Creamy Blender Chicken Pie: Fluffy Batter That Melts in Your Mouth With a Juicy Filling
Salgados Lanches
Glossário Culinário
Chicken
Chicken is the meat of the domesticated bird Gallus gallus domesticus, the most consumed animal protein in Brazil. Mild in flavor and affordable, it is extremely versatile: it takes every seasoning and every cooking method, showing up both in simple everyday lunches and at celebrations, from roast drumstick to Christmas Chester. Its light meat pairs well with marinades, breaded coatings, sauces and broths.
Characteristics
The main cuts are the breast, lean with long fibers; the thigh and drumstick, juicier thanks to a little more fat; the wing and drumette, loved fried and at barbecues; and the giblets, such as gizzard, heart and liver, widely used in snacks and sautés. Free-range (caipira) chicken, raised outdoors, has firmer meat and a more pronounced flavor, while farm-raised broiler chicken is more tender and quicker to cook.
Uses in the kitchen
Grilled, roasted, fried, boiled or stewed, chicken yields endless dishes: chicken with okra, galinhada (chicken and rice), fricassée, kung pao-style chicken (frango xadrez), savory pies and empadão, stroganoff, canja (chicken and rice soup) and chicken broth. Shredded, it becomes filling for savory snacks, pancakes and escondidinho (layered casserole). It pairs with garlic, onion, lemon, mustard, honey, soy sauce, fresh herbs, paprika and peppers, and goes well with sides such as rice, cassava, polenta and pasta.
Substitutions
Among cuts, swapping is simple: thigh and drumstick replace each other in roasts and stews, and breast can take their place when a leaner dish is wanted, with extra care not to dry it out. In holiday recipes, turkey and Chester fill in for whole roast chicken. For meatless versions, mushrooms and shredded young jackfruit mimic the texture of shredded chicken in fillings and escondidinhos.
Fun facts
Seasoning ahead, resting in the marinade for a few hours in the refrigerator, lets the flavor penetrate and keeps the meat juicier. There is no need to wash raw chicken: the water splashes droplets around the sink and thorough cooking already takes care of safety. The ideal doneness is meat cooked evenly through, with no pink parts and clear juices. Leftover roast chicken makes great shredded fillings, salpicão (Brazilian chicken salad) and pies the next day.
