BEER-BRAISED CHICKEN: AN EASY AND TASTY RECIPE

Beer offers us enormous gastronomic versatility as an accompaniment to hundreds of culinary recipes, but also as an ingredient in others such as the one we bring to you today: beer-braised chicken. Before we get into the quantities and steps to follow to cook this dish, we shall first name the characteristics of beer that make it an interesting culinary ingredient.

First of all, we must remember that a beer contains between 85% and 92% water. This means that we can replace water with beer in many recipes that involve cooking meat and fish, providing extra flavour and more body to the resulting sauces.

Another characteristic worth mentioning is the yeast content in beer, which helps fluff the batter. To achieve the best effect, you should choose a variety in which the yeast has not filtered (they are usually cloudy beers) or the beer has not been pasteurized, for, in one case, there will be no leaven and, in the other, it will be inactive.
The use of dark beers adds hints of toasting to the recipe, due to the actual roasting of the cereal with which it is made and from which it gets its colour. Generally speaking, this type of beer works very well in dishes whose ingredients also have this dark colour.
Last of all, you must take great care with beers with intense bitterness because, as a result of partial evaporation during cooking, this bitterness will be significantly enhanced, and may not be to everyone’s liking.

Having mentioned these general recommendations, let’s look at our beer-braised chicken recipe:

Ingredients for 4 people

• 4 chicken leg quarters  separated into thigh and drumstick
• 8 shallots or, failing that, 1 large, sweet onion
• 1 leek
• 2 medium-sized green peppers
• Virgin olive oil
• Wheat flour
• A sprig of aromatic herbs (laurel, thyme, rosemary…)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• A 50 cl. bottle of Franziskaner Weissbier Naturtrüb
   

Preparation

1. Season the chicken and flour it lightly to fry it in olive oil until golden and put it aside.
2. Chop the shallots (or onion) finely and them in a pot with a dash of olive oil. Sautee the onion slowly and add the peppers, chopped into small pieces and deseeded, and the sliced leek.
3. When the shallots and leek start to take on some colour, add the chicken and aromatic herbs. Stir gently for 2 minutes and cover with beer.
4. Half cover the pan and cook on a moderate heat for 45’, adding some water if there is a need. It is important to stir from time to time to prevent the contents from sticking to the bottom and to homogenize the sauce.
5. Serve and enjoy accompanied by the same beer.

Cheers!