Cook In 101: Basic Roast Chicken with Vegetables

Cook In 101 focuses on basic recipes and cooking techniques to help novice cooks get into the kitchen and make delicious, healthy meals in a reasonable amount of time.



If basic roasted chicken seems like the easiest thing in the world, why do so many of us just buy the already roasted ones at the grocery store? It reveals a certain truth: roasted chicken isn't so simple. It sounds easy, but there's more to it.

How do you cook it long enough to ensure you don't kill your family with salmonella but not so long that it dries out and no one wants to eat it? Should you truss it? And what does that mean exactly? Should it be breast or back side up? What should you put it in? Does it even matter? Should it be stuffed? Seasoned? Coated in butter? Skinned? In short, there are a lot of questions, and everyone has a different answer. Seems like the perfect time for a Cook In 101.

Roasted chicken doesn't have to be complicated, but there are a few things to think about. Consider the chicken: the torso with the breast and back sections is thicker than the wings, thighs and drumsticks that stick out of it. So there is a differential to deal with: the breast takes longer to cook than the extremities. Hence the trussing: a method of tying the wings and legs of the bird to its body so that the whole thing cooks more evenly. There is a downside though: pressing the wings and drumsticks against the body will prevent the skin from browning.

To get a better view into what happens with roasted chicken, I'm presenting two variations here. In the first, the bird is trussed and roasted by itself at a high temperature. In the second, the bird is not trussed and roasted on a bed of vegetables starting at a high temperature and finishing on a lower one.  Both of these methods have their pros and cons, which I'll discuss below.

In both cases, I've used a basic 9 x 13 glass baking dish for the chicken. A roasting pan with a v-rack would probably work better; however, as a Cook In 101 piece, this is geared toward people with basic kitchen equipment, who should include a 9 x 13 dish but might not have a roasting pan. Always place the chicken in the roasting pan breast-side up. That way the skin that covers the breast will get nicely browned during cooking.

Solo Roast Chicken

The Solo Roast Chicken is great because it's pretty fast and requires few ingredients. The chicken tastes amazing. However, there's a major downside to preparing this recipe using a 9 x 13 pan: it makes a incredible mess in the oven. As chicken roasts, it renders water and liquid fat. These things do not play well together. As they drip off the chicken and hit the hot glass of the roasting pan they sizzle. And at a high temperature, this creates mini streams of super-heated fat that coat the roof, sides and bottom of your oven. And of course, the oven is really hot, so it all bakes on rather nicely, making it hard to clean off. The next time you go to use your oven, be prepared to set off some smoke alarms. It's not pretty. In contrast, a roasting pan has steeper sides and is thus more likely to contain such splatter. Filling the bottom of the roasting pan with a little water helps too (or so I've read, I haven't tried it), but with a 9 x 13 pan, that wouldn't work very well, as you'd end up stewing the bottom part of the chicken instead of roasting it.

Trussing

Trussing a chicken isn't that hard: cut about 4 feet of string. Tie a knot around the ends of the drumsticks to pull them together (I used a square knot), bring the ends of the string around the body of the chicken so they overlap the wings and flatten them against the body, then tie another knot on the opposite end of the chicken to keep the wings in place. Use scissors to cut off any excess string.

In the Solo Roast Chicken recipe below, I trussed the bird. And then for the Chicken Roasted on a Bed of Vegetables, I didn't. Frankly, I didn't notice that it made that much difference. I imagine if you roasted the chicken at a lower temperature, and thus for a longer time, it might be more important. Here's a nice experiment comparing side-by-side results of trussing and not trussing.

Roast Chicken on a Bed of Vegetables

I like the second method with the vegetables better for a couple reasons. First, the vegetables collect the dripping juices, keeping them from splattering. And second, you end up with a delicious side of roasted vegetables flavored with the chicken drippings. A pretty decent bonus. Apart from the vegetables, this recipes is identical to the solo roast chicken. It might take a little longer to cook, but it's still done in just over an hour. The only real downside to this method is that because the chicken is in contact with vegetables, the bottom side won't get browned, but it will get cooked.


Carving the Chicken

No matter which method you use, the final important step is carving the chicken. Here's how I do it:

1. Let the chicken rest 5 to 10 minutes. This allows the juices to redistribute through the meat and reduces the amount that will end up on your cutting board.

