Chicken Scarpariello
Serves 4 to 6
Pair this Italian-American classic with Karen Birmingham's crisp Pinot Grigio
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Why this recipe works:
This Italian American dish pairs chicken with sausage and a tangy sauce based on bell peppers, onion, and pickled cherry peppers. We wanted our version to be bright and flavorful, not too briny and certainly not too spicy. We started by tempering the heat of the cherry peppers by removing their seeds. We wanted some extra flavor, so we added just a couple of tablespoons of the vinegary cherry pepper brine. After browning the sausage and chicken, we sautéed the vegetables and then nestled the chicken and sausage in the vegetables to finish cooking in the oven, which kept the chicken skin crispy. A tablespoon of flour and 3/4 cup of chicken broth resulted in a sauce with the perfect consistency—thick enough to coat the chicken and sausage without being gloppy.
Ingredients:
- 3 pounds bone-in chicken pieces (2 split breasts cut in half crosswise, 2 drumsticks, and 2 thighs), trimmed
- 8 ounces sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
- 1 onion, halved and sliced thin
- 1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and sliced thin
- 5 jarred hot cherry peppers, seeded, rinsed, and sliced thin (1/2 cup), plus 2 tablespoons brine
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- Salt and pepper
Instructions:
We used sweet Italian sausage to balance the spiciness of the cherry peppers. Feel free to substitute hot Italian sausage if you prefer a spicier dish.
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add chicken to skillet, skin side down, and cook without moving until well browned, about 5 minutes. Flip chicken and continue to cook until browned on second side, about 3 minutes. Transfer chicken to plate.
- Add sausage to fat left in skillet and cook, breaking up with spoon, until browned, about 3 minutes. Transfer sausage to paper towel–lined plate.
- Pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from skillet and return to medium-high heat. Add onion and bell pepper and cook until vegetables are softened and lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add cherry peppers, garlic, and oregano and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in flour and cook for 30 seconds. Add broth and cherry pepper brine and bring to simmer, scraping up any browned bits.
- Remove skillet from heat and stir in sausage. Arrange chicken pieces, skin side up, in single layer in skillet and add any accumulated juices. Transfer skillet to oven and cook until breasts register 160 degrees and drumsticks/thighs register 175 degrees, 20 to 25 minutes.
- Carefully remove skillet from oven (handle will be very hot). Transfer chicken to serving platter. Season onion mixture with salt and pepper to taste, then spoon over chicken. Sprinkle with parsley. Serve.
Featured wine pairing
Karen Birmingham Clarksburg Pinot Grigio 2017
Simple, balanced, and easy-to-drink, this mouth-watering white is a must for both warmer months and light and tasty meals alike.
Karen made sure each grape was handled with the utmost care and then fermented perfectly to magnify the bright fruit flavors.
This is a refreshing and citrusy Pinot Grigio that’s just dying to join you poolside, on the porch, or at a cozy family meal.
