1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
1 onion, peeled and quartered
1 stalk celery, halved
1 bay leaf
Put chicken in kettle or sauce pan. Add water and remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer 45 minutes or until cooked through. Save the broth for sauces or soup bases.
3. Simmering parts of a chicken using the same recipe as for whole chicken. Boneless parts cook fastest, a small breast in 15 minutes, a larger roaster-size one in 20 to 25, and boneless roaster thighs in 30 to 40 minutes.
PHOTO: 3 pies and 1 oblong casserole CHICKEN POTPIES REDISCOVERED One of the best uses for leftover chicken is chicken pot pies. Back in the days of the Roman empire, potpies were banquet fare, often created with surprises - even live birds — under the crust. During the time of Elizabeth I, English cooks made potpies using "chicken peepers," tiny chicks stuffed with gooseberries. By the mid-eighteenth century, an English cookbook included a sort of telescoping pie in which five birds were stuffed one inside another, then wrapped in dough.
With a past like that, it is not surprising that immigrants to America brought an appreciation for potpies with them. When settlers moved West, so did their potpie recipes, which they adapted to local food styles with new ingredients and seasonings. By this century, chicken potpies and "meat and taters" variations had become as American as corn on the cob. They were thrifty foods, served at the kitchen table and in "home cooking" diners along country roads.
Recently, nostalgia for homespun cookery has meant a change in status for potpies. They not only are considered respectable, they're even "trendy," often appearing on the menus of fashionable restaurants. These are perfect recipes in which to use leftover chicken, and if you run short of a particular vegetable go ahead and substitute whatever else looks good. In fact, you can mix and match and change the ingredients, flavorings and toppings to suit the mood of the moment. To get you started, here are a few guidelines. Tips for Making old-Fashioned Chicken Potpies
_Potpie fillings are actually stews or creamed dishes inside a crust. If you want you can also serve fillings over rice, noodles, toast points or party shells.