m after. It’s easy to achieve, but you’ve got to follow some simple rules, so take a look at the Chicken Pit Boss Tips before getting started.

Because we’re a barbecue joint, we’ve always got pulled pork on hand, so it was just natural for us to turn it into a delicious appetizer. Don’t let our habits limit you. Make these quesadillas with some cooked turkey or chicken thigh meat or any chopped or shredded leftover meat you have lurkin’ in the fridge.

Central and Western New York is “wing country,” so you’ve gotta have some good wings on your menu. Most places fry their wings according to the original Buffalo recipe, but we smoke ours. You can make them hot or mild on your grill just by changing the rub and the sauce you slather on at the end. We serve them with the traditional fixin’s—Blue Cheese Dressing and celery sticks.

For some people, it just isn’t Thanksgiving without giblet gravy for the turkey and potatoes. Mom has included directions for a giblet-free version for those of us who have seen a giblet and never want to eat one!

Every Thanksgiving, I hear cooks groaning about having been up all night basting the big turkey, and I just smile. I’ve found a foolproof, easy way to make a great turkey and get your sleep too! It also makes the most tender, moist turkey I’ve ever tasted. The first time I cooked Thanksgiving dinner for my family, Garth couldn’t believe this method would actually work, so he politely asked me to cook a “stunt” turkey so he could taste it for himself before the big day. Most of my friends have been just as hesitant, but once they have tried it my way, they never go back to the old way. To make sure the oven temperature doesn’t drop too quickly, I put a sign on it threatening bodily harm to anyone who even thinks about opening the oven door during this process!

This casserole is hearty and contains everything you could want on the table in one dish. It’s a favorite of our whole family. It makes ten servings, but my husband likes it cold for breakfast the next day, so in my house you’d better take your serving at dinner the night before, ’cause that’s all you’re gonna get!