2. Place the chicken on a cutting board, preferably one with a "ditch" around the edges for the juices to run into.

3. Pull the drumstick away from the body and find the joint where it bends away from the thigh. Using a sharp knife (such as carving knife or chef's knife), cut through this joint and remove the drumsticks. Similarly, pull the thigh away and find its joint with the body and cut through this joint (you'll have to cut through the skin as well, so it's not always obvious where the joint is, but it doesn't have to be perfect).

4. Similarly, pull the wing away from the body to locate the joint and cut through this to remove the wings. At this point, you're left with the chicken's main torso. Find the breasts--the really meaty side, and cut them away from the body--they'll be about an inch thick at the most. Slice vertically through the breast to create breast cuts about 1/2-inch wide. Pay attention to the skin as you're cutting. You want to be careful not to cut it away, since it has a lot of flavor. A very sharp knife works best for this.

Solo Roast Chicken
Adapted from My Favorite Roast Chicken by Thomas Keller

2-3 lb. chicken, giblets removed (i.e. discard the wrapped packet of chicken guts that comes in the body cavity)
6-8 fresh thyme sprigs
Kosher salt
Extra-virgin olive oil
Seasoned salt
Freshly ground black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 450 F.

2. Pat chicken dry with paper towel. Salt the chicken's cavity with kosher salt and stuff it with thyme sprigs. Truss the chicken by tying the drumsticks together with a 4-foot piece of kitchen string, then wrapping the string around the body of the chicken, overlapping the wings to hold them against the body, and tying a second knot on the back of the bird. Cut any loose string with scissors. Spray or brush the chicken all over with olive oil, then season with seasoned salt and pepper. Place the chicken in a 9 x 13 baking dish, breast-side up.

3. Roast for 30 minutes. Decrease temperature to 400 F. Roast another 25 to 35 minutes until an instant-read thermometer reads 165 F (chicken temperature should rise another 4-5 degrees, at which point it will be done). Cut and remove the kitchen string. Carve the chicken and serve.

Roast Chicken on a Bed of Vegetables

6 to 8 carrots, peeled and cut into 1 to 2 inch pieces
1 sweet onion, peeled and cut into 1 to 2 inch pieces
4 red potatoes, scrubbed clean and cut into 1 to 2 inch pieces
1 tbsp. extra-virgoin olive oil, plus more for spraying the chicken
2 tbsp. coarsely chopped rosemary
Seasoned salt and freshly ground black pepper
2-3 lb. chicken, giblets removed (i.e. discard the wrapped packet of chicken guts that comes in the body cavity)
6-8 fresh thyme sprigs
Kosher salt

1. Preheat oven to 450 F.

2. Combine carrots, onion and potatoes in a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with rosemary, salt and pepper. Toss to combine then transfer to the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish.

3. Pat chicken dry with paper towel. Salt the chicken's cavity with kosher salt and stuff it with thyme sprigs. Place the chicken on top of the vegetables. Spray or brush the chicken all over with olive oil, then season with seasoned salt and pepper.

4. Roast for 30 minutes. Decrease temperature to 400 F. Roast another 30 to 40 minutes until an instant-read thermometer reads 165 F (chicken temperature should rise another 4-5 degrees, at which point it will be done). Carve the chicken and serve with the vegetables.


Simple Roasted Vegetables
If you make the Solo Roast Chicken, you'll probably want to serve it with a side of vegetables too

. Here's an easy way to do that.

1 bunch of baby carrots (i.e. small whole carrots, not the little bagged "baby" carrot sticks)
1 sweet onion, peeled and quartered
1 tbsp. olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.

2. Combined vegetables in a large bowl. Add olive oil, season with salt and pepper and toss to coat. Spread vegetables in an even layer on a baking sheet. Roast for 35 to 45 minutes until vegetables are browned and tender.

Cocktail: Saratoga After Dark

I used the Saratoga Cocktail as the inspiration behind the 12 Years a Slave cocktail I made for my Oscar Cocktails series. It's an old-fashioned cocktail dating back to the 19th Century from Saratoga Springs, New York.

While trying to find something interesting to do with my bottle of Don Ciccio & Figli Concerto, an espresso and barley liqueur, I was paging through David Wondrich's book Imbibe and came across his version of the Saratoga. Thus inspired again, I modified the Saratoga with coffee liqueur as an after dinner drink, also substituting chocolate bitters for the Angostura and adding an orange peel.

Cocktail: Saratoga After Dark

1 oz. rye whiskey
1 oz. Don Ciccio & Figli Concerto (coffee liqueur)
1 oz. sweet vermouth (Dolin Rouge)
2 dashes chocolate bitters
Orange peel

Combine the whiskey, liqueur, vermouth and bitters in a cocktail mixing glass with ice. Stir until very cold. Strain into a chilled coupe glass. Squeeze the orange peel over the drink to express its oils then drop into the glass as a garnish.

