"Lucy" > wrote in message
. com...

Lucy, first of all, as other have already said - good for you for trying
this! It isn't going to all turn out great the first time, but then, that's
the whole idea, right - to learn? Sounds like the asparagus and
spinach were just fine, so it's just the chicken that needs a little work.
Two out of three isn't bad at all!

Now...
>
> -boneless skinless chicken breasts that were raw (yes, raw!) in the
middle,
> with burned garlic, and little onions. I put plenty of olive oil in the
pan,
> and yet when I lifted them to turn them over.. I ripped some of the flesh
> off, as it stuck to the pan. haha

You've already heard from others that this sounds like a case of
a too-hot pan, so I won't repeat that. Here again is where a
thermometer, at least initially, may be of some help (at least so that
you don't take chicken off the heat while still raw in the middle), but
eventually this will get to be one of those times when you really won't
find much use for the thermometer. Garlic is also a bit tricky, as it
DOES burn easily - and even when it doesn't burn, garlic changes
its flavor when cooked, so you may want to change the order of
things or at least add to it.

What I'd recommend for something like this is to start with the
olive oil (or whatever oil you like, really) over medium heat, and
adding minced garlic, onions, shallots, etc. first. Should the
garlic burn right away, the oil is definitely too hot - remember,
MEDIUM heat. What should happen is that these items will
sizzle a bit and start to release a very nice aroma; the onions
will turn soft and translucent. This should only take a couple of
minutes, tops. At this point, add the chicken breasts (seasoned,
right?) and keep an eye on things. Make sure nothing is sticking
- you can shake the pan a bit, or lift the chicken a little bit to
make sure. Flip the meat as needed to get it to cook nice
and evenly, browning both sides as you like.

Now, one more thing re the garlic - adding garlic up front like
this, and letting it cook with the chicken the whole time, generally
does NOT give you much in the way of what you might think
of as "garlic flavor". As garlic cooks, it gets sweet and nutty,
as opposed to staying "hot"; if you want the sharper "fresh
garlic" flavor AND the more subtle cooked garlic taste, then
you can just add a bit more minced garlic at the end, just before
you remove the chicken from the heat.


> -spinach leaves, but only one serving. Who knew it would shrink so much? I
> am tempted to email the FDA and ask them to require manufacturers to put
on
> the package: WARNING: Shrinkage does occur, and all the viagra in the
world
> isn't going to correct this.

ROTFL...

Yes, spinach is amazing stuff in this regard. A huge pile of
fresh spinach shrinks to virtually nothing, and quickly; it's also
one of those things that's very easy to overcook. When steaming
spinach or cooking it in oil or whatever, it's good to do that
just before you're ready to serve the meal - put the spinach
onto the heat, and then it's ready pretty much as soon as it's
wilted. If you're sauteeing it in olive oil, as you did (and by the
way, it sounds great - cooking to your tastebuds is just fine!),
it's roughly "add the spinach, turn to coat with the oil, hey it's
DONE!".


Bob M.