Cast Iron Skillet Curry Fried Chicken With Curry And Mango Yogurt Sauce And Red Chile Asparagus Recipes

CAST IRON SKILLET CURRY FRIED CHICKEN WITH CURRY AND MANGO-YOGURT SAUCE AND RED CHILE ASPARAGUS

Steps:

• Heat 1 inch of oil in a large, deep cast iron skillet over high heat to 350 degrees F.
• Season chicken well on both sides with salt and pepper. Place the flour in a brown paper bag, add 1 tablespoon of salt, 2 teaspoons black pepper, curry powder, and cayenne pepper, and shake to combine.
• Add the chicken 3 pieces at a time to the bag, and shake well to coat each piece with the flour. Put them on a rack when you have finished.
• Slowly add the chicken pieces to the hot pan skin-side down. Cover the skillet and reduce the heat to medium high and cook for 7 minutes, remove the cover, turn the chicken over and continue to cook for 6 to 7 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through. Drain on paper towels and transfer to a platter and drizzle with Mango-Yogurt sauce or serve alongside. Serve with Asparagus with Red Chile Oil.
• Heat olive oil in a small saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook until soft. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute longer. Add the curry powder and water and cook for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.
• Place the yogurt, mango, onion mixture and lime juice in a food processor and process until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Toss asparagus with oil and season with salt. Roast for 8 to 10 minutes or until just cooked through.
• Place all ingredients in a blender and puree. Strain through a fine strainer. May be refrigerated up to 3 days. Serve at room temperature.

CAST-IRON SKILLET CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 500 F, or as high as it will go. Preheat cast-iron skillet over high heat. (Note: Chef Gillespie uses an 8-inch skillet to cook 2 servings; use two 8-inch skillets or one 14-inch skillet to cook 4 servings.) Butcher the chicken: First, make a cut along one side of the backbone, as close to the bone as possible. Carefully cut down until the breast and tenderloin can be pulled away from the carcass in one piece; pop the thigh bone out of the joint, and continue cutting from thigh to wing joint to detach the entire half from the carcass. Repeat procedure with the other side of the chicken. (Reserve the carcass for stock.)
• Extend the wing and cut through joint between the flat and the drumette. (Reserve the wing for stock.) Make a cut to separate the breast from the thigh, so you have a leg-and-thigh piece and a breast-and-drumette piece. When the skillet is smoking hot, add the grapeseed oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Pat the chicken pieces completely dry with paper towels; then generously season on all sides with salt.
• Very gently lay the leg-thigh in the skillet, skin side down, and cook until the skin is nicely browned, about 2 minutes. No need to peek or move the chicken-just let it cook undisturbed. When the skin is browned, it will release easily from the pan; flip it over so it's skin side up. Add the breast to the skillet, skin side down. Place skillet in the oven and cook, 15 minutes.
• After 15 minutes, remove skillet from the oven and check to see if chicken is done: the juices bubbling at the bone should be clear, and the meat should be retracting at the thigh bone. Serve.