Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Tradition: Chicken, cabbage and cornbread

Probably one of my favorite meals is this: baked chicken, steamed cabbage and cornbread.
The meal reminds me of rainy evenings at home in Memphis with my mom and brother and I all hanging out in the kitchen, drinking a beer and watching the pots steam, as it were.
We never boiled cabbage in our house.
Instead, we steamed it with just a bit of water until it was tender enough to be cut with a fork, but not so limp it went to mush. Then, we added butter and lots of pepper and ate it fast. Cold cabbage is nobody's favorite.
We were a split family when it came to cornbread.
My daddy and I loved sweet cornbread, while Mom and my brother would rather eat the savory version.
Nowadays, I appreciate both types and keep a bag of plain cornmeal in the freezer, while the little boxes of Jiffy corn muffin mix are in the pantry.
From my great-grandmother, Sherli Dedrick, and her sister, Jane Blair, comes the baked chicken recipe that is simplicity itself.
Since it isn't a written recipe, some of the directions are not exact.

What you need:
2-4 thawed chicken breasts, with or without bones
2 eggs
1 cup flour
Cavender's All Purpose Greek Seasoning mix or salt and pepper to taste

What to do:
Preheat the oven to about 375 degrees.
Beat the eggs together in  shallow bowl large enough to fit the chicken breasts in.
Mix a tablespoon or so of Cavender's  (or salt and pepper) into the flour until evenly distributed.
Pour the flour mix onto a couple of layers of paper towel.
Dip the chicken breasts into the egg mixture, then into the flour mixture until covered. This step may be repeated if desired.
Place the chicken into a baking dish, and add water to cover the bottom of the pan. Don't add too much. You are not boiling the chicken, just keeping it moist.
Bake for 30 minutes to an hour, until chicken is cooked through.

For a different taste, add fresh rosemary to the flour mixture instead of Cavendar's and a decent crisp white wine to the pan instead of water.

For the quick version of this meal, grab a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, throw a batch of Jiffy cornbread muffins in the oven and steam your cabbage. It's not cheating, it's expediting.

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