Slow Roasted Chicken Legs with Sun Dried Tomatoes and Mushrooms

Today I’m drawing inspiration from Andrew Schloss’s amazing book, “Cooking Slow: Recipes for Slowing Down and Cooking More.”  I picked up “Cooking Slow” after I heard an interview with Schloss on the Splendid Table, my favorite radio show. Splendid Host Lynne Rosetto Kasper is a culinary goddess, and just fun to listen to besides. Schloss’s spot on her show, highlighting his recipe for  Carrots Slow Baked on Coffee Beans, peaked my curiosity.

Cooking Slow isn’t about slow cooker recipes — though there are some of those too.  It’s a collection of recipes that apply a repertoire of  slow cooking techniques, including roasting, baking, simmering, steaming, grilling, frying, and sous vide cooking. As I work my way through the book I have the feeling that “Cooking Slow” is going to change the way I cook for a long time to come. Go buy Schloss’s book now — the digital Kindle or iBook version is a steal at $1.99, and check out his blog while you’re at it.

Schloss’s original recipe for Slow Roasted Chicken with Sun Dried Tomatoes and Wild Mushrooms if for a whole chicken. I had chicken leg quarters on hand and decided to try converting the recipe. I found I needed longer cook time than the original called for — about 10 hours instead of the 6-8 for the whole chicken — but otherwise I’ve stayed true to Schloss’s flavors and technique. I also recommend  soaking the mushrooms overnight, since they didn’t soften completely in the oven.

Chicken leg quarters look prettiest served in one piece to guests (as shown below), but since a whole leg quarter comes in at around 780 calories, it’s best to serve each quarter separated into two more healthily portioned pieces (the leg and thigh).

Slow Roasted Chicken Legs with Sun Dried Tomatoes and Mushrooms

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Slow Roasted Chicken Legs with Sun Dried Tomatoes

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

10 hours

Total time

10 hours 15 mins

 

Slow Roasted Chicken Legs with Sun Dried Tomatoes

Author: Adapted from Andrew Schloss's "Cooking Slow: Recipes for Slowing Down and Cooking More"

Serves: 12

Ingredients

• ½ ounce dried morel mushrooms
• ½ ounce dried shitake mushrooms
• ½ ounce dried oyster mushrooms
• 6 chicken leg quarters, about 4 lbs
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 2 medium onions, quartered
• 8 cloves garlic, peeled
• ½ cup red wine
• ½ cup sun dried tomatoes, chopped
• 1½ cups boiling water
• 2 sprigs rosemary
• 3 Tablespoons honey
• 1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Instructions

1. Soak the dried mushrooms overnight in just enough water to cover them. Drain and set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 175 degrees.
3. Season the chicken legs on both sides with the salt and pepper.
4. In a cast iron casserole on the stove top, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté another minute. Add the wine and bring to boil. Simmer until the liquid is reduced by half, about 5 minutes.
5. Add the mushrooms, sun dried tomatoes, rosemary and boiling water and stir.
6. Arrange the chicken leg quarters on top of the vegetables and cover the pot. Place the pot in the oven and roast until the internal temperature of the thickest part of the thigh registers 170 degrees, 8-10 hours.
7. Remove the pot from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 500 degrees.
8. Mix the honey and balsamic vinegar together in a small bowl. Brush the honey and balsamic vinegar mixture onto the chicken leg quarters.
9. Return the pot to the oven, uncovered, and roast until the chicken is golden brown, about 15 minutes.
10. Serve the chicken topped with some of the stewed tomatoes and mushrooms.

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 About the Photographs

The background in these photographs is the rust-covered back side of an old ceiling tile, a find at Second Chance in Baltimore, my favorite antique salvage store. I’m in love with the marbled color and texture created by the rust. Nicole over at the Spice Train has been using a rusty table top as a background, and it’s so beautiful I can hardly stand it.

I bought the blue plate on clearance at Pier 1. It’s actually plastic – maybe part of a picnic set more appropriate for the 4th of July – but I love the contrast of the bright blue with the red of the tomatoes. The two bright colors almost jump out off of the rusty background, and yet somehow the chicken remains the main focus.

I took these photos with my  Nikon D80, using a 28mm f2.8 NIKKOR wide angle lens.  I used a Lowell Ego tabletop light like this one, in full darkness (at about 7 p.m., with all lights in the room turned off). The light was positioned to the right and slightly to the front of the food. I really love the swoosh of light that is dancing over the plate — I shifted the lighting unit around until I got the effect I wanted. I also used a black foam board on the left side of the food to create shadow. My ISO was set at 640,  the shutter speed was 200, and the aperture was set at 4.5.

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