This famous recipe for chicken cooked in milk by Jamie Oliver is something I have wanted to make for the longest time. It’s utterly intriguing. The notion of a whole bird being browned and then slowly cooked in milk and sage until it literally falls off the bone appeals to me in every single way. It wasn’t until I was thinking about a dish I could make that would pair perfectly with the De Wetshof Estate Bon Vallon Chardonnay that I thought ‘this is the one’, and I was right.
I followed the recipe as documented on Jamie’s website vs the most recent video version where he browns the chicken in a heap of butter first then tosses this out. This seemed like a bit of a waste, so I used olive oil as he initially prescribes.
The lemon zest, sage, garlic and cinnamon then get added to the butter after the browning stage and this releases the amazing aromatics before the milk and chicken go back in.
The chicken cooks slowly for 1.5 hours in a high-sided cast iron dish to retain all the moisture. A quick Google led to a few reviews of the recipe and one convincingly claimed it was better to cook the chicken with the lid on for half the time. So this is what I did.
For the second half of the roast, I flipped the bird back with the breasts exposed to go golden brown. I liked the idea of starting the cook with the breasts facing down and submerged in the liquid. This is the driest part of the meat so it made sense to cook it this way.
The lemon zest causes the milk curds to split making the most interesting sauce, and these flavours paired beautifully with the unwooded Bon Vallon. Earthy, herbaceous, creamy and zesty, the wine echoed so much of what was happening in this dish.
The Bon Vallon like the other Chardonnays at De Wetshot Estate are grown in site-specific vineyards with soils rich in limestone and broken mountain rock on. The wine has a clean freshness which makes it the perfect pairing with so many dishes and it breaks through the fattiness of this dish beautifully. I was lucky enough to taste the full range at a recent chef’s lunch where each wine was paired with a course and reminded me again how incredible these wines are with food.
What to serve with chicken in milk
Serve with all the curd, garlic and herbs in the pan. This makes a delicious sauce. A plate of steamed greens such as tender-stem broccoli or green beans is perfect here. Along with the best-ever roast potatoes and a glass of De Wetshof Bon Vallon Chardonnay 2017.
Some steamed greens such as beans, bok choi or tender stem broccoli would be lovely with this dish and to balance out the richness.
The other recipes I have made with De Wetshof Estate Chardonnay:
Risotto alla Milanese with brown butter pan-fried prawns
Jamie Oliver's famous chicken cooked-in-milk recipe
Print Recipe
Prep Time:20 minutesmins
Cook Time:1 hourhr
Ingredients
1.5kgfree-range chicken
olive oil
40gm butter
1/2stick of cinnamon
A handful of fresh sage leaves
Zest peeled form 2 lemons with a vegetable peeler
10clovesof garlicskin on
600mlmilk
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F
Put a generous splash of olive oil in a deep-sided cast iron lidded pot and fry the the well seasoned chicken on all sides until golden. Use long tongs to flip the bird around and allow it to balance against the sides of the pot.
Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside. Discard the oil from the pan.
Add the butter to the pot, and once bubbling toss in the zest, garlic cloves, sage and cinnamon stick. Cook this for a couple of minutes until the aromatics are released and the sage just starts turning crispy.
Add the milk to the pot and place the chicken back in the breast side down. Cover and cook for 45 minutes.
Remove the lid, flip the bird over to breast side up and finish off cooking it until golden brown for the remaining 45 minutes.
Tenderness: The lactic acid in milk helps to break down the proteins in the chicken, resulting in a tender and moist texture. Flavor Infusion: Milk can act as a carrier for other flavors, such as herbs and spices, allowing them to penetrate the chicken and create a delicious taste profile.
The pairing may sound odd, but this simple, mostly hands-off method produces the most tender, flavorful chicken imaginable. The calcium in the milk is thought to jump-start a natural enzyme in the chicken, which acts as the tenderizer. Cooking the chicken in the liquid further infuses it with moisture and flavor.
Cut the chicken into frying pieces. In a shallow bowl beat the eggs and then stir in the milk, salt, and pepper. Soak the chicken in the milk mixture for 5 to 10 minutes. Roll the chicken in flour, being sure to completely cover each piece.
The calcium in milk is thought to kick-start a natural enzyme in the chicken that helps it tenderize. It also breaks up the acidity and heat. (That's true for non-dairy milk, like coconut milk, too.) As an added bonus, the milk creates a creamy sauce that will keep a roast chicken even juicier.
But the acid in milk is so mild that you can soak beef in it long enough to tenderize it effectively, without damaging the proteins on the surface. The calcium-rich properties of milk react with enzymes in the meat to gently soften the proteins.
Soak the liver in a dish or bowl of milk for 30-60 minutes. This is an important step in removing the bitter flavor from the liver. Salt and pepper the liver generously, and leave it out at room temperature while you prepare the remaining ingredients. Pat the liver dry.
Remember, while milk can be used as a substitute for buttermilk in marinades, the taste and texture may differ slightly. But it can still provide a delicious and tender result for your marinated chicken.
No, but you should pat the chicken dry so that the seasonings adhere to the chicken. Can I use milk instead of buttermilk for fried chicken? Milk lacks the acid to tenderize the chicken. You can use milk to make buttermilk by adding a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice per cup of milk.
The USDA recommends not keeping poultry in marinade for longer than two days, as it's possible that the marinade will start breaking down the meat's fibers and cause it to become mushy. A good rule of thumb is to keep marinating time under 24 hours.
Typically you use buttermilk for fried chicken. The milk acts as a tenderizer, so if you can let the chicken soak in the buttermilk overnight, the crumbs will adhere well to the chicken and it will come out tender on the inside and crispy on the outside.
Marinating chicken wings in milk for at least 30 minutes to 1 hour. Soaking the chicken wings in milk helps to tenderize the meat and add moisture. If you have time, marinating the chicken wings for several hours or even overnight in the refrigerator.
Acids denature protein, breaking down connective tissue and softening meat by increasing water content. Dairy also contains calcium, a mineral that can activate enzymes in the muscle to assist in protein breakdown.
According to SunFed Ranch, marinating beef in milk creates a lightly acidic bath for the meat, tenderizing it without breaking down its proteins too much. The calcium in the milk reacts with the enzymes in the meat to gently soften the proteins, facilitating another tenderizing process.
Introduction: My name is Merrill Bechtelar CPA, I am a clean, agreeable, glorious, magnificent, witty, enchanting, comfortable person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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