Recipe #2: Chicken in Milk

By Jamie Oliver:

• 1 x 1.5k/ 3½lb organic chicken
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 115g/4oz or ½ a pack of butter
• olive oil
• 1/2 cinnamon stick
• 1 good handful of fresh sage, leaves picked
• zest of 2 lemons
• 10 cloves of garlic, skin left on
• 565ml/1 pint milk

http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/chicken-recipes/chicken-in-milk

By Andrew Fernandez:

Its been a few days since I cooked the dish. I am now on a plane back from Charleston, South Carolina and I have an hour and a half to write my experience.

Milk, Lemon and Sage. What an interesting combination. I never would have put milk with lemon. I know it will separate, but amazingly the taste is remarkable. I definitely would recommend this as a must-have quick dish. Though I am not a big fan of the herb sage, I must say it went very well with the lemon and milk.

I never realized that a well equipped kitchen is important. Based on my cooking experience, I must say that I have never once required the zest of a lemon, lime, orange or tangerine. I used a grater. It worked just fine. But since I never performed this process before, how much is too much when zesting a lemon? How deep do you go?

It's eleven days into he new year and I still have not laid off the butter! I think I feel the pounds coming on. This recipe called for a stick of butter which was very much needed. The browning process, for anyone who wants to try this, should be on a very, very hot pan and try not to cook it too long as the thighs will somewhat "fall-off" the chicken pose, sort of "chick with wide legs" when all is said and done. It went very well with fresh spinach placed under some hot liquids from the chicken. Be prepared for the separated, milky, lemony sauce. It does take some getting used to.

Tasks for spring will now include hitting the local greenhouse for a variety of herbs. I need to get an herb garden going as more of these recipes call out for "handfuls" of them.

So here's to a little research on how to zest a lemon:

http://www.cookthink.com/reference/64/How_to_zest_a_lemon