Mac & Cheese Fondue Bake

Will this winter ever let up? My goodness. I'm starting to crave spring-type foods, but with temperatures having plummeted again this week with lots of ice and snow, I can make room for one more winter comfort.

Two of my all-time favorite dishes involve a massive quantity of melted cheese: macaroni & cheese and fondue. With this dish, I brought those two favorites together.

I've been making gratins a lot lately and applied their basic principles to this dish: sautéed onion, cooked greens, béchamel and grated cheese. Mix it all together in a baking dish and its done after 15 minutes in a hot oven. Not bad.

What I didn't do this time was add a crumb top, which is a defining feature of a gratin--either that or more cheese, something that can get brown and crusty. The reason was that I was going for something soft: Chris had just had gum surgery, so this was one of our more interesting "soft food" dinners during his recovery.

Mac & Cheese Fondue Bake

8 oz. good-quality white bread (I used "pain au levain" a.k.a. sourdough), crusts removed, cut into 1-inch cubes
8 oz. pasta, such as conchiglie (shells)
6 oz. baby spinach
3 tbsp. unsalted butter
1 sweet onion, finely diced
Salt, to taste
4 garlic cloves, smashed
2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/2 cup dry white wine (I used chardonnay)
2 cups whole milk
2 dashes ground nutmeg
Freshly ground white pepper (may substitute freshly ground black pepper)
8 oz. aged gruyère cheese, shredded
8 oz. emmentaler cheese, shredded

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Spread bread cubes on a baking sheet and heat in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

3. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain pasta and set aside.

4. Place a steamer insert in a medium saucepan and fill with water below the level of the steamer. Bring to a gentle boil. Add spinach, cover and steam for 2 minutes. Remove spinach from saucepan and set aside to cool a bit. Squeeze excess moisture from the spinach, then transfer it to a cutting board and coarsely chop it.

5. Heat a large frying pan over medium heat. Melt 1 tbsp. butter in the pan then add the onion and season with salt. Sauté until softened; add garlic and sauté another couple minutes. Remove from pan and set aside.

6. Add remaining 2 tbsp. butter to frying pan. When melted, add flour. Whisk constantly over medium heat until the mixture is light brown. Add wine and whisk to combine, then add the milk, whisking constantly. Season with salt, nutmeg and white pepper. Cook a couple minutes until thickened then reduce heat to medium-low. Add cheese in handfuls, whisking to combine and melt into the sauce.

6. Combine bread cubes, pasta, spinach, onion and garlic mixture and cheese sauce in a large bowl and stir until ingredients are evenly coated with sauce. Transfer to a 9 X 13 baking dish and let sit 5 minutes. Bake for 15 minutes until the mixture bubbles up on the sides. Allow to cool a few minutes before serving.

The Feed: March 5, 2014

The Feed is my weekly round up of interesting food-related stories from newspapers, magazines, blogs and websites.

Food 52: “How to Make Bread Pudding Without a Recipe,” by Catherine Lamb.
Lamb walks through the simple, flexible formula for making bread pudding, which you can then adapt with any flavors you want to make your own recipe. It sounds so good. I’m envisioning some cinnamon-raisin bread pudding with walnuts glazed out of the oven—sort of like a bread pudding version of cinnamon rolls.

New York Times: “Ramen’s Big Splash,” by Pete Wells.
It’s no secret that ramen is hot right now. No longer just something starving college kids cook from a plastic packet, ramen with interesting, quality ingredients is everywhere now. Wells discusses its emergence. The story includes a very helpful slideshow on the proper way to eat a bowl of ramen; apparently I’ve been doing it all wrong. Check out my recipe for Chicken Miso Ramen (pictured above).

Washington City Paper: “This Secret Document Helps D.C. Restaurants Keep Tabs on Food Writers,” by Jessica Sidman.
This story brings to mind Ruth Reichl’s wonderful memoir Garlic and Sapphires, in which, as she embarks upon her career as The New York Times’ restaurant critic, finds out that her photo and information about her was already circulating among the city’s restaurant. Apparently something even more detailed has been circulating around D.C., detailing the preferences of this city’s most prominent food critics. I hope Sidman was happy with how she was described: “The ultimate beat reporter, she is engaging and funny but can be unforgiving if not impressed.  A seasoned journalist, her current post at the City Paper brings out the snark more often than any other outlet.”

