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There’s a great population of Irish
living in the Irish Channel of New Orleans. Their recipes are often
a combination of their heritage with a touch of the Crescent City.
This recipe incorporates their love of meat pies with the cathead
biscuits of the South.
Ingredients for Chicken Stew:
8 boneless/skinless chicken thighs, cubed 1-inch
1½ pounds bacon, diced
¼ cup olive oil
salt and cracked black pepper to taste
granulated garlic to taste
2 cups coarsely diced onions
¼ cup sliced garlic
½ cup flour
2 quarts chicken stock or bouillon
3 cups sliced carrots, 1-inch
3 cups sliced celery, 1-inch
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
2 cups diced red potatoes, skin-on
8 Cathead Biscuits (see recipe)
Method:
In a 1-gallon stockpot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add bacon
to render fat, but do not brown. Add chicken and season lightly
with salt, pepper and granulated garlic. Stir-fry until lightly
browned. Add onions and garlic. Sauté 2–3 minutes.
Add flour, stirring constantly to form a white roux. Do not brown.
Add stock and blend well into roux mixture. Add bay leaf, thyme,
carrots, celery. Bring to a rolling boil, reduce to simmer and cook
30 minutes. Add potatoes and cook approximately 20 minutes or until
tender. NOTE: Stock should become slightly thickened after 30 minutes
of cooking, and the addition of potatoes will further thicken sauce.
While cooking proceed with the Cathead Biscuit recipe. When ready
to serve, place 1 (6–8 ounce) ladle of Chicken Stew into a
soup bowl. Place 1 hot Cathead Biscuit in center.
Ingredients for Cathead Biscuits:
2 cups flour
1 tbsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1/3 cup shortening
4 tsps butter
2/3 cup buttermilk
Method:
Preheat oven to 450°F. In a mixing bowl, sift flour, baking
powder, baking soda and salt. Blend well. Using a pastry cutter,
cut in shortening and butter until it resembles coarse cornmeal.
Using a large cooking spoon, blend buttermilk into flour mixture
until moistened. On a lightly-floured surface, knead dough until
it comes together. Do not overwork dough as the less it is handled,
the flakier the biscuits. Break dough into 8 equal portions and
pat approximately ½-inch thick onto a baking sheet. Biscuits
should be irregular in shape, but no more than ½-inch high
and 1-inch apart. Bake 10–15 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove from oven and brush with melted butter.
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