I Did It! Haitian Chicken At Last!

Usually I test a recipe before I post it, but I took a chance and posted the last one---Poule---before testing. The thing is, I have been trying off and on for the last 6 months to get this down, without using a recipe. And I could not seem to find a recipe anywhere, which I would have gladly used. For some reason, I finally found the one I posted on from the Internet, but I knew it was not quite right because of the tomato sauce. However, I felt the chicken cooking method might be correct, because I knew I was certainly missing a key factor somewhere in my process. The meat should be falling off the bone, and I just could not get there. Also, the vinegar taste in my attempts was way too strong (yummy...not!) At any rate, I tested the recipe and it worked! Hurray! I did not use the tomato sauce. I made a sauce from browning the chicken after boiling it, which was not that easy, because while the boiling makes the meat tender, it also takes out alot of fat. So after browning for about 20 minutes I had enough liquid to make a rue, to which I added some chicken broth, and lastly some green onions, and Ooh la la! I had it! I like it with Basmati rice. I know that is not Haitian, but it is damn good!

Friday's Fave Foods***Poule

After months of trying to figure this recipe out for myself, and failing time and again, I have finally looked it up and am submitting what I think must be a close approximation to the chicken dishes I enjoy so much while staying at Walls International Guest House in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

Ingredients

1 pound chicken

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon of vinegar

2 crushed garlic cloves

1 tablespoon parsley

1 tablespoon thyme

2 tablespoon adobo or seasoned salt

2 tablespoon oil

Directions
Clean chicken with lemon juice or vinegar and rinse with hot water.
Season chicken with parsley, thyme, garlic, and adobe or preferred spices. Marinate 3-4 hours or preferably over night.
Boil chicken in a pot for 20 minutes.
Prepare the sauce. Brown chicken in pan with 2 tablespoon oil.
Simmer chicken in sauce or 10- 15 minutes.

Cooking time: 40 minutes Serves: 6

The sauce that they refer to in this recipe is not one that Wesley has prepared for us during any of my stays, although I am sure it is good. What I tried on my last independent attempt worked pretty well...in other words the sauce was approximate, but the preparation of the chicken was a far cry from the Haitian way. Here is what I did:

1TBSP of flour, spread out on the bottom of a hot fry pan.
Slowly add in liquid with the cooked chicken fat, whisking constantly to make a thick sauce, thinning as needed. You can always thin with a tad bit of vinegar. Remember, a little goes a long way! Garnish with scallion greens.

NOTES: The chicken should be falling off the bone if done correctly. That is why rice is almost a requirement when serving this dish, it goes great together!

Also, in Haiti, the poultry is going to be fresh. As in, it was probably alive a few short hours earlier, and now it's dinner. Don't mean to freak anyone out, that is just the way things are there, as they used to be here. No such thing as a poultry processing plant in Haiti, that I know of. You can buy live chickens from vendors off the street. They tether their beaks, that is how they keep them until ready for use.

Haiti On The Sea

I am back from my international travels. I have returned to my poor little abandoned blog! I had every intention of predating a recipe post for last Friday, as I was gone, but I got so overwhelmed with preparations it just did not happen.


When one travels to a place like Haiti, you must be sure that you pretty much have all that you need going with you. Going to the store and picking up this or that is just not an option. Not an impossibility, but not a likelihood either. This is my third trip to Haiti in the space of a year. This time we did something different. We took a day trip to a "swanky" resort on the sea.

The Caribbean is even more beautiful than I could have imagined it. And I have about a gazillion thoughts about this entire experience, but I'm sure I will express that on my other blog. Here, I am going to concentrate on the food we experienced at the resort. Which is different than the food we experienced at the Guest House. This food was the Haitian version of a catered resort buffet line, and it was VERY good. I was impressed, because my older daughter, who is Haitian, is a very picky eater, and she cleaned her plate.

Clockwise from the top: pasta (a sort of macaroni and cheese, and the only thing she did not like---very unsalted) roasted eggplant and bell pepper, fresh tomato, red beans and rice, unidentified meat---my guess, either pork or goat, it was good, conch (spicy!) and carrots and unidentified root vegetable sauteed in butter (VERY good)

My younger daughter's plate above: she eats everything and more, all the same stuff minus the eggplant, adding the plantain.

