Ingredients 8

Makassar, 12 October 2018

• Chicken

Pronounce it : chik-en

Chicken's many plus points - its versatility, as well as the ease and speed with which it can be cooked - make it one of the most popular meats around. It's lower in saturated fat than most meats, especially if the skin is removed, and has a high level of good quality protein, as well as B vitamins, iron, copper and selenium.

The pale flesh has a close texture and a mild flavour that pairs up well with many different ingredients. Never eat raw chicken, and always thoroughly wash your hands, utensils and cutting board as soon as you've cut or handled raw chicken.

Availability

All year round.

Choose the best

As is the case with all meat, buy your chicken from a source that you trust - a good supermarket, local butcher, farmers' market or shop, or a website mail order company. Of those five sources, the last four will usually be able to tell you the most about the chicken - where it comes from and how it was reared. Traceability like that will give you assurance that the chicken has been humanely treated while alive; the higher the standard of welfare by which a chicken was reared, the better the quality of the meat.

Organic chicken is the most expensive, as the most stringent farming standards should have been adhered to at all stages of the animal's life, including being allowed to roam outside during the day and being fed a mainly organic diet. As they are allowed to mature slowly (up to 14 weeks) their flesh is firm and flavourful, though, because they have had lots of exercise during their lives, they may be less plump than indoor-reared birds.

Free-range chicken should have had some access to the open air and they are cheaper than organic. Corn-fed chicken have a bright yellow skin, a result of having been fed corn or maize. The colour looks good, but fades on cooking, and doesn't make much difference to flavour.

Battery (or 'factory') reared chicken (sometimes called 'broilers') are the most commonly available kind. They are rarely labelled as such, but the extremely low price is a giveaway. Although such chickens are very affordable, the conditions they experience in their brief lives (up to 6 weeks) may be extremely grim, packed at high densities, with little room to move around and little or no access to sunlight - all of which produces a noticeably inferior and often quite fatty meat.

Various breeds are available. Look out for slow-growing British breeds with firm, flavourful meat such as Oakham White, Cotswold White or Gold and Devonshire Gold or Red. French breeds, such as poulet de bresse, poulet d'or, poulet noir and poulet anglais are also very good, with succulent, strongly flavoured flesh.

Whole birds are good for roasting or barbecuing. Other portions are also available (either skin on or off, on the bone or boneless), including breasts (fry, saut´, grill or barbecue); drumsticks (grill or barbecue); thighs (barbecue or use in casseroles or stirfries); and wings (barbecue or roast).

Whichever breed, type or cut of chicken you choose, look for birds or cuts that have clear, soft skin, without bruising, blemishing or tears. Look also for brownish-red 'hock burn' on the skin on the legs, as this may be a sign that the bird has not been kept in the most satisfactory conditions during growth.

Prepare it

If desired, certain cuts of chicken can be marinated before cooking, to add flavour and moisture and to tenderise a little further - slash the skin a couple of times to help the marinade penetrate further.

Before it goes in the oven, chicken should be at room temperature, so take it out of the fridge (1 hour for a whole chicken; 30 minutes for a cut) before cooking. Keep it covered, in a cool place.

Store it

Fresh chicken goes off very quickly, especially if the weather is warm, so should be stored in the fridge as soon as you get it home. Take off all the wrappings, then wipe it all over (and inside the cavities) with kitchen paper. If it has come with giblets (the neck, gizzard, heart and liver) these should be removed and kept in a covered bowl in the fridge. Put the chicken on a tray or a plate wide and deep enough to contain any blood or juice that might seep out. Cover loosely with foil. Make sure the chicken is stored in the fridge doesn't touch any food that's to be eaten raw, or meat that is already cooked.

Whole birds and pieces of chicken will keep for up to 2 days. Chicken liver or minced chicken should be cooked within 24 hours of purchase.

Giblets can be used to make gravy and stock (but leave the liver out, as it can create quite a bitter taste) or stuffing, and should be cooked within 2 days of purchase.

Cook it

Roast at 200C/180C fan/gas mark 6 (whole chicken: 25 minutes per 500g, plus an extra 25 minutes; breasts, 15 minutes; thighs and wings, 40 minutes). Grill or barbecue (breast, 7-10 minutes; cubes or strips, 5-7 minutes; drumsticks and thighs, 25-30 minutes; wings, 40 minutes). Stir fry (cubes or strips, 5-7 minutes). Always check that there is no pink meat and that the juices run clear (pierce with a sharp knife or skewer) before serving.

Alternatives

Try turkey or duck.

• Chilli

Pronounce it : chill-ee

Part of the capsicum family, chillies come in scores of varieties and colours (from green through to yellow, orange and red) and are one of the most popular spices in the world.

Chillies can be used fresh, dried or powdered, and the level of heat varies from type to type, from sweet and mellow to blisteringly hot - as a general rule, the smaller the chilli, the hotter the taste. The substance that generates the heat is called capsaicin, which is found mainly in the pith and, to a lesser extent, the seeds. But it's not all about heat - each type has its own distinct flavour.

To cool down the mouth-burn from a too-hot chilli dish, try milk or yoghurt; they're much more effective than water.

Availability

All year round.

Choose the best

Most fresh chillies should look glossy and firm, but there are exceptions, like cherry hot chillies, which have a wrinkled appearance even when they're at their peak. But all chillies should be free of blemishes, so avoid any with soft patches or bruises.

Choose your chilli according to the heat degree you want; for instance, Anaheim is mild, jalapeno is medium hot, and Scotch bonnet or bird's eye are both very fiery.

Chilli powder is in fact a mix of dried chilli peppers plus other spices and salt, which comes in either mild or hot versions. For pure powdered chilli, choose cayenne.

Prepare it

To remove the pith and seed from a fresh chilli, wash it, slice lengthways in two, then cut off the stalk. Using the tip of a knife, cut way the white pith and the harder white core, keeping the knife close to the surface of the flesh. Then scrape out the seeds and discard, before slicing or dicing the chilli, as required. As capsaicin irritates the skin, some people like to wear gloves to do this job. If not, scrub your hands thoroughly afterwards and remember not to touch your face or eyes - even if you've scrubbed well, it may well still burn.

• Cinnamon

Pronounce it : sin-ah-mun

A fragrant spice which comes from the inner bark of a tropical tree. When dried, it curls into quills that are used to add a warm, distinctive flavour and aroma to sweet dishes such as poached fruit. Cinnamon is also widely used in spice mixes for savoury dishes in Asian, Middle Eastern and North African cuisines, for example in tagines.

Choose the best

Ground cinnamon has a stronger aroma than whole sticks, but if either type does not smell sweet it is past its best and should be discarded.

Store it

Store cinnamon sticks in an air-tight container in a cool place.

Cook it

Ground in cakes, biscuits and desserts. Sprinkled over baked fruit and custards. Added whole to casseroles, mulled wine and punch. Beat into butter with a little sugar and spread on toast. Soak a cinnamon stick in herbal tea before drinking; add to water when boiling rice.

Alternatives

Try nutmeg.

Source :

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/glossary/chicken

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/glossary/chilli

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/glossary/cinnamon