Experiment in puff pastry - Ideas wanted



M

Matthew Givens

Guest
Okay, I got interested in puff pastry, and decided to try my hand at it.
After two missteps, I finally figured it out and turned out some very tasty
and savory stuffed turnovers. My stuffing was a combination of Chicken &
Herb couscous, mushrooms sauteed in olive oil, and chicken pan cooked in
olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper (chopped into small cubes). I
also seasoned it with about a teaspoon of salt after mixing it together.
The flavor was quite good, but a little subtle. I want to keep the current
flavor but somehow make it more robust. My current ideas are:

- Instead of cooking the couscous in water, use chicken broth.
- Add raw onions (white and chopped).
- Add chopped bell peppers.
- Add garlic.

Those are the current ideas. Any other suggestions?
 
Matthew wrote:

> Okay, I got interested in puff pastry, and decided to try my hand at it.
> After two missteps, I finally figured it out and turned out some very
> tasty and savory stuffed turnovers. My stuffing was a combination of
> Chicken & Herb couscous, mushrooms sauteed in olive oil, and chicken pan
> cooked in olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper (chopped into small
> cubes). I also seasoned it with about a teaspoon of salt after mixing it
> together. The flavor was quite good, but a little subtle. I want to keep
> the current flavor but somehow make it more robust. My current ideas are:
>
> - Instead of cooking the couscous in water, use chicken broth.
> - Add raw onions (white and chopped).
> - Add chopped bell peppers.
> - Add garlic.
>
> Those are the current ideas. Any other suggestions?

DEFINITELY cook the couscous in chicken broth.

Consider upping the salt and/or adding some Accent. That's what makes
commercial chicken soups taste so "chickeny."

Use chicken thighs exclusively. (Damsel will disagree, but I'm right.)

Try cremini, porcini, or shiitake mushrooms.

If you're going to use onions, cook them along with the mushrooms. (Google
for "duxelles.")


For now, I'd leave the bell peppers and garlic out; I think that they'd
compete with the flavors you want to emphasize.

Bob
 
Won't sauteed onions add sweetness to the filling? It's not sweet now, and
I don't want sweetness to kill the savory. That's why I didn't sautee
onions or use bellpeppers before.



"Bob Terwilliger" <virtualgoth@die_spammer.biz> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Matthew wrote:
>
>> Okay, I got interested in puff pastry, and decided to try my hand at it.
>> After two missteps, I finally figured it out and turned out some very
>> tasty and savory stuffed turnovers. My stuffing was a combination of
>> Chicken & Herb couscous, mushrooms sauteed in olive oil, and chicken pan
>> cooked in olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper (chopped into small
>> cubes). I also seasoned it with about a teaspoon of salt after mixing it
>> together. The flavor was quite good, but a little subtle. I want to keep
>> the current flavor but somehow make it more robust. My current ideas
>> are:
>>
>> - Instead of cooking the couscous in water, use chicken broth.
>> - Add raw onions (white and chopped).
>> - Add chopped bell peppers.
>> - Add garlic.
>>
>> Those are the current ideas. Any other suggestions?
>
> DEFINITELY cook the couscous in chicken broth.
>
> Consider upping the salt and/or adding some Accent. That's what makes
> commercial chicken soups taste so "chickeny."
>
> Use chicken thighs exclusively. (Damsel will disagree, but I'm right.)
>
> Try cremini, porcini, or shiitake mushrooms.
>
> If you're going to use onions, cook them along with the mushrooms. (Google
> for "duxelles.")
>
>
> For now, I'd leave the bell peppers and garlic out; I think that they'd
> compete with the flavors you want to emphasize.
>
> Bob
>
 
On Wed, 28 Dec 2005, Matthew Givens wrote:

> Okay, I got interested in puff pastry, and decided to try my hand at it.
> After two missteps, I finally figured it out and turned out some very tasty
> and savory stuffed turnovers. My stuffing was a combination of Chicken &
> Herb couscous, mushrooms sauteed in olive oil, and chicken pan cooked in
> olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper (chopped into small cubes). I
> also seasoned it with about a teaspoon of salt after mixing it together.
> The flavor was quite good, but a little subtle. I want to keep the current
> flavor but somehow make it more robust. My current ideas are:
>
> - Instead of cooking the couscous in water, use chicken broth.
> - Add raw onions (white and chopped).
> - Add chopped bell peppers.
> - Add garlic.
>
> Those are the current ideas. Any other suggestions?
>
>
>

This sounds very good. I'd suggest sauteing the onions (I'd use red) and
bells (green and colored) [in bacon drippins {tee hee hee}, of course] and
add the crumbled bacon to the mixture.

You might consider some kind of cheese. Or, making a cream sauce. Or,
adding a veggie, like peas or carrots. Something to make it colorful.

With chicken anything, a pinch of sage, or poultry seasoning, or curry
(easy does it!) can give a fuller, more robust flavor.


Elaine, too
 
Okay, I tried it again, this time cooking the couscous in chicken broth,
using chicken thighs, and using a blend of mushrooms. I also sauteed the
mushrooms in the pan drippings left over from pan-frying the chicken. The
resulting flavor was much stronger and quite good. A little heavy on the
mushroom, but I'll cut down on them a little next time. I'll probably also
add some poultry seasoning to the chicken... and maybe to the couscous.

For the record, this experiment is an official success, and I'll be cooking
it again in the future. A VERY good taste.

My next experiment, in a month or so, will also be intended to use as the
filling in puff pastry. An entirely different flavor, of course. I was
thinking of marinating the chicken in some Korean soy-ginger marinade before
pan-frying or baking. Not sure what else I'll use in the stuffing, but
hopefully it will turn out good, too.



"Bob Terwilliger" <virtualgoth@die_spammer.biz> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Matthew wrote:
>
>> Okay, I got interested in puff pastry, and decided to try my hand at it.
>> After two missteps, I finally figured it out and turned out some very
>> tasty and savory stuffed turnovers. My stuffing was a combination of
>> Chicken & Herb couscous, mushrooms sauteed in olive oil, and chicken pan
>> cooked in olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper (chopped into small
>> cubes). I also seasoned it with about a teaspoon of salt after mixing it
>> together. The flavor was quite good, but a little subtle. I want to keep
>> the current flavor but somehow make it more robust. My current ideas
>> are:
>>
>> - Instead of cooking the couscous in water, use chicken broth.
>> - Add raw onions (white and chopped).
>> - Add chopped bell peppers.
>> - Add garlic.
>>
>> Those are the current ideas. Any other suggestions?
>
> DEFINITELY cook the couscous in chicken broth.
>
> Consider upping the salt and/or adding some Accent. That's what makes
> commercial chicken soups taste so "chickeny."
>
> Use chicken thighs exclusively. (Damsel will disagree, but I'm right.)
>
> Try cremini, porcini, or shiitake mushrooms.
>
> If you're going to use onions, cook them along with the mushrooms. (Google
> for "duxelles.")
>
>
> For now, I'd leave the bell peppers and garlic out; I think that they'd
> compete with the flavors you want to emphasize.
>
> Bob
>
 
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