As you can tell, I’m going through a de-cluttering phase, basically purging my home because I know that in order to make room for shiny new crap I have to get rid of all the old crap and tschotchkes , which I think is Yiddish for “shit I don’t need.” Ok, really, my husband threatened to fwithhold all of my holiday gifts until I go clean my room and stop unnecessary purchases.
I don’t label myself a compulsive shopper because that would require medication and an extra monthly expense that I’d just rather spend on alcohol. Let’s just call it “model consumerist and creative cabinet stuffer.”….continued…
The process of clearing house required prep work, so I consulted Martha Stewart, 5 books and purchased $189.22 of organizing supplies. I even bought an appropriate outfit to get the job done, because you can’t accurately guess exactly where the crap ends and how long it will take. I wanted to be sure I was adequately dressed for sun, rain, sleet and the Armageddon. Don’t look at me like that. It’s a deep kitchen cabinet.
So how did I end up with so many uni-taskers like the dehydrator, chopper-bopper, swirly-twirly, sucker-pucker, pasta-prestos and a Pocket-Rocket? Well, I’ll tell you exactly why. Because you never know what surprises life hurls through your window and smacks you in the ass. What if tomorrow a herd of elephants tornadoes through my home and the only thing that would save my family is salad shooter, rusty whisk and a snow globe!?
Sometimes I wonder why I consume myself in this just-in-case mentality, torturing my family and friends with fantastical scenarios. I guess when I was a kid, flipping between episodes of Inspector Gadget and McGuyver was an unhealthy thing.
Last month when my husband questioned why I needed a portable oven when I already have a new built-in GE Profile AND a $1300 micro-convection-halogen-triple-deluxe oven, I just stood there dumbly with my mouth wide open and my pouty bottom lip just dangling helplessly. My quick-wit and words failed me. Damn it! I had no good answer for the appliance redundancy and stomped away as my hair erupted into spontaneous flames. Common sense had won again. Curse you!
Before I give up my portable oven, I’m using it one last time for Roasted Chicken with Sweet Plum Sauce. Of course, I’ve included the recipe for making this in a regular oven.The sweet plum sauce can be found jarred at most supermarkets in the Asian section. It’s sweet, sticky and highly addictive.
Oh, and the Pocket-Rocket <–pssst….that’s not an immersion blender. That’s duct taped under the dining table in case I’m stuck with boring guests and drab dinner conversation. Mighty fine entertainment on the evenings when I forget to drape a tablecloth over the glass. I guess that’s where the nickname, “O”-stess with the Mostess came from!
***
Caption this photo:
I call this new cooking technique, “_______________”
oh but this Roast Chicken with Sweet Plum Sauce is juicy…moist…
and for you roast chicken dark meat fans:
Roasted Chicken with Sweet Plum Sauce
Ingredients
- 4 pound whole chicken
- 1/4 cup sweet plum sauce
- 1 head of garlic, halved
- 1 lemon, quartered
- salt & pepper
- 3 tablespoons butter, softened
- kitchen twine
- 1/4 cup sweet plum sauce to serve at table
Instructions
- Rinse chicken and cut away extra fat. Pat dry with paper towels inside and out. Place in shallow baking dish and rub softened butter all over chicken, tucking just a bit under the skin of breast.
- Season generously with salt and pepper outside and inside cavity.
- Stuff with garlic and lemon. Tie legs of the chicken together, slather sweet plum sauce all over chicken.
- Set breast side down. Let sit 30 minutes at room temperature. Preheat oven to 450F. Roast chicken 20 minutes. Turn breast side up, lower temperature to 375F and return to oven. Continue to roast another 60-70 minutes, brushing with additional sweet plum sauce towards the end. You may have to loosely tent with tin foil if skin is approaching maximum crispiness (i.e. don’t burn the skin.)
- Chicken is done when juices run clear as knife tip is inserted into chicken thigh. Thickest part of thigh without touching bone should register 170F. Let chicken rest 10 minutes before carving. Serve with a side of sweet plum sauce for dipping.Note: During roasting, cover with foil if chicken skin starts to burn, using the _____ technique as illustrated above with bits of foil and toothpicks.
The side dish in the first photo is my 15 Minute Asian Noodles (see below)
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15 Minute Asian Noodles
Chino Latino Wings
Chinese BBQ Pastries
Did you try this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the recipe card below and leave a review in the comment section! I always appreciate your feedback and I know other readers do, too!
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Love the chicken in plumb sauce and also understand the attitiude to “just in case” with equipment. I have = had 200 cookery books but used 2 or 3 ideas per book so re-wrote favorites into personal note books and gave the others away – but the internet!! There is no end to ideas and sites like yours with amazing ideas.
So we eat international having been brought up Engish / Welsh, tried Asian & European and live in Italy (for now) so love new things,even if ingreadients are difficult. “All recipies are sign posts – taste make the meal” to quote my father who is a great cook and belives each meal is an experiment.
Thank you for the inspiration.
Ciao
M
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I am so, so excited to make this for dinner tomorrow and using leftovers for the Korean Fajita with Kogi BBQ recipe later in the week. Thank you for yummy recipes! <3
Any recipe using chicken paired with a sweet, fruity sauce is a classic. Yum!
