Chicken Thigh Roulade

 (OP-2019) An oldie with a new protein. I've made many roulades using Transglutaminase (R.M.) (T.G.), but I don't recall making one so small. I've never made one using Chicken Thigh meat before. Turkey Roulade yes, at least about 25 x before and it's always a hit with family and friends. Why the thigh? I thought it would make an excellent appetizer for an upcoming dinner party. Chicken thigh meat is a perfect canvas for many dishes. The applications are limitless. Tonight's dinner was an Asian-themed roulade. I used Asian spices, herbs, Sauces, and fried using Panko bread crumbs. I'll talk about some more of my ideas below, but if I were going to do an Italian version, I would use Italian seasoning, Parseano cheese and everything that is stereotypical Italian.

Now let's talk about Organic vs. Non-Organic. Choose bone-in thighs with skin. Looking at the package, try and pick the ones that appear to have excess skin. I am not against Non-Organic, but I find the flavor profile and texture hit and miss. I usually go to Costco and pick up Organic chicken thighs. 

Easy but time-consuming. I've done this countless times, so it was easy for me. Select a very sharp knife and de-bone the thigh. Remove all the undesirables. Excess fat, excess cartilage, and anything that appears to be off-putting. 

Remove bone. Start trimming. Carefully remove the skin without tearing. Removing the skin should be very easy. Use your fingers to gently pull away from the meat. Do not split the skin. You might need a knife to help slice through the membrane but again, just be careful. 

This part is vital to the tutorial. Lay skin out and stretch across the cutting board. Fold thigh into a tight little bundle and place in the middle of the skin. Fold skin over to create a roulade and trim where necessary. This part is vital for forming the roulade. 

Decisions and decisions. This is the part where you have to decide what flavor profile to select. It's an entirely blank canvas, so this is your opportunity to be creative. At a minimum, you need to sprinkle with just a tiny bit of salt (dry-brining). I chose an Asian-style profile. I used powdered ginger, garlic, onion, white pepper, and a touch of lemon powder too. You need to sprinkle on the salt first (and not the skin). Combine all your flavors in a small bowl and keep tasting until satisfied. Sprinkle on using a powdered sugar can dispenser or fine sieve. Use very little!!! Using too much can interfere with the transglutaminase. Refrigerate 24 hours.  After the elapsed 24- hour period, do not rinse. Note- many many advantages to brining. Just google to find out why. 

Not sure this picture is necessary. Anyhow, layout plastic wrap across the cutting board.

Using a powdered sugar dispenser, sprinkle T.G. across plastic wrap and on top of the skin. Sprinkle TG on the thigh (both sides), making sure to get into every nook and cranny. Form thigh into a cylinder tucking corners in too. No two thighs will look alike. Fold skin around the thigh, forming what looks like a small football. 

Start rolling in plastic wrap. Make extremely tight. Unlike the Turkey Roulade, this is a one-person operation. With one hand, roll the thigh and with the other hand, stretch the plastic wrap. Roll tight at least 10 X. Twist ends, squeezing and squeezing and secure with butchers twine. 

Vac seal them all. Do not overcrowd the bag. The roulades cannot touch each other in the vac bag. Refrigerate for 24-hours to allow the proteins to bond to each other.  

Let's discuss an appropriate temperature to Sous-Vide the thighs. I always choose temps based on how I plan on finishing them. Will I shock and refrigerate for another day (which I did)? Will I retherm them (which I did)? 

I might choose to hot smoke for a few hours, which means I might decide to shock, refrigerate, then Hot Smoke to retherm, which means I might select, I.E., 135 f. Choosing a lower temp and sticking a cold roulade in my smoker gives me extra time to smoke without overcooking. And yes, I always use an internal thermometer. 

Maybe I plan on a short smoke with a quick grill on my BBQ? I might choose 160f. 

Let's say I plan on serving them cold with just a quick sear? I will most likely cook them at 175f (I like 175f for texture)

A quick sear in skillet?...... Rethem at 135f for 90 minutes. This means I better choose a temp that coincides with a texture I prefer.

Will I deep fry them? What temp will I fry them at? If I choose 375f, the outside will crisp up fast, which means the inside will not be cooked any further. I will select a higher temp to S.V. the protein. 

Maybe I will fry them at 315f because I want to cook the inside a little more. After all, I chose a lower S.V. temperature. Will I finish them in the oven? Will I make a big batch and keep them warm in the oven? 

What did I do?..... I cooked the thighs at 155f for 3 hours. They were shocked and refrigerated overnight. Thighs were rethemed at 135f for 90 minutes.

After I rethermed the thighs, I removed the vac bag and plastic wrap. They were rinsed under cold water and dried with paper towels. 

Choices to make. To increase the flavors, I decided to season the outside of the chicken with more spices. I seasoned the flour and panko too. The thighs were coated with flour, dipped in the egg, then panko. The thighs were refrigerated for 15 minutes before frying. 

I fried them all at 325f degrees until golden. The internal temp rose to about 160f..... I placed them all in the oven at 325f until an internal of 175f was reached. For me, it's about texture. Chicken thighs are not only versatile but very forgiving. Very hard to overcook. 

Served with several styles with a few different sauces. Kodoshian Sauce, Doshers Gochujang Mayo Sauce.  And I made up a peanut sauce using creamy peanut butter and several crazy ingredients. 

Other options-

Italian Version- Italian seasonings, Italian bread crumbs, and Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese. In a sandwich with peppers, onions, and marinara. In a salad with a drizzle of Balsamic Vinegar. 

Italian Variant One

Variant two-Breasts

Two versions here. One was made with Thighs. Thighs were fried as cylinders. The breast version was sliced, and the medallions were fried separately. 








Greek/Mediterranean Version- Lots of Greek spices like oregano. Use lots of greek seasonings in the bread crumbs. A lot of Feta cheese. How about taking some capers, olives, cherry tomatoes, Sundried Tomatoes, Olive oil, basil, thyme, parsley, lemon zest, salt, and pepper to taste. For the chicken- Use the same herbs and spices in your chicken and bread crumbs. 

Chicken Thigh Roulade (Mediterranean)

Middle Eastern- Think of Schwarma. Make a spice mix with Sumac, All Spice, Cumin, Garlic, Coriander, Cinnamon, Salt, and Pepper. Maybe lay on top of a Middle Eastern, Israeli, Tabbouleh, Fattoush Salad. Maybe some Pita bread with Tzatziki or Tahini Sauce. 

Only limited to your imagination.