Working in restaurants is pretty hard work, so on their days off, my chef friends like to cook as simply—but still deliciously, natch—as possible. A few weeks ago, my good chef friend told me about one of her favorite off-duty meals.
She calls it Chicken Bread.
My immediate reaction? "Epicurious is going to love Chicken Bread." Because Chicken Bread seems custom-made for Epi readers: it involves golden roast chicken (love those) and a super simple trick that turns that chicken into surprising, satisfying meal.
So what's the trick? It starts with a loaf of sourdough bread. Pick up a great quality one, slice it, and lay the slices in a roasting pan. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt.
Now prep a chicken for roasting. Anything goes, so follow your go-to method. I like Thomas Keller's super simple method—pat dry the bird, then season it with a heavy handful of salt and pepper—because it really does result in a most delicious bird with the lowest amount of work possible.
Once you have the chicken prepped, place it on directly on top of the bread and roast away. (Chef Keller suggests nice high heat of 450°F.)
As the chicken roasts, chicken juices drip down, and the bread becomes first soaked, then toasted and caramelized. In other words, it becomes Chicken Bread. And Chicken Bread is incredible stuff: Crunchy, salty, full of savory chicken flavor. You can cube it and toss it in salad for the ultimate panzanella, use it for a BLT, spread it with, oh, I don't know, chicken liver mousse. Or you can just serve it with that roasted chicken. But note: Chicken Bread is always the main; the actual chicken is served on the side.