MMMM!delightful
I knew you were clever, but now I dub thee “Queen of WICKED PUN clever”! That “O”-stess crack is hysterical! Good on ya, Jaden!
Ignoring a very real threat to life and limb, I’m dragging a frozen bird carcass from the depths of my chest (why??) freezer even as we speak..
I was wondering if said pocket rocket was the same as mine…yes…don’t lose that one! Though I *could* recommend some better ones if you want to upgrade.
But then that would leave you open to more clutter. I doubt your husband would mind though!
Hi Jaden
Thanks for stopping by – your answer is on there!
I love plum sauce, it goes really well with pork too and often just roast a few plums along with, say, a pork belly to make a crude plum sauce. Delicious!
Cheers
David
hahahahaha…thank you for teaching us some yiddish! 😀 and
I agree, why bother spending money on medication while you could be buying alcohol instead. Words to live by! hehehe
I love to use that plum sauce on duck too!
looks delecious
I used to LOVVVVE plum sauce as a child!! I would order mooshoo (sp?) just for the plum sauce. Thanks for giving me a trip down memory lane! 🙂
The Anti-Overbroil-Foil Technique. Or perhaps the Reflecto-Perfecto Technique.
Guess what? I have one of those portable roasting ovens, too! My grandmother gave me hers a few years ago. She kept it on hand for family holiday cooking and would put the turkey or ham in it and cook it on the porch and used her regular oven for the other stuff. I accepted it because YOU NEVER KNOW! And guess what? I’ve used it. Yeah, it’s huge and takes up too much valuable space, but it’s so handy for those big cooking holidays when I need multiple ovens. 🙂
By the way, the chicken looks delish and easy!
I swear each new post cracks me up even more than the last one. I’m still laughing about the crayons and the macaroni and cheese from ages ago. And the turkey carcass article was downright hysterical. I’m tempted to get myself invited somewhere for Thanksgiving next year just so I can try out your technique! Too funny. Thanks for the laughs, Jaden. Oh yeah, and the food all looks yummy, too! 😉
oh so lovely and so inviting, kust I could just sit down and enjoy eating your dish!
“O” you are SO funny, Jaden! The pocket rocket taped under the glass kitchen table, OMG that’s HILARIOUS.
Oh and the Roast Chicken with Sweet Plum Sauce looks divine.
I can relate to the compulsive shopping, I guess I too watched too much McGuyver as a kid. “model consumerist and creative cabinet stuffer… AWESOME!
Caption: I call this new cooking technique, “Thwart the CIA Method”, also known as, “Thwart the Aliens Method”
I know you have noodles on the side already,
But somehow I feel like it’s not enough for me,
The chicken looks so good,
I wanna add an extra bowl of rice for that!
wow, thanks. I’d love to try this, it looks great. I’ve been really into roasting whole long island ducks lately, would love to see you feature one sometime… 🙂
Nice looking chicken! I still need to get around to trying to roast a whole chicken.
If seems appropriate that you keep your Pocket Rocket with your cooking supplies…
Actually, your cooking technique looks much like I do as I sit in the hairdresser’s chair getting my grey dyed away. So you could call it dyed-away cooking.
I had to laugh as I read about your decluttering. It sounds a lot like mine, except when I get home with all my new storage containers, labeling devices, and shirt folding boards, they just add to the clutter.
Now where did I put that food dehydrator?
Donna
Simon – here is the sauce:
http://www.amazon.com/Koon-Chun-Plum-sauce-jars/dp/B000F1X740
Amazon sells but it’s pretty expensive. I’ll find another resource for you tonight.
The only sweet plum sauce I’m familiar with is Hoisin sauce, the dark purplish/reddish thick and uniform paste, yet the stuff in your pictures is bright orange and clear, appears to have solid bits and seems more fluid. Is there a more specific name for it other than sweet plum sauce? Whats the chinese name?
Hmmmm Lovely dishes. Share me the dark meat chicken please 🙂
I love how I don’t expect you to go there….and you go there. 🙂 Some single-use appliances definitely can’t be thrown away!
Lovely plate of roast chicken, noodles and plum sauce,
“I call this new cooking technique, ” … so much irradiation my aluminum-foil hat exploded … or Irrxplodahatted for short.
And here I am, eating a bowl of Nissin shrimp Cup-a-Noodles … still hungry!
Mmmmm.
Creative cabinet stuffer. I like that. I resemble that remark.
Pam- Thanks for reminding me! I just posted a link to the noodle dish.
Jamie- What’s the make and model of your oven? Sounds fancy!
You are just too funny girl. Your chicken looks amazing. What was the side dish that you made with it?
Looking at that chicken is making me tumescent.
hey here’s one thing i always wondered…
which setting do you use to roast chicken…?
my oven has all these little knobs with drawing… like a fan, waves, red waves… so confusing.
you so crack me up jaden! (i was gonna say, don’t lose the pocket rocket!) for me, the hubby is the one that buys all the random usless appliances! and wow, the chicken looks divine too! i like the dark meat!