Basil Chicken Merlot with Wild Mushrooms

Sometimes, cooking in a crockpot can be such a convenience! There's nothing nicer than coming home to a dinner that is already cooked for you. But often, crockpot recipes yield dishes that have strange pungent qualities -- not bad, just really intense. I found this dish to have quite a nice balance of flavors -- simple, yet warm and tasty. Perfect for coming in out of the cold!

Basil Chicken Merlot with Wild Mushrooms
crock-pot.com

3 T olive oil
1 1/2 - 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken, cut into pieces
1 1/2 c mushrooms (white button or baby bella), cleaned and thinly sliced
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 c chicken stock
6 oz tomato paste
1/3 c merlot, or other dry red wine
1 tsp oregano (dried)
2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 T basil, fresh, minced
3 c ziti pasta, cooked, drained
romano cheese, grated, for garnish

Heat a large skillet on the stovetop and add oil. Brown chicken pieces about 3 minutes per side. emove chicken and set aside.

Add mushrooms, onion and garlic to skillet and cook 7-8 minutes, until onions are soft.

Add vegetables to the stoneware insert of the crockpot. Add chicken pieces on top of the vegetables.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine stock, tomato paste, wine, oregano, sugar, salt, and pepper. Pour this sauce over the chicken.

Cover with the lid and cook on high for 3-4 hours, or on low for 7-9 hours.

Cook pasta and place on serving dish. Scoop chicken on top of noodles. Garnish with basil and grated cheese.

Sorry - no "after" picture! We got home and the place smelled so good that we sat down and ate right away!

Comments

Mayocoba Beans with Green Chiles

I love this dish so much that I can barely stand it. Delicious the night it was made, and fantastic as leftovers throughout the week. Mayocoba beans are easily replaced -- try pintos, if you can't find mayocobas. Mayocoba Beans with Green Chiles Baptism of Fire 3-4 green chiles, roasted and chopped 1 onion, chopped 1 clove garlic, minced 1 T lard or olive oil 1/2 tsp oregano 1 tsp cumin pepper 1 c mayocoba beans, dry 3 c water 1 tsp salt Cook the green chiles, onion, garlic, oregano, cumin, and black pepper in the fat until the onions begin to caramelize. Add the water and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat and let the beans sit, uncovered, for an hour. You may drain the water to remove some of the slightly indigestible sugars that cause gassiness. If you decide to drain them, add enough water back into the pot to cover the beans with about 2" of water above the beans for cooking. Bring the beans back to a boil and cook, until tender. This will take...

Curried Chicken Soup

I made this soup so often in the 1990s, but frankly had forgotten about it. Flipping through this cookbook, I found this recipe and was flooded with memories. When I was in grad school, this soup was my "feeling decadent" food and reminded me of something people might eat after hitting the slopes -- a thing I have never done. A few decades long, and with a lot more experience with cooking, I realize that this is basically a chicken curry with a thin sauce and the rice already in the meal -- but don't let that in any way discourage you! It's delicious as is and is a wonderful take on what is otherwise chicken and rice soup. I have become a fan of using rotisserie chickens, especially during the pandemic. They are so cheap, and I can use the meat in a soup like this on the day-of grocery shopping, and, crunch the bones down for the freezer for making stock in the future. Of course, this soup can be made with a fresh chicken, but I have modified the recipe bel...

Spicy Bulgarian Tomato Dumpling Soup - Domatene Supa

This was very very good. The soup itself was flavorful and would have been enough as a dinner soup. But adding the dumplings converted this soup into an entree. The couscous addition in the batter makes the dumplings pretty foolproof -- no real concern that they'll still be raw because most of the bulk is couscous, which was already cooked. I opted to cook only enough dumplings as we needed that night. We will have to make future dumplings "on demand" as we eat this as leftovers. Spicy Bulgarian Tomato Dumpling Soup - Domatene Supa Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant Soup 1 onion , diced 4 cloves garlic , minced 3 T olive oil 6 c tomatoes , chopped (fresh or canned and drained) 2 tsp chili powder 2 T flour 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp pepper 4 c stock Dumplings 2 T butter , room temperature 2 eggs , separated 1/4 c couscous 1/4 c boiling water 3/4 c flour 1/4 tsp salt 2 T dill weed , fresh (or 1 tsp dried) 1/3 c milk or stock In medium pot, sa...

Donut Army

Search This Blog