Persian Chicken, MacGyver Idaho Style

We are in Ketchum, Idaho.  We were supposed to arrive at 6:30; snow on the road from Boise made it closer to 8 pm.  We made a brief survey of the provisions in the pantry and went off to the store.  Jumper Girl announced she wanted chicken, and soon.  So we returned with supplies aplenty, including one whole chicken breast.  Perusing the Joy of Cooking, I determined that Persian Chicken would be the most expeditious recipe, but we were lacking key ingredients.  

The original recipe calls for 1 cup of ground walnuts and  1/2 cup of  pomegranate juice or the juice of two lemons.  No walnuts, but there was a half a box of reduced-fat Wheat Thins, which are pretty nutty in flavor, and there was a bottle of lemon juice, and some raisins to balance the acidity.  Herewith, the recipe, with acknowledgements to Irma S. Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker.

Ingredients

• 1 whole chicken breast (with skin and bones), halved down the breastbone.  It was about 2 pounds.
• 2 tablespoons oil (canola, in this case)
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 large yellow onion, chopped
• 1 cup crushed Wheat Thins (rather stale, in this case)
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 2 1/2 cups chicken stock
• 1/2 cup raisins (too dessicated to eat out of hand, but fine for cooking)

Procedure

• In a large pan, heat the oil, and then brown the chicken on both sides.  I started with the skin side.
• Meanwhile, in a second pan or a casserole dish large enough to hold all the chicken, melt the butter and sauté the onion until tender and golden. 
• Select a casserole dish or stock pot large enough to hold all the ingredients.  Combine the sautéed onion,  Wheat Thins, lemon juice, chicken stock, and raisins and bring to a simmer.
• When the chicken is deep golden brown on both sides (or until you lose patience) nestle the chicken in the casserole.  
• Cover and simmer until done.  I always use an instant-read thermometer; the chicken is safe to serve at 165 degrees.  This took about 30 minutes.
• Take the chicken out of the sauce and allow to rest, while you:
• Whisk the sauce in the casserole to break up any remaining cracker pieces, and correct the seasoning.

The Joy of Cooking suggests serving with boiled rice, but hey! We are in Idaho, so it was steamed fingerling rainbow potatoes (white, yellow, pinkish, and blue) .  The sauce was delicious with the rather earthy potatoes.