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Flying the coup
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Flying the coup

Roast a chicken, not a democracy

Anand Giridharadas
Nov 20, 2020
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Flying the coup
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It started, as things often do now, with a tweet:

Twitter avatar for @AnandWrites
Anand Giridharadas @AnandWrites
I am tired of Trump and I have a whole chicken to cook tonight. Please send me your best ideas for it that ARE NOT BORING. Extra points for spice and flavor.
8:45 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
1,639Likes62Retweets

My wife, Priya, had, unbeknownst to me, removed a chicken from the freezer in the morning and left it out to thaw. Given that she literally wrote a book about how she’s interested in every element of gathering except the part about making the food, you can imagine whose burden the chicken was.

Right Here This Guy GIF by Choice Hotels - Find & Share on GIPHY

This pandemic has simmered so long that I have already done to chickens all that can be done to them. I have roasted. I have braised. Have trussed. Have spatchcocked (sorry, this newsletter may not be suitable for young children). I have stuffed things under the skin. Things you wouldn’t believe. I have become a connoisseur of chicken spine, which is better than you’d think. At some point, I just ran out of chicken ideas.

So I made my public plea.

What I learned very quickly is what I guess Sam Sifton (among the best newsletterers alive) has long known: it’s fine to tweet about politics, but you’re unnecessarily subjecting yourself to meanness and venom (and that’s from the people who like you!), whereas apparently the world of Food Twitter is just heaps of loving kindness.

You came through, Twitter. You showered me with chicken recipes of every manner, and I will never forget how tightly trussed I felt in your care. We are forever entwined.

As you know, I’m a big believer in philanthropy. So I decided to give back — to share some of the chicken recipes that were shared me in my hour of fast-defrosting need.

Because if there is one thing history tells us about perilous democratic transitions and coup attempts involving Michigan, it’s that it’s hard to fight tyranny on an empty belly.

So without ado:

  1. A visually awkward lemon-involved recipe.

Twitter avatar for @aminotaurswords
Brews by Minotaur @aminotaurswords
@AnandWrites Cut a lemon in half. Freeze for an hour or so. Then put each under the skin over the breasts before putting the bird in the oven (yes, it will look like what you think). The juice in the lemon should keep the white meat from drying out before the dark meat is cooked.
8:50 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020

This recipe, I should note, left me worried. Was it a trap?

Twitter avatar for @AnandWrites
Anand Giridharadas @AnandWrites
So much has happened this afternoon, but one thing that lingers in my mind is that I will never know if the person who tried to get me to put two lemon halves between the skin of the chicken and the breasts was being sincere or trying to get me canceled with the after pic.
10:47 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
331Likes3Retweets

I shouldn’t have speculated:

Twitter avatar for @crippapur
David Bimm 🏳️‍🌈 @crippapur
@AnandWrites
Image
10:51 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
18Likes1Retweet
  1. Break the tradeoff between chicken and bread. Combine them. Win-win.

Twitter avatar for @AliaHanna
Alia Hanna Habib @AliaHanna
@AnandWrites Poulet au pain: make bread dough, wrap the chicken in it, bake both together to create a chicken/bread loaf. It is chicken, also bread, but make it French.
jamesbeard.orgPoulet Au Pain
9:16 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
81Likes2Retweets
  1. @led_bet is a fan of Babish's take on roasting chicken.

  2. @FisherStudio has some questionable advice:

    “Roast it like a tiny turkey. Use baby root vegetables to stuff inside. Overcook it somewhat and then try to compensate with gravy. Serve it on a little platter and make a huge fuss out of carving it.”

    Full disclosure: @FisherStudio has been a vegetarian since 1988.

  3. @RudeeK2 reminded us to think about those suffering from natural disasters and hunger.

Twitter avatar for @RudeeK2
RudeeK @RudeeK2
@AnandWrites Ask World Central Kitchen for the chicken recipe they served in Honduras last night. Looks like it was a crowd pleaser.
Image
9:02 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020

You can support the work of José Andrés’ World Central Kitchen here.

  1. Rebecca Holcombe brought another perspective.

Twitter avatar for @RHolcombeVT
Rebecca Holcombe @RHolcombeVT
@AnandWrites I signed mine up to phone-bank for all of October. They were so tough afterwards that I spared them the oven.
Image
10:33 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
  1. There was a lot of talk of spatchcocking.

    Twitter avatar for @chrys
    boreal masked guttersnipe chrys @chrys
    @AnandWrites I can be snobbish about US cooking (my 4th country), but for a whole chicken, I think spatchcocking is one of the best things to come out of America. Rub with a lot of garlic and peppery spices. (Of course a nice North African Tagine style braised chicken is hard to beat tho.)
    8:53 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020

    If you don’t know what that is or think it’s something your religion forbids you to do with anybody but your duly wedded spouse, the BBC is here to educate you.

  2. Karla Fisk brought out the skillet.

Twitter avatar for @KarlaFisk
Karla Fisk @KarlaFisk
@AnandWrites Put a pierced lemon, orange or apple inside the chicken cavity, cover the entire exterior chicken skin with olive oil, season the chicken with your favorite herbs & spices and roast in a cast iron skillet in a 450 degree oven. Roast about an hour = juicy chicken w/crispy skin.
9:55 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
Twitter avatar for @KarlaFisk
Karla Fisk @KarlaFisk
@AnandWrites Especially tender if you put pierced citrus inside the chicken cause the acid tenderizes the chicken. Remove the fruit and discard before eating the chicken.
9:56 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
  1. Chris Pariso blew my mind with this upside-down, flip-it-all-around way.

