So my grocery order was delivered today. The store had family packs of either chicken drumsticks or thighs on sale for 99 cents per pound. I had ordered four packages of drumsticks. Neither Son nor I are particularly fond of chicken thighs. The idea was to repackage the drumsticks in meal sized portions and freeze.
When I took the packages out of the grocery bags I found that whoever did the shopping had given me four packages of chicken thighs. Aarrgh!
The delivery guy was long gone. I suppose I could have called the office and complained. But when I thought about it, I decided that I'm pretty lucky to be able to have groceries delivered at all. And the people who do the shopping are volunteers. They don't get paid. And people make mistakes. And it's not like we are going to starve if we don't have those drumsticks. So I let it go.
Now I have to decide what to do with about 20 lbs. of chicken thighs that I didn't want in the first place.
I dug through my empty canning jars and set out some wide mouth quarts, washed them and stuffed them full of chicken thighs. Some of the pieces were so big that it only took three to fill a jar. I added water to about an inch below the rim, wiped the rim with a paper towel soaked in vinegar to get rid of any meat bits and fat, put on the lids and rings and ran them through my pressure canner for an hour and a half.
And now I have eleven quarts of chicken cooling on my kitchen table. This meat will be really good in chicken and dumplings or chicken salad or chicken pot pie or chicken and rice. The canning process cooks it so it is falling off the bone tender.
And now I am on my way to the kitchen for a bowl of ice cream. With chocolate sauce. And sprinkles. Which is my reward for spending a good share of the day canning when it wasn't in the plan. It almost always seems to work out anyway, though. :)
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Well you know what they say....When life gives you lemons make lemonaid and look at all that freezer space you saved. Did you do them with the bones in? You sound like me ice cream, chocolate sauce, but I don't like sprinkles. I put pecans on mine. Wished I had some ice cream right now.
ReplyDeletesteakandeggs...Yeah, this was one of those lemonaid kind of things. As it turned out, I wouldn't have had room in the freezer for the chicken, thighs or drumsticks. So it all worked out. I just put the thighs in the jars - bone and all. Usually when I can chicken or turkey, I go with boneless, but today I had other things going on and just wanted to get it canned as quickly as possible. It will slip right off the bone when I use it.
ReplyDeleteI don't have ice cream too often. Probably just as well, as I love the stuff. Ever tried vanilla with both chocolate and caramel sauce? Heaven in a bowl!
I underdtand leaving the flesh on the bone because a lot of flavour is in the bones, but do you remove the skin before canning the chicken?
ReplyDeleteDani...Some remove the skin before canning whole chicken pieces, but I leave it on. There is also flavor in the skin and when the pieces are removed from the jar, the skin will slough right off. I know that we have heard over and over that we should eat fat free foods, but I am of the opinion that the body requires a certain amount of fats. I will skim the fat when I make chicken broth, and save it. Potatoes and other vegetables are delicious when fried in chicken fat.
ReplyDeleteI think if I could only eat one dessert it would be ice cream and yes I have eaten vanilla with the chocolate and caramel together OH soo good. I have not bought ice cream in years, make my own. I use half and half, whole milk, my fresh eggs,and I can control the amount of sugar. Don't buy fat free foods either. I believe in eating whole foods not that I always do it, but I try.
ReplyDeleteI don't know your budget but this could be a time to prepare some dishes to distribute to some lonely bachelors in your neighborhood or church. I prefer white meat but when it comes in a home-made casserole, I could care less.
ReplyDeleteGrace and peace.
steakandeggs...Yeah, ice cream is my favorite, too, even in the middle of our cold winters here in Minnesota. I don't have an ice cream maker, but have found a couple of ice cream recipes that can be made without one. Will have to give them a try.
ReplyDeleteMy Dad had one of those old ice cream makers when I was a kid. I spent many summer hours sitting on the back steps cranking the handle. I think the best was when he added fresh diced peaches.
Pumice...I'll keep your preferences in mind for the next chicken casserole I cook. But I think getting it to you might be a problem.
ReplyDeleteMy Dad lived about 250 miles north of my home. Sometimes when I called him, he would tease me that he had a delicious homemade apple pie cooling on the kitchen counter. And of course I would beg him to mail me a piece. And he always said that he tried, but a slice of pie just wouldn't fit into the envelope.
Methinks the same holds true for chicken casserole. :)
There is always Fed-Ex Overnite.
ReplyDeleteGrace and peace
Pumice...I am a bit slow on the uptake today. All I can think of to say is either "Oh, Yeah," or "Heh." Think I'll go with "Heh," accompanied by a grin.
ReplyDelete