Daughters, City Chicken, Christmas Visit

Well, it’s been a week now since my two daughters, new son-in-law, and the other daughter’s boyfriend visited with us at the Inn. It was our Christmas with them since they could not come down during the Holiday Season. We did a simple Christmas. I told the girls, we are going to just give you a card with money, and you guys can just take Doris and I out to a restaurant for a nice dinner and buy all the beer for those 5 days.
Dan, Erin’s husband, had foot surgery on both feet a couple days before arriving, so he was not as mobile as he normally would have been. But he got to rest and relax. Diana’s boyfriend, Joe, came to Raleigh for the first time. So Diana took he around to see some of the sights and downtown.

We went to J Betski’s for our Christmas dinner on last Thursday, which was grand. Ate at home for a couple of nights, and also went to Sitti for a wonderful dinner on last Friday evening. On Saturday evening the girls and I made city chicken. One of our favorite dishes that I learned from my mother growing up in Michigan.

City Chicken??!! No one down here in Raleigh knows about this wonderful food. Go to the meat market and ask for city chicken sticks and the butcher looks at you like “what the hell are you talkin’ about.” Yes! It has its very own sticks!!

City chicken is made with veal and pork, usually the stewing kind. You get a city chicken stick and skewer the meat alternating pork, veal with basically two veal pieces to three pork. After that, you season the meat with a little salt, pepper, and maybe garlic powder. Dust it with a little flour to make sure the egg dip sticks. For my egg dip, I just use a about five eggs and ½ cup of milk or half and half for about 40 sticks which is made from about 3 lbs of veal and 5 lbs of pork… lean stewing pork…. There has to be some fat for flavor and tenderness, but too much can be too fatty.

After the you dip in egg, roll the city chicken in your seasoned breading. My mother used to always grind up Corn Flakes and season with salt and pepper. I do the same but also add some garlic powder. Season to taste. Yes, try a little to see if it is too salty, or whatever. Add more ground up Corn Flakes if necessary.

Bread the city chicken and then fry them in about ¼ to ½ inch of hot vegetable oil. Fry until the breading is cooked which is a golden brown; don’t fry to cook the meat. You fry to just brown the breading! Now put the fried city chicken sticks in a greased cooking pan WITH A LID. Put about two layers and the cover. Put in a 350 to 375 degree oven and cook for about 1.5 to 2 hours or until the meat is very tender to a fork. It you put another third layer in the pan or more, it will take longer to cook. If that is the case, the bottom ones will get more burnt, so be careful. The great thing about the bottom layer is that it gets a little of that very dark “burnt” gooey stuff on them which gives the bottom layer a wonder taste. My younger daughter, Diana, loves… simply loves the bottom ones! The great thing is that city chicken is very good cold or the next day, or the next day, or the next day….

It was a great time cooking with both of my daughters, Erin and Diana. Erin and Diana skewered the meat, seasoned, floured, and breaded them. I just had to fry them… and to be honest; the both of them could have done it all. Actually, I know for a fact, that Erin has made this dish many times. She does very well… Grandma J would be proud! Erin and Diana, both are good cooks, but I think Erin cooks more than Diana. It was a great time cooking with both of them. I loved it and very proud of them knowing how to prepare a wonderful meal. Erin also made a dish of cauliflower and carrots lightly breaded and sauté with some butter and seasoning. Very simple but very good… great flavor.

We had a fabulous meal and then “opened gifts”, and then sat outside with drinks and talking, and then later played a little on the Wii. We had a great visit.