Chicken Continental over Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Chicken Continental with Garlic Mashed Potatoes 

 

     It’s been 4 years since my last post to this blog, but on this cold March day I have decided to share this simple recipe from my childhood.  Hardly gourmet, this chicken dish can be thrown together in ten minutes and left to simmer all day in a slow cooker.  You’ll come home to a warm inviting meal that you would expect at a great bed and breakfast.  The meal can be served over rice, egg noodles, biscuits, or almost anything!  Today I’ve chosen garlic mashed potatoes and I promise you won’t be disappointed if you do the same.  I use a medium size slow cooker for this recipe as too large of one separates the ingredients and doesn’t layer the flavors quite the same.

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     Ingredients 

6  Chicken breast fillets 

6  Strips of bacon

1  Can of dried beef 

1  Cup frozen peas

1  20 oz can of chicken gravy 

1 1/2  Sticks salted butter 

Scallions

4  Cloves garlic 

Kosher salt 

Pepper

6  Big red potatoes 

Milk

    We start by buttering the inside of your slow cooker and line it with dried beef.  Wrap each chicken breast fillet with a strip of bacon and arrange them evenly in the cooker.  This blog seems a bit stiff as I normally time my cooking steps with beer consumption to enhance my creativity and cooking experience but that’s not happening today.  I haven’t had a beer yet because it’s not near noon and drinking prior to 12 is still out of the question.  Of coarse I will have a few mimosas at a breakfast gathering.  Perhaps that would be a nice blog, a big breakfast.  All that aside, this recipe is so simple and fast it’s actually not a cooking experience, but more of a great tool.  It gives you a great meal later in the day with minimal effort.  

     Now we add the peas, actually any vegetables could work well at this point.  Cover it with gravy and top it off with chopped scallions and a minced clove of garlic.   Put the cover on and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 7 or more.  It’s not rocket science here, just cook it in a way that fits your schedule.

     We now need to finish this dish and again, the timing is up to you.  If you’re working all day and it was on low, just lower it to warm and make the potatoes.  If you’re home and it’s on high, start the potatoes 45 minutes before the chicken is ready.  Those are guidelines only, make it work for you.

     The potatoes are easy and I’ve outlined them in detail in prior writings.  I’ll give a brief  description here just as a review.  For what we have here 6-8 potatoes is plenty.  I like red potatoes for mashed, but this is again your call.   Peel the potatoes add 3 cleaned cloves of garlic, no need to chop them.  Boil them until they’re soft.  Strain the potatoes and garlic.  Add butter, milk, salt and pepper to taste.  When I mash them I sometimes whip them, often if I’m serving kids.  Then again, sometimes I want some texture if my mood takes me that way.  I guess we’re back to the name on my blog, Joe’s Cooking Guidelines.  Make this your own recipe, it’s easy and delicious!