Florence, Ala. | Thursday, May 23, 2013
Font Size: A A A A

Chicken, waffles come together to give comfort
By J.M. Hirsch
AP Food Editor
Associated Press
In this image taken on December 3, 2012, rotisserie chicken with waffles and gravy is seen on a plate in Concord, N.H.

This is my weeknight-friendly take on fried chicken served on waffles, a total comfort food perfect for a cold, wet night.

And two totally respectable convenience foods make it a snap to get on the table in almost no time — rotisserie chicken and frozen waffles. I’m a big believer that if you eat a lot of chicken and have a crazy busy schedule, a rotisserie chicken should be a staple of your weekly shopping list. Don’t worry about what you’ll do with it. Since the cooking is already done for you, sorting how you’ll eat it is the easy part.

I feel the same way about frozen whole-grain waffles. I try to always have a box in the freezer. It’s not because my family eats all that many for breakfast. But frozen waffles are a versatile workhorse in the kitchen. I use them for sandwiches in my son’s lunches — PB&J, ham and cheese, peanut butter and banana, etc. — all the time.

For this easy dinner, I used both of these go-to ingredients, and dressed them with a killer mushroom gravy. No frozen waffles handy? You can serve this chicken and gravy over toasted slabs of sourdough bread, too.

1 tablespoon olive oil

Two 4-ounce containers sliced button mushrooms

1 medium yellow onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup white wine

1 cup heavy cream

Salt and ground black pepper

4 frozen waffles

Meat from a 2-pound rotisserie chicken, warmed and shredded

Start to finish: 20 minutes

Servings: 4

In a large skillet over medium-high, heat the oil. Add the mushrooms, onion and garlic, then saute until the mushrooms are browned and the pan is nearly dry, about 5 minutes.

Add the wine and stir to deglaze the pan. When the wine has evaporated, stir in the cream, then bring to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper, then set aside.

Toast the waffles according to package directions.

Place one toasted waffle on each serving plate. Top with a heap of warmed, shredded chicken, then spoon ample amounts of mushroom gravy over it.

Nutrition information per serving: 510 calories; 290 calories from fat (57 percent of total calories); 32 grams fat (16 grams saturated, 0.5 grams trans fats); 165 mg cholesterol; 23 grams carbohydrate; 2 grams fiber; 4 grams sugar; 29 grams protein; 1310 mg sodium.

Associated Press Food Editor J.M. Hirsch is author of the cookbook “High Flavor, Low Labor: Reinventing Weeknight Cooking.” He can be reached at jhirsch@ap.org.

E-mail this
Print this

Comments

Most Read
Most Recent
Events Calendar
Thursday, May 23, 2013 see all events
  • Thu
  • 23
  • Fri
  • 24
  • Sat
  • 25
  • Sun
  • 26
  • Mon
  • 27
  • Tue
  • 28
  • Wed
  • 29
Boomers and Seniors dances
The Club
6:30 PM - 9:00 PM
Quad City Squares Square Dance Club dances and lessons
Royal Avenue Recreational Center
7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Spring Valley Vol. Fire Dept. Benefit for Carlos Stanfield
Natchez Trace Harley-Davidson
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Fish fry
Underwood-Petersville Volunteer Fire Department
2:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Northwest Alabama Backgammon Club
Flobama LLC
5:45 PM
Boomers and Seniors dances
The Club
6:30 PM - 9:00 PM
Overeaters Anonymous
First Cumberland Presbyterian
1:30 PM - 2:30 PM
Poll
Should Northwest-Shoals Community College revive its sports program?