Food Republic, “15 Recipes To Use Up The Leftovers In Your Fridge.”
Food Republic shares great ideas for recipes that can use up leftovers kicking around in your fridge. Since I made pizza last weekend, I have a have package of sliced pepperoni that would be just perfect in the Spicy Beans And Pepperoni On Toast With Fried Eggs Recipe.

Washington Post: “Dinner in Minutes: Gyros,” by Bonnie S. Benwick.
I made gyros before and was underwhelmed with the results. But Benwick’s Dinner in Minutes this week has me wanting to try it again. In this recipe the meat is broiled instead of roasted, providing a shorter cooking time and I imagine a crispier outer crust, which is great for gyros (FYI, that word is pronounced “YĒ-rōs” and not “JĪ-rōz”).

Forbes: “Sweet And Sour: The Media Decided Fructose Was Bad For America; But Science Had Second Thoughts,” by Trevor Butterworth.
Everyone knows High Fructose Corn Syrup is evil, right? Well, maybe it’s not. Butterworth looks at how the almost universal maligning of the sweet stuff has been driven more by the media than by actual research findings.

Wall Street Journal: “Don't Call It Fusion Cuisine,” by Rachel Wharton.
Fusion is apparently a bad word in the food world, which I didn’t realize. Wharton documents the rise and fall of the term for restaurants that incorporate multiple cultural influences in their cooking, a technique that remains ever popular, even if the term has fallen out of favor.

Quartz: “How America fell out of love with orange juice,” by Robert Ferdman.
Used to be I had a glass of orange juice with breakfast everyday. Last time I did that regularly was years ago, and apparently I’m not alone. Per capita orange juice consumption in the U.S. has dropped 40 percent in the last 15 years. Ferdman looks at the reasons behind the decline.

Restaurant: Tía Pol (New York, N.Y.)

It's been a long time since I've had Spanish tapas that were not created in the lively kitchen of Jose Andres' reknowned D.C. restaurant, Jaleo. So good is Jaleo, that if I'm in the mood for Spanish small plates, that's where I head. So it was refreshing to try something different during a recent New York trip.

Tía Pol was started 10 years ago by Heather Belz and Mani Dawes as a way to bring their favorite flavors of Spain to New York. According to the restaurant's website, Tía Pol's tapas span styles across Spain. The menu includes traditional favorites like garlic shrimp, fried potatoes and Spanish potato omelet. The menu is comparatively simple and much shorter than what you'll find at Jaleo (this is, after all a sliver of a restaurant compared to Andres' expansive Penn Quarter outpost). But I wouldn't dare call it limited. We found a lot to love during our recent dinner.

A chalkboard near the entrance outlines daily specials. Our favorite dish--in fact, our favorite thing we ate on the trip--was beef shortribs braised in red wine and served with mushrooms and parsnip puree. The meat was exquisite: tender and flavorful and nestled in the velvety slightly sweet sauce that was a perfect match for it and the mushrooms. "This is the best thing I've eaten in a long time," exclaimed Chris. We were sharing our plates, but I could tell he'd have been happier with a portion all to himself (me too, frankly).

Most everything else we had at Tía Pol was really good too. The evening was off to a great start with Serrano ham trianges stuffed with artichokes and manchego cheese. The deviled eggs were delightful, sprinkled with smoked paprika. In both cases though I wish the restaurant served an even number of bites rather than bringing a plate of three for a table of two--the restaurant is mostly two-tops after all. Splitting one of the deviled eggs resulted it being completely mangled.

Fried chickpeas were a great snack to enjoy throughout the evening. Another standout was the grilled baguette spread with garlic and served with three salsas: olive tapenade, pea puree (at least I think it was peas) and our favorite, a sweet spread of roasted red pepper and onion. The only dish that disappointed us was the crispy artichoke and white asparagus salad. The components were delicious, but too much salt sunk the dish.

We ended the evening on a good note: a plate of fried custard balls served with "drunken" cherries. Thankfully the plate of four made splitting this one easy, for we'd otherwise surefly have fought over the last one.

The restaurant is small, so I definitely recommend reservations. It's also rather dark, as you can probably tell from the pictures. So, while this creates a romantic atmosphere, you might want to bring extra light to read the menu (our table's little candle was barely adequate, making menu-reading an exercise in finding the angle that captured as much light as possible).

Tía Pol, 205 10th Avenue (at 22nd Street), New York, N.Y. (Chelsea). (212) 675-8805. Reservations: Open Table.

