A good cook always strives to produce the tastiest dish they can. In my repertoire, my tastiest meals have always been braises, long slow cooked meat dishes that take tough ingredients and transform them into fall off the bone tender amazing tasting meals. Think of a pot roast or chicken cacciatore.  The broth of slow simmered meats and vegetables is so full of flavor that I began to think that I could use it as a base for a fantastic soup. This method is ideal for making use of any excess braising liquid reminding me how a good restaurant works. When I use this technique I focus on flavor. For example we will make chicken cacciatore using whole skin-on chicken thighs with San Marzano tomatoes and add fennel to boost the anise flavor along with fresh basil. We will brown the chicken to produce a flavorful fond, add aromatic vegetables and deglaze with a sharp acidic white wine for extra flavor. To boost the savory element we could pull out our bag of tricks, some tomato paste, maybe some fish sauce and some parmesan rind if we have it. I usually make this soup the next day allowing me to remove the fat which ha solidified on the top. Who needs that extra fat? And now for the final secret, add a little sweet vinegar to finish. It will add a bright finishing kick. I like to use a white balsamic but you can use your own favorite.

Ingredients:

 6 - 8 bone-in chicken thighs

 2 large onions diced

 4 stalks celery diced

 4 medium carrots diced

 1 small fennel bulb diced

 4 cloves garlic

 1 28 ounce can San Marzano tomatoes

 2 Tbsp. tomato paste

 1 Tbsp. fresh thyme

 fresh chopped basil

 1 cup white wine

 3-4 cups chicken stock

 parmesan rind (optional)

 fish stock

 olive oil

 salt and pepper to taste

 splash of white balsamic vinegar

Procedure:

 1. In a preheated large heavy bottomed skillet add some olive oil and brown the chicken. while the chicken is browning chop the vegetables. After the chicken has browed, remove the chicken and add one half of the vegetables and garlic with the tomato paste. Season with salt and pepper and cook for 3 to 4 minutes then deglaze the pan with the wine loosening any residue from the bottom of the pan.

2. Add the herbs and the chicken stock to almost cover the chicken. Add a splash of fish sauce and the parmesan rind and braise on a simmer until the chicken is tender (about 3 hours).

3. Remove the fat from the surface. If you let cool overnight in the refrigerator, the fat will solidify and be easily removed. Debone and de-skin the chicken and chop into pieces. Using a blender puree the soup and thin with more chicken stock to your desired consistency.


4. Add the remainder of the vegetables and the chopped chicken. Simmer to cook vegetables and season to taste. Add a splash of vinegar to add a needed brightness and serve immediately.

One great thing about living near Atlanta is I'm able to exercise my love for Dim Sum and one of the dishes I love to order is chicken feet. I know chicken feet are not something that many people will order, but I love the textural nuances of chicken skin and braised foods; therefore I enjoy them immensely. I wanted to make a version of my own. Then I had an idea, Buffalo chicken feet! Later that night we went out for dinner at Kevin Gillespie's "Gunshow" and on the menu was Buffalo pork belly. Maybe it was a sign. Anyway, this is a great example of substitution taking Chinese savory flavors and replacing them with a spicy buttery Buffalo sauce. To cut down braising time you can use your pressure cooker and reduce cooking time to half a hour.
 
Ingredients:

 2 pounds chicken feet

 2 cloves garlic chopped

 1 small onion chopped

 1/4 cup Oyster flavored sauce

 1 Tbsp. fish sauce

 2 Tbsp. oil

 1/2 cup Frank's hot sauce

 4 Tbsp. butter

 2 cups chicken broth

 1 cup white wine

 salt and pepper to taste


Directions:

 Wash and clean the chicken feet then remove the claws by cutting off the tips of each toe with a knife or shears. Dry off the feet and quickly deep fry for 3 minutes. In a heavy bottomed pot or a pressure cooker on medium heat, add the oil and the chopped onion and garlic, season with salt and pepper and sauté until the onion is translucent. Add the chicken feet and wine and deglaze the pan. Add the chicken broth, the fish sauce and the oyster sauce, cover and braise for one and a half hours or until the feet are tender. If you are using a pressure cooker reduce cooking time to half a hour.

 Bake the feet on a sheet pan to dry them out (about 10 to 15 minutes). When dry briefly deep fry until browned (about 30 seconds) and transfer to paper towels. Melt butter and whisk in hot sauce and season to taste, toss the feet in the sauce and serve hot.

Here we are it's a new year and our thoughts turn to taking off the extra few pounds we may have put on during Thanksgiving and Christmas. My wife and myself just moved to Georgia are still waiting to get into our new house and my entire kitchen is in storage. Eating out is definitely a poor choice in any weight loss program, so what can one do to shed unwanted weight while still eating healthy? I was doing some research on the subject and discovered that people who add soup to their diet tend to eat less and thereby lose weight. Soups are nutritious, fill you up and are a great place to add the vegetables we sometimes have a hard time to put in our diet. What type of soup? Let us stay away from those that add a lot of cream to cut down on the amount of calories and to control the sodium, lets build our own broth. Too hard you say! Lets make it easy and start with a rotisserie chicken bought from our favorite supermarket which means we will not get a lot of that nasty scum on the top when we use uncooked meat. Once we make the broth we can make a large batch to last a couple of meals or split it to make a different soup later. This is my basic chicken soup recipe. Please enjoy, I know you can put your own spin on things and come up with your own version. I can't wait to get in to my new kitchen.

Ingredients

 1 rotisserie chicken

 4 carrots

 4 stalks celery

 2 large sweet onions

 1 bay leaf

 1 tsp. dry thyme or 3 sprigs

 2 to 3 cloves garlic

 3/4 cup pearl barley (you can sub white or brown rice)

 salt and pepper to taste

 garnish - fresh thyme, parsley, green onions, chives, or nothing (its up to you)

Procedure

 Separate the meat of the chicken from the bones. Fill a soup pot with 2 quarts of water and add the wing tips, carcass and any bones from the chicken. Bring to pot to a light boil and reduce to a simmer. Peel 2 of the carrots, the garlic cloves, 1 onion and clean the celery. Roughly chop into large pieces and add to the pot with the bay leaf and the thyme. Simmer for 2 to 3 hours. I like to extract all of the flavor out of the chicken and veggies so I pick a little remaining meat off the bones and taste it. It will taste bland when all the flavor has been transferred to the broth. Strain the broth and discard the bones and veggies. If you want an Oriental broth feel free to add more garlic and some slices of ginger. Remember to taste the broth and season accordingly.


 Peel clean and dice the remaining vegetables to the same size and add to the stock. Dice one or 2 of the chicken breast and add to the pot. The amount of chicken and veggies are up to you. Feel free to vary according to you own preferences. You may want to add other veggies. Add the barley and simmer until the barley is done. Add any garnish and serve hot.