By: Kayla and Justin Butts Photos by: Rachel Benavides
Karey Swartwout, chef andbrowner of GLOW in Rockport, visitsbrwith us through the serving windowbras she works in the kitchen. Thebrdining room is drenched in sunlightbrand smells wonderfully of herbrcooking. Chef Karey is completelybrat home here; the restaurant feelsbrlike home.br
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We invited Chef Karey to design abrrecipe for Farm to Table, and shebrinstantly knew what she wanted tobrprepare: fried chicken.br
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Chef Karey brings an eclectic mixbrof styles to her cooking. She grewbrup in the Woodlands, just north
brof Houston, and the downhomebrcurrent of Texas runs through allbrof her dishes. Fried chicken makesbrperfect sense.br
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Chef Karey told us that Spain andbrSweden had a great impact on herbrstyle. The salsa verde mayonnaisebrrecipe is Spain itself expressedbrthrough local ingredients. Thebrarchitecture of GLOW, with itsbrsimplicity and clean lines, wouldbrfit easily into a cobblestone lane inbrStockholm.br
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Karey updates her menu six timesbrper year to reflect local seasonalbringredients and seafood. Her menubrdesign is a balancing act betweenbrwhat she is passionate about andbrwhat her customers want. Listeningbrto her guests inspired the gluten-freebrtouch to the fried chicken.
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For Chef Karey, food is emotional.br“How your mom cooked, how yourbrgrandmother cooked, is very import-brant to your connection with food,”brshe said. “Food triggers memories;brtastes, smells. Good food can takebryou home.”br
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This recipe by Chef Karey is simple, fresh, and exquisitelybrdelicious. Whether you prefer thebrdownhome flavor of Texas, or thebrsophisticated tastes of Europe, thisbrfood will take you home.
Gluten-Free Fried Chicken with Salsa Verde Mayonnaise
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Serves: 6
brPrep time: 2.5 hours
Cook time: 45 minutesbrIngredients:br
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3-4 pounds cut up chicken piecesbr
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1 cup milkbr
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1 teaspoon peppercornsbr
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1 bay leafbr
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1 clove garlicbr
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1 teaspoon sea saltbr
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1 teaspoon pepperbr
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2 eggs, lightly beatenbr
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2/3 cup gluten freebrall-purpose flourbr
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1⁄2 teaspoon sea saltbr
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1⁄2 teaspoon ground blackbrpepperbr
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1 teaspoon garlic powderbr
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1 teaspoon smoked Span-brish paprikabr
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4 tablespoons peanut oilbror grape seed oilbr
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Salsa VerdebrMayonnaisebr
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1 cup mayonnaisebrjuice of 2 lemonsbr
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1 tablespoon choppedbrcapersbr
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1 tablespoon choppedbrfresh parsleybr
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1 tablespoon choppedbrfresh basil or mintbr
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sea salt and pepper tobrtastebr
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Directionsbr
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Mix the milk with thebrpeppercorns, bay leaf,brgarlic and sea salt.
brPlace the chicken piecesbrin a baking dish andbrpour the mix mixturebrover. Cover with plasticbrwrap and refrigerate forbr2 hours or overnight.brRemove the chickenbrfrom the milk and patbrdry with paper towels.brSeason with sea salt andbrpepper.br
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Combine the gluten freebrall-purpose flour withbrthe salt, pepper, garlicbrpowder and smoked paprika. Mix together andbrput on a baking sheet.br
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In a small bowl, lightlybrbeat the two eggs.brBread the chicken bybrcoating it first with thebrflour mixture then shakebroff excess flour and dipbrin the egg mixture, thenbrdip back into the flourbrmixture shaking off ex-brcess again. Set aside onbra baking sheet. Repeatbrfor all of the chickenbrpieces.br
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Heat enough oil in a cast iron skillet tobrmedium until the skilletbris completely hot.br
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Carefully place breadedbrchicken on the hotbrskillet and allow thembrto cook 2 to 3 minutesbron each side (longer ifbrthe chicken is thick), orbruntil crispy and cookedbrthrough. Internal temperature of the chickenbrshould be 160 degreesbrF. You can finish thebrthicker pieces in thebroven if required. Whilebrchicken is in the oven,brstir all of the salsa verdebringredients together in abrsmall bowl and store inbrrefrigerator.br
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Serve the pan friedbrchicken with a greenbrsalad and a side of salsabrverde. Lovely servedbrwith the Cinsault Rosebrfrom William ChrisbrVineyards in Hye,brTexas.
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