Leftovers? No problem
Let’s say that you hypothetically purchased a rotisserie chicken from the store. (Maybe you butterflied and roasted it yourself. That’s even better.) Hypothetically, you ate a quarter of said palatable poultry, along with appropriate accompaniments.
You are now hypothetically the proud possessor of three quarters of said cooked chicken. What does that mean, my casual collegiate compatriots? Hypothetical happenstances for some luscious leftovers. I’ll help you out with two simple recipes.
Profuse poultry preparation No. 1: salad and simple homemade dressing. You gorged yourself, hypothetically of course, on a sizeable supper yesterday and you probably feel like having a salad. I’m about to share with you my favorite salad dressing, the furtive formula that adorns many a plate of greens for me. It’s a secret, so don’t tell anyone.
Squeeze half a lemon. (We talked about this last week. You have one around, don’t you?) Add an approximately equal amount of olive oil. (Go with the extra virgin stuff if you can handle its rich, grassy flavor.) Add a pinch of salt and a few grinds of black pepper. (We talked about that last week too.) That’s it.
If it needs a little something to please your pining palette, add a pinch of sugar, a tiny squirt of brown mustard, or some dried herbs. If it’s too rich for you, thin it out with a teaspoon of water.
Besides being simple and flavorful, a lemon vinaigrette like this one has the amazing property that it doesn’t separate as oil and vinegar does. The lemon juice has enough sugars and emulsifiers in it to help it readily combine with the oil. So a 20-second shake in a Tupperware container or a 30-second whisk with a fork will emulsify the pair of ingredients into a casually creamy and wholly wholesome dressing without the stabilizers and thickeners you find in bottled dressings.
Use it to dress your favorite salad greens tossed with some shredded chicken and you’ve got a preciously pleasing light lunch.
Surplus sustenance salvaging No. 2: fried rice. Yeah, it’s the simple, no-fuss dish pervasive in practically every Asian nation and definitely dwelling in every American-Chinese restaurant around these parts. Start with a hot pan, saute some vegetables quickly so they don’t lose their texture or color, add some proteins (perhaps some diced rotisserie chicken and an egg), add some rice, and season simply with soy sauce. For all of you recipe-following Terps, here’s a master recipe.
Feel free to leave out ingredients you don’t like or add any vegetables you have on hand. The kitchen is your oyster.
Preheat your pan and then add just enough oil to coat the bottom. Throw in a few scallions, chopped; a stalk of celery and a carrot, diced or shredded; a teaspoon or two of minced garlic; and your shredded chicken. (Fresh garlic is always better, but the jarred, minced stuff is an acceptable substitute.) Let everything saute for about a minute. Add an egg, lightly beaten, and allow it to cook for 30 seconds.
Stir in 3 cups or so of leftover cooked rice. (Using day-old rice is preferable because it is dryer and will soak up the oil and soy sauce in the pan more readily without becoming soggy). When the rice is warm, add a quarter cup or so of soy sauce. If you’re feeling saucy, maybe add a drop of sesame oil or some fresh ginger. There it is: simple fried rice for two.
