Fried Chicken and Artichokes with Salsa Brava

This was last nights dinner. It wasn't hard though you do have to do the marinade and salsa ahead of time. I started the marinade for the chicken and made the salsa last night. Salsa only needed 2 hours but I knew I wouldn't have a lot of time because of the meeting with the Bankerman who we ended up not seeing that night.

This is also came from Food Network Magazine:

Fried Chicken and Artichokes with Salsa Brava

Ingredients:

For the Chicken:

1 cup beer (I ended up using Woodchuck not realizing it was more like cider then beer until it was too late)

1/3 cup sherry vinegar or white wine vinegar (used regular Sherry)

1 teaspoon dried oregano

5 cloves garlic, smashed

1 tablespoon coriander seeds, crushed

3 bay leaves

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

18 chicken wing drumettes*

Extra virgin olive oil for frying**

1 cup all purpose flour

1 8.5 oz can artichoke hearts, drained and halved

Lemon wedges for serving

*We used chicken breasts. I didn't want to spend money on drumettes when we had breasts. I meant to cut them to make them cook easier/faster/have leftovers but I was lazy and hungry so I didnt

**Don't use EVOO. EVOO and OO do not get up to 350 degrees without  A LOT of smoking. Brian didnt tell me this until I had poured the whole bottle in to pot so we did and it turned out fine but Canola Oil works better and is cheaper.

For the Salsa:

1 6 ounce jar piquillo or pimiento peppers drained***

¼ red onion, coarsely chopped

1 clove garlic, coarsely chopped

¼ evoo

½ teaspoon ground coriander

2 teaspoons smoked paprika

½ teaspoon ground cumin

¼ teaspoon dried thyme

Pinch of cayenne pepper

2 tablespoons dry white wine

2 tablespoons sherry vinegar or white wine vinegar (just used regular Sherr)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

***Don't know what these are, couldnt find them, used pepperocini...salsa tasted good. Only other thought was to add crushed tomatoes but we don't think the type of pepper affected that. We think pimento might have made it less spicy?

1) Mix the beer, vinegar, oregano, garlic, coriander, bay leaves, 2 teaspoons salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper in a large bowl

2) Add the chicken, cover and refrigerate at least 6 hours or overnight

3) For the salsa, puree the peppers, onion, garlic, olive oil, coriander, paprika, cumin, thyme, cayenne, wine and vinegar in a food processor until smooth

4) Season with salt and black pepper, cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours

5) Heat 1 inch of olive oil in a large pot in a deep fry thermometer registers 350 degrees

6) Meanwhile, season the flour with salt and pepper in a bowl

7) Remove the chicken from the marinade and pat dry

8) Dredge the chicken in the flour and fry in batches, turning as needed until golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes

9) Drain on paper towels

10) Return the oil to 350 and dredge the artichoke hearts in the remaining flour and fry until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes

11) Drain on paper towels and squeeze a few lemon wedges on top

12) Serve the chicken and artichokes with the salsa and more lemon

~Food Network Magazine, May 2010, page 95

Very good. Doesn't make leftovers unless you use drumettes or cut your chicken into pieces. The artichokes were interesting. Definitely make them, they went well with the meal but fried artichokes is interesting. And other then time, everything was really easy. Definitely would make this again. 

Oh and an update on the other meals: I am stuck eating everything. I was stuck eating the beef with egg noodles because the broth wasn't thick enough for Brian. I am stuck eating the chili because it is too hard for Brian to eat at work. I am stuck eating the beef stir fry because this batch is too spicy and is giving Brian tummy troubles. He says he likes the chili and stir fry but yet I am stuck eating the left overs. And he wonders why I don't make things again when he has had 2 servings and I have had the rest.