Cornell Chicken

This is the best barbecue you've never heard of. It's not tomato based. It's not from Texas, or the Carolinas, but from upstate New York. Created at a college no less. The original chef was a professor who wanted to create a market for smaller chickens.

The sauce itself is a so-so vinaigrette. It has raw egg, so it isn't suitable for seasoning salads. But it would probably work very well on grilled summer squash, braised carrots, or as a marinade for firm tofu you intend to cook.

Remember, this is a highly flammable seasoning. Please be careful while you work around the open flame.


Cornell Sauce
1 cup cooking oil
1 pint cider vinegar
3 tablespoons salt (may be omitted)
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 egg


Beat the egg, slowly add oil while still beating. Add the other ingredients.This can be stored in the fridge for several weeks.

To BBQ the chicken, pick something meaty with bone and skin still attached (chicken thighs are good). Pile coals in the center of the grill, light, and get very hot.

Brush the chicken with Cornell sauce. Place pieces around the center stack of coals, but not directly overhead. This sauce is very flammable and the chicken is easy to burn.

Slow cook the chicken around the hot coals for about 20 minutes, give or take depending on the size of the chicken pieces.


Recipe created by Dr. Robert C. Baker (1921-2006) of Cornell University.

Braised Chicken with Creamy Leek Sauce

This is not an original recipe, but where it originally came from I can only guess. Enjoy!

Chicken in a Creamy Leek Sauce

1 bunch of leeks (usually a bundle has 3-4 stalks)
1 boneless/skinless chicken breast per person
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 medium cloves of garlic- crushed
1 can chicken broth (low sodium)
1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder to taste

Halve the leeks and cut into 1/2 inch - 1 inch slices. Wash thoroughly.


Pat chicken dry and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil and 1/2 tablespoon butter in a 10-inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat until foam subsides, then brown chicken on both sides, about 4 minutes total. Transfer to a plate.



Add half of chicken broth and all the garlic to skillet and deglaze by boiling over high heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits, until reduced to about 2 tablespoons, 1 to 2 minutes.



Add leeks and remaining 2 butter and salt and pepper to taste, then simmer over moderately low heat, covered, stirring occasionally, until leeks are wilted, about 10 minutes.


Stir in rest of broth. Top leeks with chicken breasts and juices from plate, then gently simmer over low heat, covered, until leeks are tender and chicken is just cooked through, about 8 minutes .



Transfer chicken breasts to a plate. Add cream to skillet and boil over high heat, stirring occasionally, until thickened slightly, 1 to 2 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with crusty bread or over rice.

Tomato-Basil Chicken

Baked Chicken with Tomato and Basil
- enough chicken for everyone eating (2-3 breasts for my clan of 4)
- fresh basil (about 8 large leaves)
- 1/4 onion diced or 6 pearl onions halved
- 2 medium tomatoes sliced or a few handfuls of cherry tomatoes (And by now you understand why James can't copy any of my recipes. I'm an intuitive cook, not a scholar. I eyeball amounts and fiddle with recipes to no end. Really, it tastes good!)
- 3 cloves of garlic
- 1 tbspn olive oil
- 1/4 cup chicken broth or water


Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Celsius
- Dice onion, cut tomato, shred basil, and crush garlic (I like a big rubber mallet for this. Lay the garlic somewhere solid, smash with the mallet, and remove peel. All done! It takes all of ten seconds and the kids are always happy to help with the smashing.)
- Put chicken in glass casserole dish or whatever you use for baking things like this
- Drop in the remaining ingredients
- Drizzle olive oil over everything
- Add some salt and pepper to the chicken if you like and then the chicken broth
- Cover the casserole dish with foil and tuck tightly (you want to catch the steam)
- Bake for 45-60 minutes or until juices run clear when chicken is cut
- Remove chicken from pan and place in broiler on high for 3-5 minutes until it turns brown and crisp
- Eat... there will be some yummy pan juices that you can either use to make rice in or sop up with some fresh bread



This is the pre-oven dish. By the time it was cooked I was too hungry for pictures. It looked delicious and tasted better. :0) You'll just have to take my word on this.

Standing Time: Less than 10 minutes
Total Cook Time: 75 minutes max
Can you make it ahead? Probably, I've never tried but I don't see any reason you couldn't toss this together and refrigerate overnight as long as it's covered. I don't think this is a good candidate for freezing.