    Twitter avatar for @ChrisPariso
    Chris Pariso @ChrisPariso
    @AnandWrites Hard to beat a classic roasted bird. Thyme, oregano, parsley, red pepper, S/P dusted on and in the cavety, garlic cloves stuffed under the skin. Put breast-down on a bed of onions/carrots and a few lemon slices. Splash with sherry or white wine, cover tight and bake. Flip 1hr in
    8:48 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
    75Likes1Retweet
    Twitter avatar for @ChrisPariso
    Chris Pariso @ChrisPariso
    @AnandWrites Start baking the bird breast side down to let all the initial juices flow into the breast. An hour or so in, flip the bird over, cover again, and continue baking. The result is a much juicier breast than you'd usually get. Lemon in the pan helps flavor drippings for gravy.
    8:50 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
  2. @cdthomas is not shy about olive oil (and thanks to whoever Anne is).

    Twitter avatar for @cdthomas
    C.D. Thomas @cdthomas
    @AnandWrites ANNE’S ROAST CHICKEN The ingredients: * a whole chicken (as free-range and organic as possible) * a lemon * handfuls of chopped thyme and rosemary * olive oil * sea salt * pepper
    8:51 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
    Twitter avatar for @cdthomas
    C.D. Thomas @cdthomas
    @AnandWrites The method: 1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. 2. Slice the lemon in half and place one half of it inside the cavity of the chicken. 3. Sprinkle chopped thyme and rosemary all over the exterior of the bird.
    8:52 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
    Twitter avatar for @cdthomas
    C.D. Thomas @cdthomas
    @AnandWrites 4. Drizzle approximately one-third of a cup of olive oil onto the bird until it is fully covered. 5. Finish with generous applications of coarse sea salt and freshly ground pepper.
    8:53 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
    Twitter avatar for @cdthomas
    C.D. Thomas @cdthomas
    @AnandWrites 6. (If you’re so inclined, scatter a sliced onion and the cloves from one full head of garlic in the Dutch oven, to produce a delicious gravy.) 7. Roast the chicken for an hour at 400 degrees, lower the heat to 350 degrees, and let it cook for an additional 15 minutes. Voilà
    8:53 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
  3. @timtimtimtimtim and @DaniBurkhart answered my request for serious seasoning.

    Twitter avatar for @timtimtimtimtim
    tim @timtimtimtimtim
    @katiesisneros @AnandWrites Make a paste out of butter, olive oil, mustard powder, herbs de provence, salt, pepper, (spicy? add some cayenne) and lemon juice. Smear all over under and over the skin. Cover and bake at 250° for about 4-5 hours.
    8:58 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
    Twitter avatar for @DaniBurkhart
    Dani Burkhart @DaniBurkhart
    @AnandWrites @timtimtimtimtim @katiesisneros Another variation on this theme is to put salt, pepper, garlic, lime zest and cilantro in your butter paste. *chef’s kiss* Serve with warm tortillas/flatbread and a red cabbage slaw (roasted corn and queso fresco optional) tossed with a lime juice quick vinaigrette. Enjoy!
    9:15 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
  4. When it’s nice out, @BullFrogJam recommends smoked half chicken with Alabama white sauce. Here’s the no-longer-secret recipe for the famous sauce:

    Twitter avatar for @BullFrogJam
    James Hanna Bardbarian @BullFrogJam
    @Goddess769 @AnandWrites haha, here y'are! 3/4 Cup mayo 2 Tbl cider vinegar 2 tsp sugar 1/2 tsp prepared horseradish 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp ground black pepper 1/4 tsp cayenne —Blend it up!— baste the chicken once it comes off the smoker and then again right before you eat!
    9:19 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
  5. In the end, there had to be a winner-winner for this chicken dinner, and it was the Slow-Roast Gochujang Chicken, written by Molly Baz, and shared with me by @richlynnwatson. I made my own gochujang, substituting paprika for cayenne because we’re in the middle of a coup and it’s cold outside. And much to my amazement, my two- and five-year-olds were wild about this spicy chicken.

    Thank you to everyone who participated in making the internet fun and kind and delicious for at least one day this year.

    Twitter avatar for @AnandWrites
    Anand Giridharadas @AnandWrites
    Progress.
    Image
    10:50 PM ∙ Nov 18, 2020
    216Likes1Retweet
Twitter avatar for @AnandWrites
Anand Giridharadas @AnandWrites
DONE. THANKS ONE AND ALL.
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12:39 AM ∙ Nov 19, 2020
564Likes1Retweet
Twitter avatar for @AnandWrites
Anand Giridharadas @AnandWrites
Only in the oven is my story even possible.
Image
12:55 AM ∙ Nov 19, 2020
429Likes5Retweets

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12 Comments
Jackie Syrop
Nov 20, 2020

Please, not one more article on cooking. I just can't take it anymore. Between the sourdough (still ongoing madness here), the pandemic food posts and food porn photos on IG and everywhere else, I've just had enough. My husband does all the cooking because I have zero interest and he had to cook to survive (and has been doing for almost 40 years), but in the last 8-9 months with no restaurant dining and only infrequent take out (there's not a whole lot of that bc of family food allergies and some vegetarians) he has created mountains of dirty dishes, pots and pans, and kitchen crud and I'm on my last nerve. Not you too.

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1 reply by Anand Giridharadas
Stef
Nov 20, 2020

Good news!! According to Trevor Noah, Trump is trying to speed up the whole chicken processing thing. So you can like cook all the chicken you want!!!

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