HG’s late mother, Ida Kopkind Freeman, lived by this philosophy as she cooked for her family during the dark days of the Great Depression in the 1930’s. Leftovers were never thrown away. They were the basis for subsequent meals. This might explain HG’s aversion to leftovers (not shared by BSK or HG/BSK’s brilliant son in law, Massimo R.). BSK shares the “waste not, want not” attitude with BSK’s late mother in law. Witness what BSK does with a plump spatchcocked chicken. BSK roasts it to a golden brown. The dark meat, wings and drumsticks are delicious with their accompaniment of gravy drenched Prince Edward Island potatoes. The chicken breast is reserved and goes into warming dinner bowls of pho the next day (besides chicken and broth, the pho gets a mix of onions,carrot shavings, garlic, tofu, baby spinach, jalapenos, parsley and lots of wide Chinese rice noodles. Not all of the chicken breast is used for the pho. Some go into luncheon chicken Reubens. Remaining are the bony chicken carcass, chicken skin, the chicken backbone (removed by BSK during the spatchcocking maneuver) and a few stray bones and bits of meat. It all goes into a pot of boiling water with onion, carrots, garlic, celery and parsley. The refrigerator contents are examined by BSK and added to the pot are over the hill greens and vegetables. After hours of simmering and then straining, what emerges is the best chicken stock ever. Pungent. Layers of flavor. Lush. BSK uses the stock in a variety of ways. HG likes the stock in Stracciatella, the Italian soup of cheese, parsley and beaten egg.. Nothing is left of the chicken but happy memories. Inventive and thrifty BSK is a culinary wonder.
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