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Smothered Chicken And Gravy

Oh my word Martha or shall I say oh my God this was an awesome dinner of epic proportions. This is a popular dish from the sothern states of USA also it is also classified as soul food. It came up here to the northern states via the migration of lots of people coming from down south looking for work and better economic situations for themselves and their families. However it is the same everywhere now and the other day I spent over $300.00 US at the store.

I was telling my family members if our elders seen this they would surely die of sticker shock. I even had a discussion with my youngest daughter about this too. However looking at this picture that I uploaded here in to my wordpress from my Facebook page is just now getting written about and believe me I found at least about 200 pictures or over and I have over 900 posts here on my blog and each recipe is worth looking at and trying out because it is very deliclous and tasty as well.

First take 1 chicken whole chicken that is still on the bone and has skin on it uncut and cut it in to pieces at the joint only. Only the breast bone with the wishbone in it gets broken. After it is all cut up then wash it really well and fill up the bowl full of cold water and add 1 capful of white vinegar. This is especially if you go and get chicken from a live poultry place and request them not to cut your chicken because sometimes they do whatever the hell they want to. Ladies do not have your husband go to to get your chicken because they are scatterbrained. They are men after all and they do not think. Best if you do it yourself. After the chicken is clean then dump this vinegar water down the drain and rinse the chicken again to remove the vinegar smell.

Make a seasoning blend for chicken as it goes like this, Add 1 pinch of peppercorns and celery seeds in a mortar and pestle and grind it in to a coarse powder, then add but do not grind 1 pinch each of tarragon, sage, parsley, paprika, marjaroam, rosmary and thyme. smear this all over the chicken pieces that has been cut by you and no one else. Other people do a hack job on the chicken and it does not make me happy at all. Sprinkle your bird with either 3 dashes of seasoned salt or vegtea seasoning along with mrs dash and or lemon pepper. You may also add 1 drop of hot sauce and liquid smoke too if you prefer.

Get a big cast iron skillet out and put on high heat to let 1oz of either corn, canola, vegetable or avocado oil get hot then put the chicken pieces 3 at a time in a bag that has 1/2 cup of all purpose unbleached flour in it and give it a good shake that will mix it up to dust the chicken. Shake off the excess and place it carefully in the skillet to cook. Cover and turn every 10 minutes until the chicken is fully cooked. Drain and set aside by adding the fried chicken to a plate lined with paper towel. Repeat until all of the chicken is cooked.

Wait do not throw the oil away yet you will need it for this part next and it is the gravy. First take 1 onion or shallot and let it fry until it is golden and remove and put with the chicken you put aside and do the same with 2 cloves of garlic crushed. This gives more flavor to the oil and the food as well. After removing the cooked garlic pieces and setting this aside, Take 1 tbs of all pourpose unbleached flour and make the rouix. Raise the heat again to high and keep stirring until it darkens a little and add everything back in to the skillet including the onions and garlic. Now add 4 cups of water to the chicken in there and again lower the heat and let it cook for 10 minutes or until the gravy thickens and becomes lump free.

This is perfect to eat over rice, cornbread, hot water bread or even biscuits. This is so yummy and a real crowd pleaser. Also if you are from the deep south you may enjoy this with a glass of buttermilk. It is also very hearty and it will stick to your ribs.

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