Creamed Chicken

I have spent a great portion of the day reading through my blog, sort of a trip down memory lane. It's been fun to reminisce, and to see how my blog has progressed and gone through its many phases and stages. For a while, I was posting so frequently that I felt guilty if I went a whole week without posting. Wow, that is not how I do it lately! Anymore, I only post once or twice a month, if that. I really want to get back into the habit of posting more frequently. So here I am, posting our simple, inexpensive, yet delicious meal that we enjoyed tonight.

I enjoy using chicken leg quarters. They're one of the cheapest sources of meat, at under a dollar a pound. We use them as is, or separated to have the thighs for one meal and the drumsticks for another. My favorite way to use them in recipes is to start by stewing them in water until they are tender. Just cover with water, bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium or medium-high, and simmer until completely done. The longer they cook, the more tender they get. Remove the chicken from the broth, reserving the broth of course. Once the chicken has cooled down, you can pull all the chicken from the bones and use the chicken in whatever recipe you want.

I recently learned a great tip for taking chicken dishes from good to amazing. Adding thyme and a small amount of turmeric gives an incredible flavor, as well as a pretty color, to everything from chicken soup to chicken pie. Tonight I used this seasoning trick in our creamed chicken, with great results. We served the chicken over pasta, but it was so good I was eating the chicken gravy by itself by the end of the meal!

Creamed Chicken
2 chicken thighs, boiled in water until tender, then removed from bones and shredded (see above)
Broth from boiling the chicken
1 cup frozen peas, run under hot water until thawed
1 cup frozen sliced carrots, microwaved with a little water until thawed and softened
1/4 cup margarine or butter
1/4 cup flour
1 or 2 dashes turmeric
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
8 oz. macaroni noodles, cooked and drained

Melt margarine in large saucepan. Add flour and whisk until smooth. Slowly whisk in 2 1/2 cups chicken broth. Cook and stir over medium heat until smooth and thickened. Stir in turmeric, thyme, and salt and pepper to taste. Add peas, carrots, and chicken. Serve over noodles. This would also be good over rice, mashed potatoes, or like I said, all by itself!

Linking to tatertots & jello