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This is a low-fuss, low-fat recipe. Since I’m not fond of okra, I’ll substitute some green beans instead. Boneless chicken thighs would work well here, too. This can easily be cut in half—bake in a 3-cup casserole and check it a little early. Serve over rice. Toaster Oven Chicken Gumbo Source: Pop it in the Toaster Oven by Lois DeWitt 4 servings 2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into 1-inch cubes 1/2 cup dry red wine 1 small onion, finely chopped 1 celery stalk, finely chopped 2 plum tomatoes, chopped 1 bell pepper, chopped 1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic 2 okra pods, stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped 1 bay leaf 1/2 tsp. hot sauce (or more if you like it spicy) 1/2 tsp. dried thyme Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste Preheat the toaster oven to 400F. Combine all the ingredients in a 1-quart 8 1/2” x 8 1/2” x 4-inch ovenproof baking dish. Adjust the seasonings to taste. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake, covered, for 40 minutes, or until the onion, pepper and celery are tender. Discard the bay leaf before serving.
This sure sounds good, almost like a chicken stew. I'd skip the okra, too. Are you able to use oven proof ceramic casserole dishes in your toaster oven? The book that came with mine says only to use metal. But my MIL had one just like mine and she always used corning ware baking dishes in it and never had a problem. I was just curious if all toaster ovens say to only use metal....I never even thought of that when I bought mine. It's about 5-6 years old now, but when it dies I'll pay more attention to that.
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Just in time... I am going to go look at toaster ovens after lunch today. I think the concern with baking dishes may be how close the dish is to the source of the heat, that it may crack.
Okra is one of the those things that changes dramatically depending on how it is cooked... usually if it is in a soup or stew, and cut thinly enough, it is pretty good.
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♥ Judy Batson, Field Editor, Taste of Home, 2009 ♥ Contest Winner, Country Woman, 2011♥ Meet me at Cooking for Two.
I've been using ceramic, corning and pyrex dishes in my toaster oven for years with no problems. However, if yours is small it might get too close to the elements and heat up too much. I have a large Cuisinart that will hold a 4-lb. chicken. Maybe I live a charmed life but I can't simply can't cook without using those dishes. I don't remember seeing any warnings about using those materials with this one. I use aluminum foil (well anchored so it doesn't bother the convection) although it says not to. They don't tell you why so that you can make an informed decision on whether to take the chance or not so I just went ahead and did it anyway. I guess I'm just a rebel at heart.
You can buy metal, non-stick pans for smaller toaster ovens. Amazon has a selection. I use the little flat sheet with a narrow rim for baking a few biscuits, etc. They also have a metal casserole pan, too.
Mine can fit a whole chicken with veggies around it, so I guess it would be considered large. I just looked in the book to see if it said how large it is, but it didn't. It kinda high, though, since it has a warming/cooking oven on the top which is a pretty neat feature. But I did see something in the book that I didn't even notice before. It said not put put it under wall mounted furniture or shelves. Well, ours is under our cupboards! There's still enough room to lift the door of the warmer on top, so guess it's ok. It's been ok all these years, anyway.
Mine did come with some really nice metal pans and those are what I always use. On Pyrex website, http://www.pyrexware.com/index.asp?pageId=30 here's a statement that stopped me from trying non metal baking things: Never put bakeware directly on a heat source such as on a stove top, on a grill, under a broiler or in a toaster oven. On corningware's website it says the same thing. Guess I'm just chicken!
I guess I live a charmed life. But, I never put anything like that in the broiling position. I bake in the middle or bottom. I suppose there's always a first time but I've been baking in Corning ware in the toaster oven since the 80's with no problem. We used to visit Corning often and go to their seconds store where I bought up a large number of single-serving dishes of all kinds for my mother and myself. And I'm still using them.
Well, one of these days I'm going to try it. The worst thing that can happen is that they'd crack. Wouldn't be the first time I cracked something.
I guess the best advice I would give is to make sure there aren't scratches in the baking dishes. That might make them more apt to crack.
