httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSqKjtl2dJc
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Alright … well, don’t laugh but I did something very silly, though with really good intentions of course (as if there were any other kind). We picked out a great chicken sandwich recipe for this episode and proceeded to film as per usual (more about that in a sec from Helenka [Evil editor’s startled note: what … who … what…?]). One of the things I’ve learned to do to reduce the amount of editing time is to stop the camera while we are waiting for something to finish cooking or during some of the less than exciting prep work. Well, it was all good at the start as I knew the camera was on; but, when it came time to do some prep while the chicken was cooking, I turned the camera off (at least I thought it was off). Then Helenka and I proceeded to carry on as we do normally, just gabbing about anything while I cut up stuff with nary a care in the world (lol).
When I finished the prep and it was time to get back to filming and cooking the remainder of the meal, I turned the camera back on (or so I thought). We finished the episode and I turned the camera off again but, by this point, paranoia had set in ‘cuz I thought there was something weird. Weird on its own is usually fine but this weird was different (I’m laughing as I write this) because what I was actually doing was turning the camera OFF when I thought it was ON and ON when I thought the camera was OFF (sigh, yes, completely opposite of what you are supposed to do). Needless to say, this is probably our weirdest and shortest episode yet (6 minutes or so); however – as they say – the show must go on, so I managed to salvage what I could. You will even see a segment with me alone in the kitchen explaining what we had done (after I’d discovered the on/off confusion and tried to make up for it but the horse had already left the barn by that point) and showing the finished dish while Helenka sat in the living room, commenting off-camera and calling me a goof (which I proudly admit to all of you now).
Have yourselves a GREAT week and enjoy!!!
B&H =:)
Please note: We try and review the recipes in the cookbook; however, in an effort to respect copyright, we are not able to reproduce the actual printed recipes here. If you do have the book, please follow along with us!
Review: Grilled Chicken Sandwich
Notes from the Chef’s Sidekick (Helenka)
This was an unusual recipe, from the ingredients to the presentation. Brian grilled two chicken breasts that had been marinated in a commercial bottled Teriyaki sauce. He also grilled pineapple slices, as well as the buns. Assembling the food, he added a titch more Teriyaki sauce (my suggestion) to the bottom bun, before placing the chicken breast with melted Swiss cheese, topping it with a thin entire slice of red onion (yes, I’m bouncing up and down because I love red onion), home-made pickled jalapeno peppers (oh, Brian, will you please make me a jar), the pineapple and the top of the bun.
The salad mix was exquisite. I’m certain he’s told you exactly what the component ingredients were, but I’ll just mention one of his surprises, namely fermented black garlic which I’d never had before. We took a chance (well, you know we do that) with the salad dressing. Using The Book’s formula (one oil, one acid and one or more flavour enhancers), I chose Extra Virgin Olive oil, Red Wine vinegar, honey and chopped garlic. My hope was that the honey would even out any heat from the jalapenos and the garlic would provide an echo of the Teriyaki sauce (which did in fact contain garlic).
Well, the salad dressing was amazing, the honey acting exactly the way I wanted it to and lingering on the tongue. The chicken was excellent, with one unexpected texture feature: the extra-crispy bottom that was pressed against the bun. However (to my great shock), I felt there was Too. Much. Food! Meaning too much chicken. I couldn’t believe I am writing this, as all I’d had to eat during the day had been one glass of fruit juice and two avocados. So, if we were ever to make this dish again, I would cut the portion of meat in half, slicing the chicken breast in order to halve its thickness.
Variations
Brian agreed with me that there was far too much meat. So I suggested that what might work (if one didn’t want to keep the sandwich format) would be to grill the chicken after marinating, then cutting it into bite-sized chunks, before tossing it with the salad ingredients. In fact, keeping the red onion, pickled jalapeno and grilled pineapple would be ideal, especially with a repeat of the honey-garlic salad dressing. I would also add many other grilled or fresh fruits (peach, strawberry, pear, watermelon … etc., ad infinitum) and serve this as a spectacular summer salad. The swiss cheese could be added (or not), but I don’t think I would miss its presence. And I could see the per-serving caloric and other counts dropping significantly.
I would call this verdict a toss-up. The basic idea was okay, but our variation would make it far better. [Helenka calls out to Brian: Hey, you want to publish a cookbook, maybe?]
Cooking time (duration): 60
Diet (other): Reduced fat
Number of servings (yield): 2
Meal type: supper
Culinary tradition: USA (General)
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