I tried her plantain. I think it may have been roasted or baked, pretty plain, with a little butter (?). Both of my girls ate all of their plantain, as it is a staple in Haiti as well as many Tropical, Central and South American locations. I was afraid I would not like it, and admittedly it was a bit strange, but I could get used to it. It looks just like a banana. We passed many plantain plantations on the trip out to the beach, and they look just like banana trees to me. But it has a much firmer texture, and it tastes starchy, almost like a potato. I wanted to add salt. But I never see salt on the Haitian table. So, I take that as a big hint, and I go with the cultural flow. And I certainly do not need more salt in my diet!

What's Happening At Camp Osceola

I saw the fox again. And miracles of miracles, my teen age son was up early one morning (!!!) walking the dog, and he saw it too! So I guess the little guy really is our neighbor. I wish I was fast enough to get a picture.

Meanwhile, here are a few things happening in the yard....

that's a wild strawberry intertwined with my mini hosta

Wildlife Report

I am working on a new project in the front yard, very ambitious. A new flower bed. I should not be planting anything this time of year, it's way too hot, so I am getting my time in early in the morning. Yesterday I saw movement at my mail box across the road, and saw what I thought was a feral cat nosing around. Suddenly it turned and went back into the woods, and I realized it was a fox! I had been looking at it head on, and my eyesight is not all it used to be. I could not quite figure out it's funny ears, that's what made me think it was feral. Also, it's movement was cat-like. But when I caught the profile, with it's bushy tail and pointy nose, I realized I was looking at a very young red fox. I saw an older one on campus a few weeks ago running down the road, also near some woods. Anyway, I was quite amazed. I see alot of deer, (they like my flowers) but I did not know our neighborhood was quite so diverse! And I guess that settles it....no chickens for me!

California Champage Cocktail***Joni Alexander

Well, if you read my other blog at all, you know that my dear aunt passed away last week, and I drove to Tennessee for her memorial service. The celebration afterwords packed the house, and this was the drink of choice!

One glass of champagne

Approximately 2 TSPB of Pom Wonderful Pomegranate Juice

Top champagne glass with juice in two or three separate pours. Otherwise you will have what resembles a science project on your hands. Acceptable, even desirable, to serve in a wine glass.

Notes: In researching my "Pom" picture, I came across this little tidbit. Apparently, the PETA blog claims that "Pom" make rabbits impotent. I think they meant this as a bad thing. Excuse me, natural birth control for rabbits is a bad thing???????

Window Boxes

I could do an entire group of posts on window boxes, but it's not going to happen to day. I did however, finally find a summer combination that is simple, tough, and colorful. This location has been difficult because 1.) the screen window is not attractive 2.) it's SW location gives it some hard sun up thru late spring, and then it gets alot of shade until the end of the season. Not everything can bloom well under those extreme circumstances.

Friday's Fave Foods***Green Bean and Tomato Salad

Starting to wonder what to do with all that fresh produce coming out of your garden? This is a wonderfully tasty and simple solution!

Green Bean and Tomato Salad****Connie Guttersen, R.D., Ph.D.

1 lb fresh green beans trimmed
1 pound of cherry tomatoes, halved
1 small red onion, halved crosswise and sliced thinly
2 TBSP chopped fresh basil or 2 tsp dried basil, crushed
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper
Red Wine Vinaigrette (recipe follows)

In covered medium saucepan, cook green beans in a small amount of boiling water for 7-10 minutes or until tender-crisp. Drain, submerse in ice water to cool quickly, drain.
In a large bowl combine green beans, tomatoes and onions. Drizzle with Red Wine Vinaigrette, sprinkle with basil, season to taste with kosher salt and pepper.

Serves 8

Red Wine Vinaigrette

2 TBSP red wine vinegar
1 TBSP of chopped shallot
1 1/2 tsp Dijon style mustard
2 TBSP of extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

In a small bowl combine vinegar and shallot and let stand 5 minutes.
Whisk in mustard. Add oil in a thin steady stream, whisking constantly until combined. Stir in kosher salt and pepper. Use immediately, or store covered in refrigerator for up to 3 days. If using chilled, let it stand for 30 minutes at room temperature. Whisk before using.