Chicken Ala King

An oldie but a goodie.  Get on your aprons and your best pearls ladies.  Touch up your makeup and make sure you look your best while you are at the stove preparing this dish.  After all, June Cleaver would have looked pristine and perfect.  Right?

When I think of Chicken Ala King, I think of June Cleaver.  Why?  I don't know.  Maybe because I always wanted to be June Cleaver.  I think of supper clubs and boilin' bags.  Yea, I said it.  When I was little my mom didn't make this homemade.  She would sometimes buy the boilin' bags with it and we would have it on toast. 

Did you eat it on toast? Noodles?  Rice?  Biscuits?

I loved it and I knew, OBVIOUSLY it was going to be better homemade.  I needed some inspiration so I did my own private brainstorm session.  Things I ate as a kid.  Was interesting as I thought about it, some of the dishes I had forgotten about.  I wonder if mine is better than June's? 

I hope that you enjoy this easy, and OMGOSH delicious dish.  I had forgotten how much I loved it and to be honest, this is one of my favorite recipes to date.  I was hesitant as I knew it would be hard to photograph, to share, but fahgetaboutit........  It is crazy good and I hope you fall in love or fall in love AGAIN with this retro classic!!

You can really use more or less of the pepper and mushrooms, it is kind of just up to what you like. 

2 tbsp butter
1 bell pepper, cut into strips (I used red, use any color)
6 ounces mushrooms, sliced
1/3 cup flour
2 cups half and half
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
3 cups chicken, cooked and cubed or shredded
1 tsp dried parsley
salt and pepper to taste

In a large, high sided skillet, add in butter, peppers, and mushrooms. Stir constantly.  Saute for 3 minutes.   Add in flour and stir until the veggies are coated. 

Add in half and half, stock and salt and pepper to taste.  Stir to combine and add in chicken, again stir.  Now let it your mixture simmer for 5-7 minutes.  It will thicken up and become creamy!  The smell will make you go out of your mind!

 Sprinkle over your parsley.  Serve over, egg noodles, rice, biscuits or toast!

Your "pearls the perfect apron accessory" chefwannabe

So when your near me, darling can't you feed me....S.O.S!!

OK so my attempt to change the ABBA lyrics to suit my food meaning didn't work so well, did it?

S.O.S.   Another meal of my past has come back to, well I would say haunt me, but it is to delicious to consider it haunted.  I remember my mom, mother of 10, making this because it was "cheap food".  It was cheap and could feed a small army.  She probably made an entire pot of gravy with only one package of dried beef!!  We joke all the time about how we can remember 3 lbs of macaroni for goulash to 1 lb of ground beef!

Anyway, SOS is short for "shit on a shingle".  One of my dads favorite dishes.  We of course called it creamed chipped beef as kids until we learned what SOS meant and we said that as a little "we said a bad word without saying the bad word and didn't get in trouble" sort of thing!!!

It has been a long time since I made it.  It is so easy and can be served on toast or biscuits, although I have only ever had it on toast.  When I moved to New Jersey, I was introduced to tomato juice, or stewed tomatoes being poured over the top.  Sometimes, eggs were served up on top.  Regardless of how you choose to eat it, it is good eats for sure!!  The recipe couldn't be simpler and what a quick, delicious meal for your family!

SOS
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp. GRATED onion
3-4 cups milk or half and half
1 tbsp fresh black pepper
2 containers of dried beef

Melt butter in a medium saucepan.  Add flour and whisk and let cook for 1 minute, to cook off the raw flavor of the flour.  Add in grated onion.  NO you may not mince, chop, or slice, it must be grated!!  Cook another minute stirring constantly.   While whisking, pour in 3 cups of milk or half and half.  Let come to a boil while stirring so you don't burn it!  It will begin to thicken as it boils.  Depending on the consistency you like, you can add more liquid.  When it comes to the consistency you want, add in dried beef that you have chopped and black pepper.  Add salt to taste, as the dried beef is very salty and you may want to consider rinsing it!  Serve on toast or biscuits!!!

I hope enjoy your SOS as much a I enjoyed mine!!  Make sure to watch that salt content, you don't want to kill anyone!!

Your "SOS rocks" Chefwannabe

               Chris