Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Pulled Chicken Sandwiches

Over the weekend Curtis smoked 2 chickens--Rockingham County, VA style (which would be a vinegar baste and cooked low and slow....my favorite chicken in the whole world). Now what my family needs with 2 chickens for one meal, I am not quite sure. Needless to say, I have leftover chicken I need to figure out how to use. We also went every other week with our CSA box in September, so I've needed to use a little more thought to plan meals (because I don't have a fridge full of vegetables I don't want to go bad).

The result--Pulled Chicken Sandwiches. I used some of my remaining onions (the onions are dwindling--so sad. I may need to buy onions at the store before too long again) and the challah I made in the afternoon. Mmm...a great way to use leftover cooked chicken (and I'd imagine turkey around Thanksgiving time). Everyone liked it. M even ate the onions without mentioning them, which was an accomplishment. I used two chicken quarters (dark meat sections) for this. I think it was around 2 c of chicken. Instead of the tomato paste and water, you could also use 1/2 c tomato sauce and 2 T water. With 2 c chicken, it barely made 4 sandwiches.

Pulled Chicken Sandwiches
adapted from Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook

1 1 3/4 - 2 lb purchased rotisserie chicken (or leftover, cooked chicken from another meal)
1 med onion, sliced 1/4" thick
1/3 c cider vinegar
2 T concentrated tomato paste
1/2 c water
1 T molasses
1/2 t salt
3 - 4 T serrano or jalapeno peppers, seeded and finely chopped (optional--I omitted)

Remove the chicken from the bones, discarding skin, fat, and bones (and other misc parts you don't want). Pull meat into shreds. In a large skillet cook onion in hot oil over medium heat about 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally to separate slices into rings. Add vinegar and cook another minute. Add tomato paste, water, molasses, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Add the chicken and stir to coat. Heat through. You can keep warm on the stove until you are ready to serve it.

No comments: