Granny cookin'

I've had a hankering for my grandmother's "Drunk Chicken"* lately, and since I gave up meat for Lent, I decided to treat myself to this dish post-Easter.

I tried to make this once before and keep it healthy, and that just didn't cut it at all. No, the only way to make this dish is the same way Maw Maw made it: whole cut-up chicken, bone-in, skin-on, in a dutch oven.

First, I soaked the chicken pieces in a little milk to take out any "gaminess." Chicken shouldn't be game-y, but you never know. If I'd had buttermilk I would've used that (and that is a must for fried chicken), but I didn't, so skim milk had to do.

Next, I drained them and added salt & pepper, and then dredged in a little flour. After heating a bit of olive oil in the dutch oven, the chicken was ready to be browned. My dutch oven was not as big as I thought it was, so I had to brown the pieces a few at a time. No biggie - you're not cooking the chicken here, just browning and adding those great gribbenes (the yummy, crusty cooked parts) to the pan.


After all the pieces were browned, I tucked them all back into the pan, took it off the heat, and poured 1 cup of red wine + 1/2 or so of water over the chicken. Covering it with the lid, I put it into the oven at 350 degrees to bake for about 35 minutes.

In the meantime, I mashed some potatoes and fried up some green tomatoes. No big whoop. Hey, if I'm going to have Maw Maw's drunk chicken, I have to go all out.

After pulling it out of the oven, a familiar scent wafted out of the pot. There was the chicken I remembered from my formative years! Even though some pieces weren't touching the bottom, the whole bird was steamed with delicious flavors of the wine. The meat was so tender and nearly falling off the bone. I snapped a picture before I settled down to devour it!

I was so happy, it tasted almost exactly like Maw Maw's. I under-salted, which I usually do, but it was delicious otherwise. The juice in the bottom of the pan is good for pouring on the mashed potatoes, and if you were really ambitious you could make a thicker gravy out of it, but I was tired and hungry at this point.

I am thankful that I learned Southern cooking from my grandmother. She also taught my mom to cook so I picked it up from both of them. My other grandmother (who is no longer with us) was a good cook, but by the time I was born she didn't much care for cooking anymore and was enamored with newfangled TV dinners and fast food. I gained a love for junk food and fast food from her, for better or worse. But Maw Maw R. taught me that any vegetable can taste good when cooked with bacon and/or butter, she taught me the right way to make a fried green tomato, and bless her heart, she could never cook for less than 5 or 6 people at a time, so I learned how to make big meals too.

Mother's Day is coming up, and I plan to make a brunch for Maw Maw R., my mom and my sister, who is also a mother. I've learned to eat much healthier these days so some of my dishes won't be butter-laden - but if there's one more thing I learned from my mom and grandmother, it's how to cook with love and care.

Love on your mamas and grandmamas this weekend y'all - they deserve it. And Maw Maw J., I'm going to eat some french fries just for you.

(*She always called it Drunk Chicken, but I learned years later that this is really a simplified version of Coq Au Vin. Fancy!)