God I need a smoker for the apt!!!

[vlap]

But since I don't have one (yet) I decided to make some chicken picatta. Recipe follows.

Started out by getting rice and veggies going. Rice has scallion and red bell pepper. FRESH Brussel sprouts were steamed, shocked, and then sauted in butter and a little stock.




Once those were set I started on the chicken. First I flattened them with a meat mallet to about 1/4" thick.


Cover them with Plastic wrap or parchment


Pound them flat with a meat mallet or the back of a heavy pan. Notice how much larger they are now. At this point I also seasoned them with salt and pepper then coated them both sides with cooking spray.


Once coated they were dredged in italian bread crumbs, salt, pepper, lemon Zest, and dry basil.


After the dredging the chicken was sauted in butter. 4 minutes per side was enough to cook through such thin meat.
Once cooked the chicken was removed and lemon slices, capers, lemon juice, stock and parsley was added. This was reduced till almost dry. More stock was added along with some butter and S&P.



The final plate... Some rice, layer a few pieces of chicken on top, some brussel sprouts in front.

 

[cajun_1]

It's 7am..... Ya got me droolin' ..... Great looking dinner/supper ...

 

[vlap]

Herbed Chicken Piccata

2 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 (4-ounce) skinned, boned chicken breast halves
Cooking spray
1 teaspoon margarine
8 thin lemon slices
1/4 cup low-salt chicken broth
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Combine first 5 ingredients in a shallow dish; set aside.Place chicken between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; flatten to 1/4-inch thickness, using a meat mallet or rolling pin. Lightly coat both sides of chicken with cooking spray; dredge chicken in breadcrumb mixture.
Melt margarine in a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 4 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from skillet. Set aside; keep warm. Add lemon slices to skillet; sautÃ[emoji]169[/emoji] 30 seconds. Add broth, parsley, and lemon juice; cook 1 minute. Spoon sauce over chicken.

This is the original recipe and I was surprised to see a lack of capers in this recipe so I added a couple tablespoons.

 

[bwsmith_2000]

Vlap,
That's some mighty fine looking eats. Hope it was as good as it looks.

 

[old poi dog]

Good looking eats!!!!!

 

[vlap]

Eating the leftovers now. Still good!!!

 

[cman95]

I'm hungry........looks great man.

 

[homebrew & bbq]

Looks good, Vlap!

It's pushing a little outside of my cooking experience. I've never had the courage to try brussels sprouts and I've never used capers. This recipe MIGHT be enough to get me to try those things. Thanks!

 

[vlap]

Its actually not a complicated recipe. The sprouts are easy. Just peel a few of the outside leaves off if they are dirty or withered. Cut a bit of the stem off and half down the middle. Steam them till they get a little soft. You will feel a difference. At that point shock them with cold water and ice to set the color and stop the cooking. Now they are ready to be reheated with a little stock butter and S&P. Just reheat them and coat them with the butter/stock and season to taste. They have a cabbage like taste and texture.

The picatta just follow the directions in the recipe. Its very good and then add enough capers to meet your taste at the end and cook em long enough to heat them through. You could do this recipe with veal or pork with very tasty results. The capers themselves have a briny flavor. If you like pickles you should like capers. In case you don't know capers are just un-opened flowers that are packed in a brine or salt. A lil splash of the brine in the sauce won't hurt anything either. The recipe is pretty flexible. Just season at each step and taste as you go to get it where you want.

If you need any help just let me know.

 

[bbq bubba]

So, how about the smoker???

 

[vlap]

The smoker question has been answered for me. After seeing the good food Scotty has put out with that little electric smoker of his I think I will order one. With that I will be able to get my smoking fix at the apt without breaking the rules. I'm looking forward to smoking food more often.

 

[bbq bubba]

How about an electric ECB?? Even the toy smoker would have to sit outside i would think, whats the diff?

 

[vlap]

I thought about that as well. One thing I am doing in my new apt is trying to save space. This small smoker will take up slightly less room. Yet it can fit a whole brisket in it, or a few butts, or a few chickens, or a large turkey. I can cook more than enough in it but when done I have room to stow it completely out of sight. I have a full size smoker at the parents right now and an old ecb at a friends. I might get that back if he no longer uses it. I need to see if I can replace the heating element in it and the temp control. I am hoping that with the small space of the rival smoker I can get by with alot less smoke and still achieve the flavor I want.
It is all up in the air. I have not made any purchases and you bring a good point which gives me more to think about.
Good thing is I got rid of my couch and dinner table today. They were both huge and I will pick up a very nice futon to replace the couch this afternoon. Its going to save me a ton of space which will open the apt up nicely. Now I need to find a nice round dinner table thats made to sit 4.

 

[fatback joe]

I think I would have just bought a big *** smoker and live in that and forget about the apartment.

 

[vlap]

hehehehe... I wouldn't fit in the water pan when taking a bath...

 

[fatback joe]

LOL I picture you sitting Bugs Bunny style washing up in the pot of veggies.

 

[vlap]

Not sure your wife would appreciate you thinking of me in such a manner...

 

[scotty]

You ae definitely a professional chef.
As for the smoker, you can get one at a vidio rental store. Just tell them you want one about apartment dwellers

 

[richoso1]

Vlap, very nice sequence on the pics, and I can tell by the ingredients that it is a tasty dish. I like your aproach to seasoning as you go along, as opposed to seasoning at the last minute, no surprises. Great job!

 

[cowgirl]

Mmmm! Chicken picatta is one of my favorites...I love the capers.

I make mine similar and for a change... sometimes I use pork cutlets in place of the chicken.

You did good Vlap, even without a smoker.