Foster Farms House Party

If you were hungry last Saturday and in Lebanon, you should have been at my Foster Farms  Always Natural Always Fresh Chicken House Party! Each year Foster Farms sponsors a Cooking Contest where chefs (amateur or professional, I don't know) from around the west coast are invited to submit new and improved chicken recipes using fresh, local ingredients. Of course I volunteered to host a party where we would cook up some of these award-winning chicken recipes and feast like kings! As a party host I was given a recipe booklet from the 2011 Cooking Contest and recipes from the 2012 Third Annual Cooking Contest, that has not yet taken place.

I was chicken-cooking-crazy on Saturday, making three dishes from the 2011 cook-off and two from the new 2012 recipes. Actually, I first had to go to the grocery store Saturday to get the freshest ingredients. I snagged some cherry tomatoes and fennel from our local co-op for my recipes. Shopping for Foster Farms chicken was pretty fun too, because House Party sent me coupons for $50 worth of Foster Farms chicken trays. That turned out to be about six trays of boneless, skinless chicken thighs and breasts. Seriously a LOT a LOT of chicken!

I made "Crispy Orange Chicken with Fennel, Avocado and Orange Salad," the 2011 Grand Prize winning recipe, "Olive and Lemon Poached Tuscan Chicken on Grilled Pitas with Spinach Spread," and "Pulled Chicken Sliders with Hoisin BBQ Sauce & Pickled Slaw." From the new recipes I tried "Cumin Chicken Paillards with Grape Tomatoes and Scallions" and "Lemon-Hoisin Glazed Chicken on Roasted Asparagus and Cherry Sesame Rice."

The eight of us were all on chicken overload! We were able to determine, though, of all the dishes we preferred the "Lemon-Hoisin Glazed Chicken on Roasted Asparagus and Cherry Sesame Rice." I thought it was even better than the 2011 Grand Prize dish! I asked Scott which one was his favorite, and he chose the Hoisin Glazed Chicken, saying "...because it reminds me of Chinese food, but better." All of the dishes were delectable and gourmet. I would say that they didn't take a lot of time, for all the compliments I received. But I can't say that because I literally spent all day prepping these five dishes. Maybe one gourmet chicken recipe is incredibly manageable. You should try that out and let me know. The recipes highlighted some fantastic flavor combinations I hadn't thought to try before.

Now that the party's over I have a fridge full of gourmet leftovers. Scott is going to be eatin' pretty this next week of lunches at school!

If you'd like to snag a copy of these 2012 recipes, visit the link here. You definitely want to try some of this deliciousness the next time you are eating chicken. You can also find the 2011 recipes and more on Foster Farms site!