Ultimate Club Sandwich

Do you ever crave a really good sandwich? I know I do, and so does my husband.

Sandwiches can be a very simple thing if needed: something to whip up fast when you don't feel inspired or have the time for something more substantial. A couple slices of bread, a few slices of meat, some lettuce, mayo or mustard and voila...lunch in about 5 minutes. It hits the spot, although it can feel a bit boring if you repeat this pattern too much. With a little time and attention, a sandwich can be elevated to something spectacular, which is what I strove for with this "ultimate" club sandwich.

Club sandwiches have been around since the late 19th Century. Like a lot of foods that date back that far, there is a certain lack of clarity around its origins, although most sources peg it to a "gentlemen only" Saratoga Springs clubhouse. Linda Stradley has a nice article about the sandwich's history for What's Cooking America.

For my "ultimate" version I wanted something very flavorful that plays up the best of what a club sandwich can be. The classic club is a double-decker sandwich of three slices of toasted bread, turkey and bacon, lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise. From there, you might see club sandwiches with chicken instead of turkey or ham instead of (or in addition to) bacon, plus different condiments. One adaptation I'm particularly fond of is the California club, which adds slices of avocado to the traditional sandwich, a welcome addition that goes nicely with the bacon and turkey. Cheese may or may not go into a club.

Being as it is early March, good tomatoes are still months away, so I roasted tomato slices to bring out their deep flavors. For roasting the tomato slices, I set a wire cooling rack inside a sheet pan. This allows air to circulate around the tomatoes and liquid to drip off them as they roast. You may notice that I also put a Silpat down. That's because the acid in tomatoes can damage aluminum sheet pans (this particular pan actually has a lovely pattern on it now from roasting tomatoes on it once without using a Silpat or parchment; don't use aluminum foil, lest the aluminum dissolved by the tomato acid ends up in your food).

I adopted the stylings of the California club and added additional Southwestern influences: Monterey jack cheese and some chipotle chili powder to spice up the mayo. A little smoked paprika gave it some additional smoky flavor without more heat. Rather than a plain white bread, I used sourdough, which is my favorite bread.

The last important step in a club sandwich is the presentation. Because the sandwich is so large, it's generally cut into fourths to make it easier to eat and toothpicks hold the many layers together. A tip on this: put the toothpicks in the sandwich first, then cut it into fourths, reducing the tendency of the ingredients to shift around while cutting.

Ultimate Club Sandwich

Makes 2 sandwiches

4 vine-ripened tomatoes
Olive oil spray
Salt and pepper
4 to 6 strips of bacon, cut into thirds
6 slices crusty sourdough bread
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/8 tsp. (or more, if desired) chipotle chili powder
1/4 tsp. smoked paprika
7 oz. smoked turkey
1 ripe hass avocado, peeled and sliced
4 pieces of romaine lettuce
4 slices Monterey jack cheese

1. Preheat oven to 300 F. Cut the ends off the tomatoes, then slice each tomato into three rounds. Place the tomato slices on a wire cooling rack that fits inside a standard half-sheet pan (13 x 18). Spray tomato slices with olive oil spray and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast tomatoes until they become a bit shriveled and visibly dried out on the surface, about 75 to 80 minutes. Remove from the rack and set aside.

2. Cook the bacon in a frying pan over medium heat until browned and crisp. Remove cooked bacon and set aside on paper towels.

3. Heat the oven broiler. Place the bread slices on the cooling rack fit into the baking sheet (you might want to wash it first if there's tomato residue on it). Broil until toasted on one side, 2-3 minutes (watch carefully, it will burn fast), then flip the bread over and toast the other side, about another 2 minutes.

4. In a small bowl, stir together mayonnaise, chipotle chili powder and smoked paprika.

5. Assemble the sandwiches: Start with the first piece of toast. Spread with mayonnaise. Top with a couple slices of turkey and a couple strips of bacon. Add a couple roasted tomato slices, a few avocado slices, a piece of romaine lettuce and a slice of cheese. Spread mayonnaise on the second piece of toast and place on top. Repeat layers of turkey, bacon, tomatoes, avocado, lettuce and cheese. Spread mayonnaise on the third piece of toast and place on top. Anchor the sandwich with four toothpicks (plan ahead to place a toothpick in each fourth), then cut into fourths (triangles rather than squares are preferable). Repeat with the other sandwich.

