Yum Peaceful Cooking: Haitian Chicken Thighs.....I mean Legs

Friday, April 23, 2010

Haitian Chicken Thighs.....I mean Legs





Well, the recipe called for thighs. I thought I had thighs in the fridge. But no. They were legs.

And no. I did not fail anatomy. I swear!

And yes....this is one more Haitian dish that I prepared for the BakeSpace Challenge. And I think this will be the last for this challenge. I may have gone a little overboard. I mean I made 3 dishes....but in my defense, I couldn't make up my mind....and what does a gal do when she can't make up her mind?

She chooses ALL!

In case you haven't seen the other two (and you really should) here's the link to

Mango Muffins with Lemon Glaze (a Haitian Mango Coffee Cake turned Muffin)
&
Haitian Carnitas (inspired by Glazed and Braised Pork and became Carnitas with a Haitian influence)

Oh...and just so ya know....I found the recipe for these very tasty chicken legs --->HERE<---

And if you look really really close...you'll notice that I only changed 1 teenie tiny ingredient in this recipe (unlike the other 2)...out of need! A personal need. A need to stay away from all things thyme as much as I can. Why? Well...I don't like it. So I used savory instead. Which reminds me of thyme (do you pronounce that like "time" or do you include the "H".....?) hmmmm....where was I...Ooooh yes...savory reminds me of a more mild version of thyme.

Without further ado....



Haitian Chicken Legs:
Printable Recipe

Juice from 4 limes
Juice from 2 oranges
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon dried savory (or thyme or 1 tablespoon fresh minced thyme)
1 tablespoon fresh minced rosemary
1 tablespoon brown sugar
4 minced green onions
3 minced garlic cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons ground allspice
1 hot pepper, minced (I didn't want too much heat so I used a red jalapeno...which ended up not being hot enough)
10 chicken legs, or 8 chicken thighs
Salt & Pepper to taste

I have some handy dandy lemon and line squeezers (which are sometimes my hands).....but when it comes to oranges, that requires a whole different thing


I love this thing!!! I found it one day at...hmmm...Sav-On Drugs (way before it became CVS). I don't remember how much it cost. I have a feeling it was under $10..like around $7-ish. Anyways...I've had it for about 15 yrs, it's electrical and it still works great. Why don't they make things to last anymore? I mean....about 5 yrs ago I bought a Black and Decker food processor that barely lasted 3 yrs. Whats up with that?

But look how handy this thing is...




The juice is squeezed, seeded and de-pulped...then ready to pour! All in one shot! (sung in soprano voice) Looooooove iiiiit!

Now...mix all your ingredients together in a nice zip lock bag or non-reactive dish, covered....and mix it all up.  Oh wait...you might want to mix up everything except the chicken....theeen add the chicken (it'll be a little easier that way)


Marinate the chicken for at least 3 hours. Over night would be best. I think I did mine for about 6 hours though.



Grill or bake on medium high until cooked through. I baked mine at 350'F for about 35 - 45 minutes, turning the chicken halfway through. If grilling them...I think you're suppose to grill, skin sides down for 10 minutes then turn, move chicken to the cooler part of the grill, cover and continue grilling for another 10 or 15 minutes or until thoroughly cooked....or what ever method works best for you.

Now I didn't serve this meal with the traditional haitian beans and rice and such...I mean, my family can take only so much at a time when it comes to "new" stuff. Therefore I just had a simple side of white rice and corn.

`
I mean...everything goes with white rice and corn, right? And let me tell you....this was really really tasty! It even got a thumbs up by Sir Sportsalot, who is sometimes not into "new" or "improved" things. So that was a biggy.

I am submitting this recipe to Regional Recipes, hosted by Joanne at Eats Well With Others. Regional Recipes is "a blogging event that celebrates food from all over the world!" Her deadline for the Haitian recipes is April 30th, 2010....just in case you want to play too :)

14 comments:

  1. Fabulous looking legs. I love fresh thyme, not so much the dried one or any dry herbs in general, they taste different and way too strong compared to fresh ones.
    I hear you on "expensive, good quality stuff", I bought a 300 euros Hoover vacuum cleaner only one year ago, thinking the investment was a rather good one, and now all plastic parts are literally in pieces/broken and I'm really pissed.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Danielle, your chicken looks mouthwatering - looking forward to trying this one.

    I had two middle of the range blenders which broke within 6 months (of course I couldn't find the receipts!!), the one I have now was really cheap and has been going for ages!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thighs/legs...whatever these called for...they look amazingly gorgeous..One question though. When I bake, at 350, the legs seldom turn such lovely caramalized...I usually have to crank it up to 450 for another 10-15 minutes...

    any help with to get over this extra step. I will especially appreciate it since I am real hungry by the time these cook up :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. these look crazy delicious! What sweet and succulent marinade...I'm drooling over here and it's only 7AM!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Dajana - I hear you on the vacuum.....same thing happened with a Hoover that I bought too! Really pisses me off too....such a waste of money

    Brownieville - It's just so hard to tell these days, isn't it. And even if you find a brand thats really good...it may not be good in all areas! I have a couple of Sunbeam kitchen products that have been going for 20+ yrs. but my Sunbeam dryer just went up in flames (litterally) after only a few years.

    Jhonny - These legs were on the small side so I didn't have to cook them all that long but I didn't want to over cook them and dry them out or burn them. I only have 2 recipes that get this caramelized result....both require long marinading times and both have a sugar in the ingredient. Maybe if you found a happy medium between the two oven temps that you use, that will work for your oven and rack location....try baking at 375 or even 400, keep an eye on the chicken. If there's a sugar in the marinade it usually starts to caramelize before the chicken is done. Email me if you have any other questions :)

    Tango - Thanks girl!

    Joanne - I need to edit this and submit it to your haitian food thingy :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Your food always looks so good--you really got into this Haitian thing. I have some time, right? I need me a good dose of BakeSpace! I'm missing you all...

    ReplyDelete
  7. Danielle, this is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen!!! Wow, this recipe sounds awesome, awesome ... it just might be my Sunday Chicken Dinner! As always, thanks ... Stacey

    ReplyDelete
  8. Mmm, those legs look mighty tasty. Love the flavors in the marinade!

    ReplyDelete
  9. This looks yummy! Hmm also don't want a lot of heat, what would you suggest as a substitute, crushed red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper?

    ReplyDelete
  10. The peppers I put in there didn't add much heat at all. I think crushed red pepper and or cayenne would be hotter than the jalapeno I added, but then you could add only as much as you know you like. does that make sense?

    ReplyDelete
  11. I've been looking at juicers for a long time now but they are all so BIG.

    The Waring Mighty Squeeze looks like it is exactly what I'm looking for. Off to check out Ebay!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Those look delicious! Here I haven't made up my mind yet, the 30th is on Friday and you did 3 recipes... LOL I am a lazy bum. Now pass me one of those legs... Please!

    ReplyDelete
  13. I made this today. It needs way more seasoning and salt in my opinion. I marinated overnight and followed the recipe exactly. I like creating the original recipe first as to give the original recipe the respect it deserves :) the chicken was mildly citrus, not spicy and a bit on the bland side. I would definitely make again, just adjust the seasoning. I also baked for required time and increased the temp to finalize and give a nice crispy carmelized appearance. Thanks for the post!

    ReplyDelete

I apologize for having to use the word verification but you know how spammers are. All comments with links will be treated as spam. Thank you for visiting. I will do my best to return the visit.
Cheers!