Imagine a morsel of tender, sweet, flaky fish. Now imagine it encrusted with a crackly-crisp crust of chicken skin.
chicken-fried skate
silver queen corn
coconut
cocoa nib
sea bean
That was the image that I kept fixed in my mind (and palate) and the inspiration for the chicken skin croquant.
In the past, I've wrapped and glued raw chicken skin to another protein. The problem with that method is controlling the cooking time and temperature required to produce a crisp skin and a properly cooked filling. Sometimes these are incompatible.
Then there is the issue of wrapping, which leaves areas of overlapping skin that result in pockets of flabby fat.
The control, I decided, would be to pre-cook the skin. But then how to apply it? Grinding was a logical step, but I wasn't looking for a crumb coating. I was seeking a crispy crust–one that did not require deep frying or prolonged heating.
I needed something that would cook quickly, fuse the ground skin, and contribute to the texture and flavor. Sugar fit the bill and I liked the ideal of a bruleed coating, but the amount needed would render it too sweet. Mildly sweet isomalt, which behaves like sugar and quickly melts to the hard-crack stage turned out to be the solution. The addition of Tapioca Maltodextrin further improved the texture and helped with the bonding.
The last silver queen corn of the season, when put through a juicer and heated, contains natural starch that quickly transforms into a velvety sauce. All that is needed is a burst of lime juice and pinch of salt to balance the sweetness.
Coconut and corn is a marriage made in heaven.
Cocoa nibs add complexity and a hint of bitterness.
Salty sea beans + chicken of the sea = delicious.
Playing with Fire and Water 
Wow. The real Chicken of the Sea………..
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No fair… just as I was about to post my catfish wing.
Something I noticed when doing my version… because I had to freeze them to hold the shape, I realized that freezing actually helps the inside to cook slower while the skin gets crispy. Simple but it worked.
You’ll see it as soon as typepad turns my blog back on. I lost my bank card, and they shut it down for lack of payment. My new card came in one day too late. You’d think after 2 years they’d cut me some slack, but nope. Damn the man! Chadzilla will rise up again!
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Ok, I’m back on the air.
Here is my catfish wing. http://chadzilla.typepad.com/chadzilla/2008/10/a-lil-story-bout-a-catfish-wing.html
Your DVD’s are in the mail (sent out on Thursday).
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