Cooking with Sam: Jazz up dinner with new chicken recipes

I know you have been asking me for chicken recipes that are easy and delicious. Here they are

Three-Herb Chicken and Mushrooms

8 chicken thighs or breasts

¼ tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. pepper

2 tablespoons fresh rosemary

2 tablespoons thyme

1 tablespoon olive oil

8 oz. button mushrooms, quartered or halved

1 tablespoon all purpose flour

1 cup chicken broth

½ cup dry white wine

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Season chicken on both sides with salt, pepper, rosemary and thyme.

In a large cast iron skillet or other oven-safe skillet, heat olive oil. Add chicken over medium heat. Turn chicken over to cook on both sides. Bake 15 minutes or until done to 170 degrees inside largest part of chicken.

Remove chicken from skillet. Set aside and cover to keep warm.

In same skillet cook and stir mushrooms over medium high heat about four minutes. Stir in chicken stock and wine then add flour and mustard. Whisk until thickened and bubbly.

Add some more rosemary and thyme to taste. Serve mushrooms and sauce over chicken. Garnish with fresh parsley.

Japanese Roast Chicken

4-pound chicken

2 tablespoons Japanese 7 spice

Large seedless naval orange, cut lengthwise into eight slices

Pound of carrots

Pound of baby bok choy, halved lengthwise

1 tablespoon olive oil

¼ tsp. salt

1 tablespoon butter

1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 tsp. toasted sesame oil

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Pat skin of chicken and cavity dry. Sprinkle spices all over outside and inside cavity.

Place on a rack in roasting pan, breast down. Insert two oranges slices in cavity and roast for 20 minutes.

Remove from oven and turn chicken up breast side up. Drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and arrange carrots and bok choy around rack in roasting pan. Drizzle with olive oil.
Reduce heat to 350 degrees. Return to oven and roast one hour or until it reaches 170 degrees in the breast.

Remove from pan and remove oranges. Squeeze juices in pan. Transfer chicken and vegetables to a platter. Sprinkle with 7 spice then cover and let stand 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, add broth to hot roasting pan. Cook on medium-high heat and stir, scraping up browned bits from pan. Bring to boiling and cook about eight minutes or until liquid reduces to around half a cup. Remove from heat and whisk in sesame oil.

Serve chicken with vegetables, pan sauce and remaining orange wedges. Top with snipped fresh herbs and parsley.

If you cannot find 7 spices, mix garlic, dried orange peel, salt, toasted sesame seeds, black sesame seeds, black pepper and crushed red pepper.