Three tips for chicken perfection

By Donna Pierce

Gloria Keats of Deerfield, Ill., contacted the Chicago Tribune’s test kitchen for help about a “sticky” issue: “I dread recipes that brown chicken pieces as a first step,” she said. “No matter how much I ‘pat dry’ (the chicken), heat the pan and then the oil ... the pieces always stick to the frying pan. I would appreciate any suggestions.”

We are happy to offer our favorite pan — a cast-iron skillet — as a solution. In addition to being an excellent heat conductor, properly seasoned cast-iron cookware almost guarantees non-stick cooking once it has been properly seasoned.

Lodge Manufacturing Co. offers the following tips for seasoning a cast-iron skillet on its Web site, lodgemfg.com: Heat the oven to 350 degrees; place a sheet of foil on the bottom oven rack to collect any drips. Apply a thin coat of melted vegetable shortening to the entire surface, inside and out. Place cookware on the top oven rack; bake 1 hour. Turn oven off, letting cookware cool before removing from the oven. Store in a cool dry place. Clean the skillet with a stiff brush and hot water only. Never put cast-iron in the dishwasher or use detergent.

Does anyone else agree that a cast-iron skillet may be the best bet for frying chicken? Or do you have other suggestions?

CHICKEN FOR THE SALAD

When Joann Louise of La Grange Park, Ill., prepares chicken for chicken salad and other recipes, she poaches the chicken pieces with the skin on, and then removes the skin.

“It’s more flavorful poached with the skin,” she wrote — but wanted to know if she is adding significant calories when using this method.

It makes little difference to the caloric content of the chicken salad if the skin is removed before or after poaching. But we discovered another cooking method that readers may want to try. After conducting their usual battery of tests, the editors of Cook’s Illustrated magazine found that oven-baked chicken produced more flavor.

“Wet-cooked chicken breasts — those steamed, poached, simmered or roasted in foil — all had a bland, unmistakably boiled flavor,” they wrote in “The Cook’s Illustrated Complete Book of Poultry.” “Salads made with oven-roasted chicken breasts were our hands-down favorite. Even after the skin and bones were removed, the meat tasted roasted and the resulting chicken was superb.” Here are the directions:

Heat an oven to 400 degrees. Brush bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts with 1 tablespoon of oil and season with 1‚Ñ2 teaspoon of salt. Bake on a foil-lined baking pan until a meat thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the breast registers 160 degrees, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool; remove the skin.

Chicken: Part 3

Test kitchen tasters appreciated the unexpected piquant bites provided by the olives in this chicken recipe from Joanne Cepero of Chicago. “I love to make this dish because it is simple and tasty. ... I add additions such as artichoke hearts, mushrooms and even tofu,” Cepero wrote.

TWO-OLIVE CHICKEN

1‚Ñ2 cup olive oil

1 chicken, cut into 8 pieces

1‚Ñ2 cup flour

2 onions, coarsely chopped

5 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup each: white wine, pimiento-stuffed green olives

1 tablespoon fresh minced oregano

1‚Ñ2 cup pitted, halved kalamata olives

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Dredge the chicken in flour; transfer to the hot oil in the skillet. Cook, turning occasionally, until brown on all sides, about 20 minutes. Transfer chicken to a paper towel-covered plate to drain.

Meanwhile, add the onion to the skillet; cook, stirring, until onions soften and begin to brown, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic; cook, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in the wine, green olives and oregano; add the reserved chicken to the skillet.

Cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken is cooked through, about 25 minutes; transfer chicken to a warm platter. Pour the sauce from the skillet into a blender; puree. Stir in kalamata olives; pour over chicken.

Yield: 6 servings.