Out of Hibernation

My friend Dave asked when I was posting another installation of Four Tablespoons of Fat. Since we're entering the high casserole season, I decided it was time to get back in the Dutch oven.

Tonight, I made a dish that was listed in a casserole cookbook, but which is not a casserole. I think this book has both straight casseroles and one-dish dinners, as this one was.

Because this meal contained chicken, I decided to check out the poultry recipes in the Southern Living Casseroles Cookbook. Much to my surprise (and, I'll admit, disappointment), most of the poultry recipes in this usually baffling and sometimes terrifying recipe book sound edible.

There was one, though, that I'd like to share for my friend Kim: "Baked Chicken with Peaches." The name alone will send chills down her spine: she does not enjoy the fruit + meat pairing in any way. But the odd simplicity of this recipe, plus one ingredient, caught my attention:

1 fryer, quartered
1 tbsp. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp butter or margarine
1 1-lb can peach halves
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg

Pretty simple, right? Not so crazy. Not anything my Kim would eat, but not insane, like some of these.

But what does give it that extra soupcon of crazy is the final ingredient:

1 tsp. monosodium glutamate

Yup: MSG.

That's what makes a dish, really: saltfat. It already has salt, and fat, but it needs that extra dash of saltfat to kick it up a notch.

Disappointed with the lack of insanity in the Poultry section, I went on to the Seafood section, which did not let me down in the least.

I think I'm going to explore this section at length, starting here, as we'll be in SC this weekend:

Charleston Shrimp Casserole
2 lb. cooked shrimp, cleaned (I know what this means, and I guess Mrs. Reid, of Charleston, assumes that she doesn't need to elaborate past that explanation, but for someone unfamiliar with preparing shrimp, I imagine a novice cook washing shrimp in dishwater.)

2 c. bread crumbs

2 c. tomato juice

1/2 tsp. salt

3 tbsp. butter

1 tbsp. hot sauce

2 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

1 c. ketchup

Combine all ingredients and pour into a casserole. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Okay, I'm bad at math. I admit that. But that seems like A LOT of liquid. I mean A LOT. 2 cups of tomato juice, 1 cup of ketchup, 3 tablespoons of other liquids. I know that there will be two pounds of shrimp and some bread, but I just imagine shrimp floating in tomato-flavored bread sludge.

Also: South Carolinians, can you tell me what about this dish is endemic to Charleston? Besides the shrimp, that is.

In the next installment, we look at Crab Veronique.