Finding Clay Pots for the Holidays
If you've had your clay pots for a while, you're probably used to preparing food in them, and are very satisfied with the rich flavor that clay pots add to your food. However, if you plan on using your clay pots to cook Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner, you may want to know which dishes are best suited in clay pots, and how much you can cook at a time-especially if you're expected to have a full house this holiday season. Here are some tips for selecting larger clay pots, as well as a few dishes that will cook well in your new pot.
Before you select larger clay pots, you may want to get a few smaller clay bakers to prepare your side dishes in, so you can free the entrée-sized clay pots up for main dishes.
Clay garlic bakers, mini bread bakers (for appetizers), and smaller clay pots for preparing gravy and sauces in will not only give you more pans to work with when you need to prepare larger dishes, but make for great presentation on the table as well. And, depending on when you decide to start preparing for holiday dinners, you can practice some of the dishes you plan on making in the smaller clay pots; this way, you won't waste a lot of ingredients if the dishes don't turn out well, and you'll know which dishes 'work' before the big day.
Also, be sure to get a clay pot with a lid, especially if you're preparing turkey or other types of poultry. This will keep the dish from over-drying, which could take away from the flavor.
While clay pots will automatically help food to retain its flavor, and give your dishes the right moisture content, a top will help if you're cooking the dish for a few hours (i.e. slow-cooking a turkey).
You should also consider how large you really need your clay pot to be - sizes usually range from 3 to 17.5 lbs., so be sure to select wisely, and always make room for extra people to come over. Remember, it's always better to purchase a clay pot that is larger than you think you'll need.
If you're trying out your clay pot for the first time during the holidays, here are a couple of recipes you may want to try that will feed large groups of people:
Chicken With 40 Cloves Of Garlic
This is for a clay pot or Romertopf Cookery.
4 servings. Preparation time: 20 minutes. Cooking time: 60-65 minutes. Juice of 1/2 lemon 3 tbsp. softened butter Salt & pepper to taste 1 tsp. each: ground sage, ground thyme & ground rosemary 3-4 heads garlic, cloves separated but not peeled (Use only lg. & med. sized cloves)
Directions
- Soak clay pot and cover in lukewarm water 15 minutes or more. Drain.
- Put chicken into pot. Pour lemon juice into body cavity. Rub chicken with butter, salt and pepper and herbs. Distribute garlic cloves around and over chicken.
- Put covered pot in cold oven. Raise heat to 425 degrees. Bake 50 minutes from time oven reaches this temperature. Remove cover. Baste chicken with juices. Raise heat to 450 degrees and bake uncovered 10-15 minutes, until breast skin is golden and thigh juices run clear when tested with cake tester.
Serve this Choucroute topped with kielbasa or bratwurst, accompanied by new potatoes. Unlike most choucroute, which is cooked for 4 hours and is for my taste too strong in flavor, this dish tastes light and fresh.
Beef Roast
1/4 c. butter, softened
2 tbsp. flour
1/2 tsp. dill
1 tsp. dry mustard
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. minced green onion
1 (3 to 4 lb.) beef roast
1/2 c. red wine
Carrots, peeled
Sm. potatoes, scrubbed
Directions
Combine first 8 ingredients, spread over roast. Place roast in clay cooking pot or baking pan. Pour wine over meat. Lay carrot and potatoes on top. Cover with clay pot lid or heavy foil.
Bake in clay pot at 480 degrees for 1 hour, otherwise bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes per pound. Clay pot will tenderize meat well. Serves 4 to 6.
To clean you clay pots, rinse them well with cool to warm water as soon as possible so that food won't stick. Clay pots tend to hold the flavors of the last dish baked in them, so washing them as soon as possible will help to reduce this tendency. And, most clay pots are dishwasher safe, so after rinsing, they can be placed in the dishwasher with other utensils.
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