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It has only been recently that I tasted Chicken Parmigiana. No, I don’t lead a sheltered life; I just never had the opportunity. Well, maybe I had the opportunity, but I chose something else. I’m glad that I finally gave in and tried it because I really like it. What is even more exciting is that I have figured out a fast, easy, cheap and food storage friendly recipe for it. It doesn’t matter that it was purely by accident, it is still above and beyond delicious – and by the way it has even less calories than the traditional version, I don’t fry the chicken in a breaded covering. Dust off your crock-pot.
First, we have to start with the marinara sauce. This is where the food storage comes in handy. You will want to make your sauce from scratch, and you will need tomato sauce for that. I buy my tomato sauce in the large #10 can for only about $1.79 (2006) instead of a whole bunch of small cans. The big cans store easier and are cheaper. I make the sauce and whatever I don’t use, I put it into a freezer container or plastic bags and freeze the excess to use later.
The recipe for the sauce is as follows:
All-Around Excellent Herb Tomato Sauce #10 can of tomato sauce (or three quarts of bottled tomatoes) 2/3 cups olive oil
2 tablespoon dried, crushed oregano leaves (a little less if powdered) 2 tablespoon dried, crushed basil leaves (a little less if powdered) 2 teaspoon of granulated garlic 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, slightly crushed ½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
Mix all the ingredients really well. The longer it rests, the more blended the flavors. You don’t need to cook it and can use it immediately after mixing. This sauce is good for pizzas, spaghetti, for dipping garlic bread sticks, and for making Chicken Parmigiana among other things. This recipe makes a lot of sauce, but it stores well, and if it is in the fridge, you can whip together a pizza, or whatever, in just moments.
To make my version of Chicken Parmigiana, take a cut up chicken, without the skin, and throw it into the crock pot, on low, and drizzle it with a little bit of olive oil and sprinkle with a bit Italian Seasoning and salt and pepper – and you’re done! Well almost. When the chicken is cooked, boil some egg noodles, and heat up some of the sauce. Place a piece of chicken and a serving of noodles on a plate and ladle some of the warmed up sauce over both. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese and serve. Oh, sooooo good.
Even if you haven’t made the sauce ahead of time, you will have plenty of time to make it before the water for the noodles starts to boil. It really is that easy, and that yummy.
Everything used in both recipes should be items that you have stored in your food storage, even the spices. I know that they say that you should buy your spices in smaller containers so that they don’t lose their “spiciness”, but I prefer to buy in larger containers and just use it. I bought a bunch of spices from the San Francisco Spice Company quite a while back and I put them in airtight bags and stored them in the freezer. So far, several years later, they are still as good as ever.
Remember, shop in your storage, and replace what you use – when it comes on sale. That sounds like a potential New Year’s Resolution to me. Think about it.
Dawn