Monday, October 29, 2012

Chicken hearts and gizzards with rice

Chicken gizzard and rice

a

modern-day peasant dish

 


   
Chicken gizzards and rice is a dish that I have come to love in good times and bad. For some it is an acquired taste, but as a kid I came to love the taste and  chewie texture. Unlike in those days of only getting one set of giblets per chicken, modern times have made it available at most grocery stores in large packages. Although hearts and gizzards (how most are packaged these days) are the toughest part of the bird, they're also one of the lowest in fat content and one of the cheapest.
1.       Chicken gizzards …………………………………………… about $1.50
2.       brown rice………….…………………………………………………... $2.00
3.       one can cream of condensed mushroom soup…….…. $1.50
4.       salad of your choice including dressing …………………… $3.00
5.       in season fruit …………………………………………………………. $2.00
                                                                 4 Servings total: $10.00
Should feed a family of four for about $2.50 per person add grated cheese for an additional $.50 per person for a total of $3 per person. Prices may fluctuate depending on your location and seasonal fruit.
Cooking the rice
The first thing I cook is 2 cups of quick rice according to the instructions on the packaging. Use a pot large enough to allow you to add the gizzards and a can of condensed mushroom soup when rice is finished cooking. (About a two or 3 quart pan )This will take about 15 min. if you're using quick rice, if your using regular rice about 45 min. While rice is cooking I prepare the hearts and gizzards.
preparing the package of hearts & gizzards
Most chicken hearts and gizzards, come out of the package looking like this. Their machine processed and as a result most times are not a finished product. The yellow lining on the gizzards must be removed or your whole meal will come out tasting very bad and the meat will be unpalatable.

Using your fingernail scrape and peel any yellow lining you find on any of the gizzards and discard.  You can trim any additional fat that you find at this time but I usually find so little it's not worth the effort.
 
 
 
 

Once you have your gizzards peeled and meat washed their ready for cooking. I usually use a microwave oven and a casserole dish with lid. Place the gizzards and hearts in the casserole dish and season with pepper and salt and a dash of garlic powder. Cook in the microwave oven for about 7 to 8 min.  Be sure and use a lid as they will pop as they are cooking.
When done your hearts and gizzards should be a nice brown color all the way through with no blood. There may be some grease left at the bottom of the dish. This can be drained off and discarded or saved for soup stock.
When your rice is finished cooking add the hearts and gizzards along with one can of condensed cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup. 
(Note: put hearts and gizzards through food processor prior to mixing with rice for smaller bite sizes and less chewy meat.) 
Mix thoroughly.
You can add a half cup of your favorite shredded cheese to the mix or just use as a garnish as I have here.
Peel , core and slice a fresh pair and add your favorite  salad and there you have your high-protein, low-fat dinner on a low-budget.
 From the sandy beaches of Fallon, Nevada.
Enjoy!



 
 
 

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