Chicken

About

Chicken has a reputation for blandness, yet the well-exercised dark cuts, especially legs and thighs cooked skin-on and bone-in, carry real depth and can stand up to strong flavors like garlic, rosemary, thyme, and lemon. It is mainly skinless, boneless breast meat, particularly from intensively farmed birds, that earns chicken its bland reputation; it mostly adds texture and lets other flavors in a dish, whether salty, sweet, nutty, fruity, spicy, or fishy, take the lead. This category also touches on turkey, goose, quail, and other game birds.

Pairs well with chicken

• CiLemonLemon and chicken pair at many intensities: a mild lemongrass-scented Thai broth, chicken roasted with lemon inside the cavity, tangy…
• EaPotatoChicken and potatoes cooked together is a classic combination, whether as roast chicken with roast potatoes, Portuguese-style chicken and…
• SuEggChicken and egg together are less common in Western cooking but standard in East Asian cuisine - egg drop chicken soup and chicken fried…
• FrTomatoTomato and chicken form the base of dishes like chicken tikka masala and chicken cacciatore, simmering chicken in a herbed tomato sauce;…
• SuGarlicChicken with 40 cloves of garlic, a classic Provençal dish, roasts a whole chicken alongside unpeeled garlic cloves; the garlic turns…
• WoAlmondSpanish cuisine shows Moorish influence in almond-thickened dishes like gallina en pepitoria, a festive chicken stew.
• CrCoconutIn Balinese cooking, shredded barbecued chicken is pounded with grated coconut so the coconut's oils mix into the meat, then combined with…
• EaMushroomSome mushrooms (hen of the woods, chicken of the woods) are even named for a resemblance to chicken.
• MaShellfishChicken and shellfish appear together across many cuisines: Catalan mar y muntanya (chicken and shrimp in a nut-and-tomato sauce), Spanish…
• GrAniseRoast chicken with tarragon is a French classic, and the pair also works well cold in salads.
• BrBaconA proper club sandwich, traditionally just two slices of toasted bread, layers cooled grilled bacon with chicken or turkey, tomato,…
• GrChiliChicken peri-peri (or piri-piri) - grilled chicken marinated in oil, chili, salt, and citrus - originated in Mozambique through Portuguese…
• GrAvocadoA mild, healthy-tasting combination that benefits from extra character, smoking the chicken, or adding toasted pine nuts, raisins and a…
• ChHard CheeseFirm, nutty, caramelized cheeses like Comté or Gruyère pair well with roast chicken, as in poulet au Comté, where chicken pieces are…
• CiLimeLime's tang appears in spicy chicken soups worldwide, notably the Yucatecan sopa de lima, where shredded chicken, chili, and tortilla…
• SuOnionChicken's mild, neutral flavor pairs naturally with alliums like leek, as in the traditional Scottish cock-a-leekie soup, made with leeks,…
• CrBananaBanana and chicken combine in chicken Maryland -- fried breaded chicken served with fried banana, cornbread or fritters, and a creamy…
• WoWalnutGround nuts thicken and enrich savory stews, as in Turkish Circassian chicken (poached, shredded chicken in a sauce of onion, garlic,…
• RoPeanutKung pao chicken, a Sichuan dish, combines diced chicken with peanuts, dried chilies, and scallions in a stir-fried sweet-savory sauce,…
• GrCilantroCilantro is widely used with chicken in Thai dishes such as green curry; in Vietnam, the similarly citrusy herb rau ram ("hot mint,"…
• EaCeleryCelery sauce was a standard nineteenth-century British and American accompaniment to boiled chicken, traditionally made by simmering…
• GrPeaPoulet à la clamart, named for a Paris suburb known for its peas, combines chicken and peas with tarragon, bacon, scallions, white wine,…
• ChBlue CheeseBlue cheese and chicken appear together in Buffalo wings, but work better diluted, for example as a blue cheese dressing (mayonnaise, sour…
• SuCabbageBrussels sprouts' bitterness, from naturally occurring glucosinolates, balances rich holiday poultry dishes with stuffing, bread sauce and…
• FrPearChicken or partridge braised with pear, bacon, and shallots in stock is a warming dish in which the pear absorbs the rich cooking liquid…
• BeThymeThyme is commonly used to flavor roast chicken, tucked under the skin or in the cavity; brining the chicken beforehand in a salted,…
• WoHazelnutHazelnut's nutty, cocoa-like flavor, with meaty, earthy undertones, pairs well with chicken, especially when the nuts are roasted or…
• MaOysterOysters make a luxurious chicken stuffing - shucked and packed into the cavity, sometimes mixed with buttery breadcrumbs if there aren't…
• FrGrapeGrapes pair well with light meats such as chicken and quail; classic preparations sometimes call for peeling and seeding the grapes,…
• SuTruffleChicken and truffle pair in dishes such as poularde en demi-deuil ("chicken in half-mourning"), where black truffle slices are slipped…