Saving (and using) flavors from other recipes

[griddler]

I had a whole chicken, wanted something high in flavor, and it is still too cold to grill out in Michigan, so I cut the chicken into 8 peices, marinated in teriyaki sauce, and cooked it on a sheet pan lined with aluminum foil at 425. I planned to start basting with a thick teriyaki glaze as soon as the skin started to crisp up. I realized about 30 minutes in that I would never get a crispy skin with all the liquid in the sheet pan, so I drained the liquid into another pot and continued cooking the chicken in the oven. Chicken turned out great with a thick gooey glaze. I now have a pot with 2-3 cups of this wonderful tasting juice about 50/50 fat/juice that I can't bring myself to throw away. Are there any quides on how to use flavorul leftover juices (not the meat or vegetables but the cooking lquids). One example I ran into this weekend with St. Patricks Day was boiling corned beef for 2.5 hrs. and then using the liquid to boil up some red potatoes to go with the meal.

[heidih]

I can't help you with any hard and fast guides, but I can tell you that I have come to appreciate this extra oomph more and more in my cooking. A tablespoon of leftover juices & fat from a grilling piece of meat can be just the thing later on in a soup or sauce or to give some vegetables a boost. I have some very small containers that hold only a few tablespoon and I save pan dripping and juices in the freezer if I am not incorporating them into the current dish. Looking forward to see how others do this.

[David A. Goldfarb]

I have a whole stack of small containers for freezing braising liquids and sauces in small quantities and such. They find their way into other sauces, braises, soups, stews, and what not.

[abadoozy]

I have a whole stack of small containers for freezing braising liquids and sauces in small quantities and such. They find their way into other sauces, braises, soups, stews, and what not.

This is what I do as well. There's little I throw away anymore, I can always use a half a cup of BBQ sauce or leftover braising liquid or the liquid that comes out of the sous-vide bag. I might not know immediately what to do with it, but eventually I find a use.

[Chris Amirault]

Me as well. Ditto leftover fat, which finds its way into lots of SV bags.

[Blether]

Yes to subsequent sauces, soups & stews. That fat & juice is just what you need to make a gravy. Also of course great mixed into mashed potatoes, or (reduced and) used to dress noodles / pasta. Teriyaki flavour suggests ramen ?

Again, you might try mixing it into a pancake batter.

Edited March 21, 2011 by Blether (log)