Get Ready for Your Oscar Party

Source: Bloomberg

Ready for Oscar's big night tomorrow? It's sure to be an exciting evening, especially since the Best Picture race appears to be extremely close between 12 Years a Slave and Gravity (with a chance of American Hustle as a spoiler). Exciting!

There's still time to plan your Oscar party, which could include any one or more of my Oscar cocktails. You can find all the recipes in one place here. I've also suggested a couple of Oscar party snacks: Bacon-Wrapped Blue Cheese-Stuffed Dates and homemade Cracker Jack. Last year, I suggested a number of other ideas. You'll also want an Oscar Ballot: Red Envelope has a fun one with the top categories and best/worst dressed. Moviefone's ballot includes all 24 Oscar categories.

The table below shows the ingredients for all of the drinks with notes about the ingredients and suggested substitutions. To make all the drinks as I originally wrote them would require a lot of booze and other ingredients. This table can help you simplify the drinks to make it easier if you want to offer multiple ones for your guests. They might lose a little in the translation, but would still be great drinks. Ingredients are grouped by type, starting with the spirits, liqueurs, mixers and garnishes. Click on the drink name to go to the drink's original post.

2014 Oscar Cocktails Ingredients and Substitution Notes

Ingredient
Gin	✓		✓1		✓
Sloe gin	✓2			✓2
Vodka									✓	✓3
Moonshine						✓4
Spiced rum		✓
Rye whiskey								✓5
Bourbon							✓5
Apple brandy								✓6
Lillet Blanc										✓7
Dry vermouth
Sweet vermouth								✓8
Campari	✓9				✓9
Aperol					✓9
St. Germain elderflower liqueur						✓
Yellow Chartreuse	✓
Green Chartreuse									✓10
Grand Marnier	✓11
Blue curaçao				✓						✓
Ginger liqueur			✓		✓
Kahlua				✓			✓
Bailey's Irish Cream							✓
Absinthe								✓
Pale ale						✓12
Angostura bitters								✓
Peychaud's bitters				✓
Orange bitters	✓	✓
Chocolate bitters							✓
Lemon juice	✓					✓			✓
Orange juice		✓
Tonic water			✓
Club soda	✓
Italian lemon soda					✓13
Somali spice syrup		✓14
Honey						✓
Powdered sugar									✓
Vanilla extract							✓
Cinnamon stick							✓
Mint leaves	✓					✓
Rosemary sprig					✓
Orange wedge		✓
Lime wedge			✓
Lemon wheel					✓			✓
Lemon twist									✓	✓
Lemon zest				✓
Cucumber slices	✓

Notes on ingredients and substitutions:

1. The gin in the Dallas Buyers Club is specifically barrel-aged gin; whiskey might make a better substitution than standard dry gin.
2. Sloe gin is pretty different than standard gin, so I wouldn't recommend just substituting gin for sloe gin, especially in the Gravity, where the sloe gin's dark red color is important for making the drink black.
3. The vodka in Blue Jasmine is citrus vodka infused with jasmine tea. You could skip the infusion and also just use regular vodka.
4. Vodka could be substituted for moonshine in the Nebraska.
5. Rye whiskey and bourbon could be used interchangeable in the Philomena and the 12 Years a Slave.
6. Regular brandy could be used instead of apple in the 12 Years a Slave.
7. Lillet blanc is similar to dry vermouth, which could be used instead for the Blue Jasmine.
8. Dry vermouth is not an acceptable substitute for sweet vermouth.
9. Aperol and Campari are similar - they are both Italian aperitifs, which Campari being a little more bitter. I think they could work interchangeable in the American Hustle and you could use just one in the Her.
10. Green Chartreuse is the stronger (and more expensive) cousin of Yellow Chartreuse. You could substitute Yellow Chartreuse or another herbal liqueur in The Wolf of Wall Street. You could also substitute absinthe, which would still give you a green hue, although it's stronger, so watch the potency.
11. Other orange liqueurs, including triple sec, could be used in the American Hustle.
12. The pale ale I used for the Nebraska was Dale's Pale Ale. I don't recommend substituting an IPA, since it has a more assertive flavor. Look for American pale ales. You could also use another type of beer, including a lager.
13. I used San Pelligrino Limonata soda for the Her. You could substitute a more common American brand of lemon-lime soda, like 7-Up, but this will make the drink sweeter.
14. Somali spice syrup is an original ingredient in the Captain Phillips made from water, sugar, cumin seed, cardamom pods, cloves and a cinnamon stick. You could substitute standard simple syrup or omit the syrup.