We actually dined on this in March, shortly after my dad returned to Guam and we found we still had ground chicken in the freezer. We don't usually buy ground chicken, but it was the best meat alternative for his gout maintenance diet. I wanted to make something a little different than the meatloaf or meatball alternatives running through my head. We also had some beautiful asparagus and a large quantity of caponata newly made. Instead of adding it all into a loaf, what if we rolled it into the center of a meat casing. How would they go together?

Pretty well, actually. Although the roll did not hold its shape as well as it might have with ground beef or pork, the flavors melded well. The lightly seasoned chicken and fresh asparagus absorbed the salty play of flavors in the eggplant relish. Served over a bed of polenta-style grits with oyster mushrooms, it was a colorful and satisfying meal. I used a lot more caponata than I would have liked (less for me to snack on), but I didn't begrudge the loss of my favorite appetizer (too much).

STUFFED CHICKEN ROLL-UP WITH ASPARAGUS & CAPONATA
For the ground meat mixture:
1.5 lb ground chicken (or beef, pork)
sea salt to taste
ground black pepper
1/2 medium onion, diced fine
1 medium egg (optional -- if I made this with ground chicken again, I would omit the egg so the roll might keep its shape better)

Combine all ingredients well. Chill until needed.

To Finish:
4-6 spears of asparagus (depending on width of spears)
1-1/2 cups prepared Caponata (recipe)

On a piece of wax paper or plastic wrap (about 16" long), form meat mixture into a rectangle, about 12" long and 6" wide.

Add layer of caponata to within 1/2-inch of the long side closest to you and 2" from the far end. Lay asparagus spears side-by-side over caponata.

Using the paper/plastic wrap as a guide, begin to roll the meat over the filling, jelly roll or sushi style. When completely enclosed, twist ends of plastic/wax closed and tuck under. Place roll on cookie sheet and leave in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. Meanwhile, pre-heat the oven to 400F/200C.

Lightly oil a baking sheet, and place chilled meat roll on sheet. Drizzle olive oil over loaf, if using chicken. Bake for 20 minutes, then turn heat down to 350F/180C and continue baking for 20 more minutes. Allow to cool on the sheet for 15 minutes. Using a wide fish slice/spatula, remove roll to cutting board and slice on the diagonal.

Serve with mashed potatoes, polenta or pasta.

Tags: Chicken, Recipes

When you're really not feeling well, there's few things better than chicken soup to make it all better. So what is it about chicken soup that makes it so popular as a cold remedy? Is it just the warm liquid soothing the chest? Hot vapors loosening nasal congestion? Or is it something more? At least two different scientific studies have taken a crack at what mothers and folklore the world over tout as the best cold remedy. The earlier study showed that warm chicken soup "increased nasal mucus velocity" (what a lovely term!) and so would alleviate the "acute rhinitis" (stuffy nose) that accompanies the common cold. (A) The later study, in 2000, demonstrated that the synergistic combination of chicken and vegetables in a homemade chicken soup inhibited the movement of white blood cells (called neutrophils) that caused inflammation in the upper respiratory tract. (B) By limiting the number of neutrophils at the infection site, the inflammation was reduced, and so was the duration of the cold. Interestingly, the second study also tested several commercial brands of chicken soup and found some of them had a better or equal anti-inflammatory effect as the homemade soup. (See the list of the commercial soups in the survey)

But what's the one key ingredient all the commercial brands of soup will be missing? TLC, of course — love. Chicken soup is not hard. Here's an easy, foolproof method you can start in a crockpot. The only catch is, I recommend starting the day before you serve so you can chill the broth and remove most of the fat. I usually start this in the morning and let it do it's thing until evening. (Meanwhile I can do my thing and not fret too much over an open flame)

In a 5-7 quart crockpot, place:
3-4 lbs chicken backs, or a 1-2 whole stewing chicken
2 well-scrubbed unpeeled carrots, cut in half
1 large well-scrubbed unpeeled onion, quartered
green tops of one bunch of scallions
1/2 hand of ginger, sliced

Cover with water and set crockpot on High setting for 3 hours, skim as impurities form "scum" in broth.
Turn setting to Low and simmer for another 6 hours. (The long simmer is necessary to extract maximum goodness from the bones)
Remove broth to a large shallow pan to cool, then in a container to refrigerate overnight.
When cold, remove all or most (I leave about 10-15 % in for flavor) of the layer of yellow fat at the top of the broth.

Now you can do anything you want with it -- add all the vegetables you like; add chicken, seafood; add macaroni, orzo, rice noodles, rice or potatoes; add herbs or more spices; add . . . your imagination!

Here is one of our favorite chicken soups. It's a Filipino soup with green papaya — called Tinola. The papaya is supposed to be a stark white color. The one in these pictures had started to ripen on the inside, although the outer skin was still green. But it was very firm, not sweet, and stood up well in this soup. The watercress is not traditional in the original Philippine version, but I love watercress and think it adds a great flavor, not to mention all the extra nutrition from the greens. I"ve also seen this made with togan (also called winter melon) or upo (also called loofa gourd), instead of green papaya.

(Look here for a more traditional Chicken & Vegetable Soup)

CHICKEN TINOLA
(Chicken and green papaya soup with watercress)

1 large knob of ginger, julienned
1 onion, sliced
3-5 cloves garlic, chopped
8-9 cups prepared chicken broth
1 whole chicken breast, cut in half
1 whole green papaya, peeled and cut into 4-inch cubes
1 large bunch watercress, cleaned and chopped into 2-inch pieces
2 TBL fish sauce (patis)
1-2 tsp ground black pepper
sea salt, if necessary

The most important step in developing the right flavor for this soup is to saute the ginger, onions and garlic together until the onions become translucent, then slightly brown. Add chicken broth, and breast halves and bring to boil. Remove any scum that surfaces. When chicken is fully cooked, remove from broth.

Add papaya pieces, watercress, patis and pepper. When cool enough to handle, remove meat from bone, tear into large chunks and return to soup. Cook over medium heat until papaya is just tender (pierces with a fork). Taste and adjust seasoning.


Although this is a soup, you've probably guessed from the large chunks that this is not eaten directly from the bowl. I was taught to eat this with fork, spoon, plate of rice and a side dish of patis. We've given up on the tableside patis for health reasons (like all fish sauces, it's very salty with a high sodium content), but still eat this the traditional way: put some meat and vegetable on your plate and eat it with rice. You can use the broth to moisten your rice and/or drink the broth separately.

(A) Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach study (1978)
(B) University of Nebraska Medical Center report: "Chicken Soup Inhibits Neutrophil Chemotaxis In Vitro*" (2000)

Tags: Recipes, Soups, Chicken, Filipino