Combined Recipes: Chicken Ragu Pasta, Schmaltz Fried Rice, and Chicken Tacos
A budget-friendly masterclass showing how to transform 2 pounds of bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs into three distinct and flavorful meals: a rich braised chicken ragu with rigatoni, crispy chicken-skin fried rice with blistered cabbage, and carnitas-style seared chicken tacos with homemade chili-lime aioli and crispy tortilla strips.
Waiting for video to load...
AI-generated recipe. Copyright belongs to original creator. Subscribe to support them!
🍳 Cooking Flow
【Chicken Ragu】Brown bones and chicken, braise with garlic, scallions, water, and cheese rind, then toss shredded meat sauce with rigatoni, cheese, and pasta water. → 【Chicken Fried Rice】Render chicken skin into crispy cracklings and schmaltz, scramble eggs, fry cooked rice with ginger, garlic, blistered cabbage, soy sauce, and chili powder. → 【Chicken Tacos】Whisk a quick chili-lime aioli, flash-fry tortilla strips, hard-sear spiced diced chicken until crispy, and assemble tacos with dressed slaw and warm charred tortillas.
Cooking Steps
Brief Cooking Order
【Chicken Ragu】Brown bones and chicken, braise with garlic, scallions, water, and cheese rind, then toss shredded meat sauce with rigatoni, cheese, and pasta water. → 【Chicken Fried Rice】Render chicken skin into crispy cracklings and schmaltz, scramble eggs, fry cooked rice with ginger, garlic, blistered cabbage, soy sauce, and chili powder. → 【Chicken Tacos】Whisk a quick chili-lime aioli, flash-fry tortilla strips, hard-sear spiced diced chicken until crispy, and assemble tacos with dressed slaw and warm charred tortillas.
Introduction
A budget-friendly masterclass showing how to transform 2 pounds of bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs into three distinct and flavorful meals: a rich braised chicken ragu with rigatoni, crispy chicken-skin fried rice with blistered cabbage, and carnitas-style seared chicken tacos with homemade chili-lime aioli and crispy tortilla strips.
Step 1
【Prep】Remove the skin from the chicken thighs and set aside for the fried rice. Debone the chicken thighs and reserve all bones for the ragu broth. Coarsely chop half of the meat into larger bite-sized pieces for the ragu, and finely dice the remaining meat into small pieces for the tacos.
Step 2
【Chicken Ragu】Finely grate the parmesan cheese using the star-hole side of a box grater, reserving the cheese rind. Thinly slice one head of garlic. Slice the white and pale green parts of one bunch of scallions into rounds, reserving the dark green tops for garnish.
Step 3
【Chicken Ragu】Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sear the reserved chicken bones in a single layer until browned, building fond on the bottom of the pot, then remove the bones to a plate.
Step 4
【Chicken Ragu】Add the roughly chopped chicken thigh meat in batches to sear and brown deeply. Stir in the sliced garlic and scallion whites, cooking for 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Add several grinds of black pepper and a splash of water to deglaze the fond from the bottom of the pot.
Step 5
【Chicken Ragu】Return the browned bones to the pot, pour in enough water to submerge ingredients, and drop in the parmesan cheese rind. Cover slightly askew and simmer gently on low heat for about 1 hour until the chicken is completely tender and shreddable.
Ingredients List
Important Notes
Separating the chicken thighs into skin, bones, and meat maximizes value: bones yield rich gelatinous stock, skin renders flavorful cooking fat (schmaltz) and crispy cracklings, and meat is portioned for two entirely different textures.
Do not discard parmesan rinds; simmering them in braises or broths releases intense savory umami without adding unnecessary expense.
For the best fried rice texture, cook and completely cool the rice ahead of time so the grains remain distinct and crisp up nicely in the rendered fat.
Hard-searing finely chopped spiced chicken creates crispy, charred edges that replicate the texture and flavor of traditional carnitas quickly without hours of braising.
Community Comments
Please log in to join the conversation and earn XP!
Loading comments...