Green-as-Spring Veal Chicken Stew #French Fridays with Dorie

This week the Doristas were assigned to cook Green-as-Spring Veal Stew. We do not eat veal, so I tweaked the recipe a bit and cooked a green chicken stew instead.... I almost followed Dorie recipe, except that I left out the tarragon and returned the veggies into the pot of simmering green sauce along with the meat. I thought the orange of the carrots and the greens of the leaves and herbs presented a pretty contrast. Husband disagreed. He did not like the green at all.. though he thought that the soup was nice. I thought it was lovely. The dill and the lemon was very refreshing and the stew as a whole paired wonderfully with plain rice and Aloo bharta, a Bengali style mashed potato, that we had made to go with it. I guess the toddler felt the same way for he ate his chicken and rice without any fuss.

From experience I have learnt that chicken recipes do not need as much lemon juice as veal ones. So I reduced the amount of lemon juice in the stew and added slices of lemon as garnish. That way I could squeeze in the extra juice I wanted and husband could steer away from it.  

Green-as-Spring Chicken Stew

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Recipe by Tanusree Khandai

Prep time: 15 minutes                                                                                                 Total time: 2 hours
Serves : 4 adults + 1 kid

Ingredients

• 2 Chicken legs
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 2 cups water
• 3 small carrots, trimmed, peeled and quartered
• 2 celery stalks, trimmed, peeled, and quartered
• 1 onion, quatered
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 + ½ tsp dried thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• salt and freshly ground white pepper
• 2 cups arugula leaves
• 2 cups spinach leaves
• ⅓ cup fresh coriander
• ⅓ cup fresh dill fronds
• ½ cup heavy cream
• 2-3 tsps fresh lemon juice*
• lemon slices for garnish (optional)

Cooking Directions

1. In a large vessel, bring the chicken broth and water to a boil. Drop the chicken legs, cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
2. Stir in the carrots, celery, onion, garlic, 1 teaspoon of thyme, bay leaf, salt and pepper, lower the heat to a gentle simmer, cover and cook the vegetables along with the chicken legs for 45 minutes.
3. With a slotted spoon, scoop out the chicken legs and vegetables, cover and keep them warm while you make the sauce.
4. Toss in the arugula, spinach, coriander, dill and ½teaspoon of dried thyme in the liquid that is left in the pot.
5. Cook the greens till the leaves wilt. 
6. Switch off the heat, let the mixture cool down slightly, then puree them in the blender.
7. Return the green sauce to the pot, stir in the heavy cream and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, adjust the salt and pepper and simmer the mixture for 5 minutes.
8. While the sauce is simmering, pull off the meat from the chicken legs and slice them into bite-size pieces.
9. Finally return the cooked vegetables and the chicken pieces into the pot, simmer everything for 5-7 minutes.
10. Switching off the heat. Then garnish with lemon slices and serve with rice or noodles.

Visit French Fridays with Dorie to know what the other members thought about this stew. You can find Dorie's recipe for Green-as-Spring Veal Stew here. For more such delicious recipes order your copies of Around my French Table and join the Doristas in this tasty adventure.

I shall be sharing this recipe at some of these parties

Monday 
 Mix it up Monday, The Scoop, Made with love Monday, Marvelous Mondays @ This Gal Cooks, Recipe Sharing @ Jam Hands
Melt in your Mouth Monday, Inspiration Monday Party, Inspire Me Monday, Clever Chicks Blog Hop,
Meatless Monday :  Meatless Monday My Sweet and Savory

Tuesday 
Totally Tasty Tuesday @ Mandy's Recipe Box,  Tasteful Tuesday Party @ Nap Time Creations, Show Me What You Got @ Our Delightful Home ,  
Hand Made Tuesday @ Ladybug Blessings, Share it Link Party @ Winthrop Chronicles,  Tasty Tuesday @ Anyonita Nibbles,
Hearth and Soul blog Hop @ Zesty South Indian Kitchen,
In & Out of the Kitchen @ Feeding Big & More, Tuesday's Table @ Love in the Kitchen, 

Wednesday 
What's Cooking Wednesday @ Buns in my Oven, Cast Party Wednesday @ Lady Behind the Curtain,
Show and Share @ Semi Homemade Mom, Wine'd Down Wednesday,
Wonderful Food Wednesdays at @ All She Cooks, Wonderful Food Wednesdays at @ Mom's Test Kitchen
Wednesday, Whatsit@White Lights on Wednesday, Wednesday Extravaganza @ Hunger Little Girl, 
What I Made @ Creations by Kara

Thursday
Link it Up Thursday @ Seven Alive, Fantastic Thursday @ Three Little Chiefs, 
Thriving on Thursdays @ Domesblissity,  Full Plate Thursday @ Miz Helen's Country Cottage , 
 Freedom Friday @ My Turn,  Pin it Thursday @ Sweet Bella Roos

Friday 
Foodie Friday @ Simple Living and Eating,  Friday Linky Party @ The Pin Junkie, 
Get Him Feed @ Anyonita Nibbles,  Friday Favorite (DYI too) @ Simple Sweet Home,
Foodie Friday @ Not Your Ordinary Recipes,  Foodie Friday @ Rattlebridge Farm,
Weekend Wonders @ The Thriftiness Miss, Friday Food Frenzy @ Mostly Food and Crafts,
Weekend Potluck @ Sunflower Supper Club, The Weekend re-Treat @The Best Blog Recipe

Garbure Style Chicken Stew #French Fridays with Dorie

I had been waiting all week to tell you about this Chicken Stew... 

It was So. Damn. Delicious. 

This Friday the Doristas were assigned cook "Garbure from the Supermarket." Garbure is a rustic French Stew with white beans, meat and veggies.  Dories says, while "bacon or split pork, cured ham, and/or garlic sausage" may or may not be in it, " there is almost always duck confit" in it. My stew however was made on a budget and did not have any duck confit or ham or garlic sausage. But like a traditional Garbure it was gently simmered  on the back of the stove until it was thick enough for a heavy wooden spoon to stand upright on it.

At the discussion forum of French Fridays with Dorie, Diane Balch had mentioned that those who weren't using duck confit might want to throw in a bay leaf and some thyme into the stew . I did that and also added some savory for flavor.  I cannot say if it was the herbs or the slow simmering or the combination of the meat and veggies... but all that put together made one hearty pot of stew that we enjoyed throughout the week...

And for whatever reason the stew only got better everyday..

Panch Meshali Dal

No matter which month of the year it is, dal or lentils are always an integral part of  our Indian meals. While a moong dal-vegetable stew or a simple masoor dal is usually on the menu, every once in a while, we like a meal of creamy lentil stew with stuffed parathas and raita. Such a meal is specially comforting in winter, when the temperatures drop below freezing point and threaten to drop further...

While Dal Makhani and Dal Bukhara are the popular North Indian lentil preparations, a mixed dal stew like this one is an everyday affair. You can prepare it with which ever dal you have at hand or an assortment of the lentils in your pantry... Just make sure you add a tablespoon or two of whole or split urad dal to the mixture and  simmer the lentils along with the spices for a good 30 minutes to an hour. And there....you are ready for a treat..

Urad dal is one of the lentils that is extensively used in south Indian cooking. Besides being used to prepare dosas, papad and vada, small amounts of urad is roasted along with the spices in the preparation of south Indian stir fries. In North India it is mostly used to prepare dals. When cooked by itself, split urad dal feels a bit slippery. Though many like its texture, it is not a favorite at our house. We however, enjoy it in rich winter dals such as this. Without a drop of extra cream it does wonders to the texture and flavor of the dish at hand...

Urad dal also has several health benefits.  It is rich in iron and believed to be particularly essential for women undergoing menstruation. Different from red meat and other sources of iron, urad dal does not contain high calories and fat. It is a rich and inexpensive source of protein and contains both soluble and insoluble dietary fibers which help in digestion. Because of its high magnesium and folate levels it is also believed to promote cardiovascular health. However when consumed in excess it can cause flatulence... so a recipe like this mixed lentil stew is just right if you want to enjoy the benefits of urad dal without over indulging in it.

In Bengali, Panch meshali dal translates to a 'stew of five dals.' I am not sure if such a dal is part of traditional Bengali cuisine but something similar is popular in North India. It goes by the name of "Panch Ratani Dal" or Panchmel dal. The initial plan was to follow Tarla Dalal's recipe and cook Panch Ratani for dinner. But since the supplies at hand did not quite match up to Tarla-ji's list of ingredients I took a detour and cooked us Panch Meshali dal...