Lidia Bastianich Chicken Vesuvio Food

CLASSIC CHICAGO CHICKEN VESUVIO

Steps:

• In a large mixing bowl or liquid measuring cup, combine the sugar, 1 cup salt and 6 cups room-temperature water. Gently stir until the salt and sugar are dissolved.
• Place the chicken pieces in a large ziptop bag inside of a bowl. Pour the brine over the chicken, close the ziptop bag and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with paper towels.
• Place the brined chicken on the lined baking sheet. Pat the chicken with additional paper towels until the skin is completely dry.
• Place a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over high heat and add the oil. Season both sides of the chicken pieces with the Italian seasoning and some salt and pepper. Sear the chicken, flipping only once, until golden brown and crispy, 2 to 3 minutes per side. If the skillet is not large enough to accommodate all the chicken with space in between the pieces, sear the chicken in 2 batches. Set the chicken aside.
• Place the potato wedges cut-side down in the hot skillet. Sear until light golden, about 6 minutes, then flip and sear the other cut side for 6 minutes more. Turn off the heat and add the chicken back to the skillet, nestling the pieces among the potato wedges. Add 3 of the garlic cloves to the skillet and transfer to the oven. Roast until the chicken and potatoes are cooked through, 35 to 40 minutes.
• Transfer the chicken and potatoes to a serving platter and cover with aluminum foil; discard the garlic cloves. Place the skillet over medium-high heat and add the wine to deglaze. Reduce the wine, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the skillet, about 2 minutes. Grate the remaining 3 cloves garlic into the skillet. Reduce the heat to medium low and add the lemon zest and juice. Tablespoon by tablespoon, melt in the butter until the sauce is slightly thickened and smooth. Stir in the peas and warm in the butter sauce for 30 seconds more. Pour the hot sauce over the chicken and potatoes. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve immediately.

CHICAGO'S CHICKEN VESUVIO

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Dry chicken pieces well and season liberally with salt and pepper.
• Warm olive oil in an oven-safe skillet over medium heat and add chicken, skin-side down. Cook until chicken is browned and skin is crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. Turn over and cook until golden brown on the other side, an additional 4 to 5 minutes. Remove chicken and set aside.
• Add potatoes, onion, and garlic to the skillet and cook until onion is translucent and potato wedges are starting to brown nicely on cut sides, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove vegetables from skillet and set aside.
• Pour wine into skillet and cook until reduced to 1/2 volume. Deglaze the pan by scraping chicken bits and other browned bits up. Return potatoes, onion, and garlic to the skillet. Add chicken stock, parsley, and Italian seasoning. Stir to combine. Add chicken pieces on top.
• Cover and transfer to the preheated oven. Roast until chicken is cooked through and no longer pink at the bone, about 45 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted near the bone should read 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).
• Return the skillet to stove and remove chicken and vegetables, leaving liquid. Bring to a simmer. Add butter and stir until smooth, about 5 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Add peas to sauce and cook 1 to 2 minutes longer. Serve chicken atop potato wedges and garnish with pan sauce and peas.

CHICKEN VESUVIO

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. To blanch peas, place in boiling water for 1 minute (1 teaspoon of sugar added brings out sweetness). Joint chicken into 4 pieces and season well with salt, pepper, oregano and granulated garlic. Peel potato and cut into quarters; saute in olive oil until golden brown; set aside. In 10-inch skillet, bring olive oil to 300 degrees or almost to boiling point. Add garlic cloves; cook for 2 minutes to release flavor. Add chicken; saute lightly on both sides until golden brown. Add potatoes and then deglaze pan with white wine. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes. Place chicken on serving plate and arrange potatoes around chicken. Pour the sauce from the pan over chicken and add peas. Garnish plate with parsley and serve.

CHICKEN VESUVIO

Steps:

• Fry chicken:
• Whisk together flour, pepper, salt, and dried herbs. Dredge chicken in flour mixture, shaking off excess. Heat 1/2 inch oil in an ovenproof 10-inch heavy skillet (preferably seasoned cast iron) until a deep-fat thermometer registers 360°F, then fry chicken in 2 batches, turning, until golden brown, 15 to 18 minutes. Transfer chicken as fried with tongs to paper towels to drain and season with salt and pepper.
• Fry potatoes:
• Cut potatoes lengthwise into eighths while chicken is cooking.
• Return oil to 360°F and cook potatoes in 3 batches, turning, until golden brown, 7 to 10 minutes. Transfer potatoes as cooked with tongs to paper towels to drain, then season with salt and pepper. Cool oil in skillet 15 minutes.
• Bake chicken and potatoes:
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Pour off all but 1/4 inch oil from skillet, then carefully add wine down side. Stir in garlic and return chicken and potatoes to skillet, alternating them and crowding as necessary. Bake, uncovered, until potatoes are tender and chicken is tender and somewhat crisp, about 25 minutes.
• Serve chicken and potatoes with pan juices and scatter with warm peas and parsley.

CHICKEN VESUVIO

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and prepare a large roasting pan.
• Heat 1/2 inch vegetable oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the potatoes and sausage, and brown on all sides, about 8 minutes. When browned, transfer the potatoes and sausage to the roasting pan.
• Season the chicken all over with 2 teaspoons salt. Brown chicken on all sides in batches, about 8 to 10 minutes per batch. Transfer the breast pieces to the roasting pan, leaving the dark meat in the skillet.
• Drain the vegetable oil from the skillet, and pour in 3 tablespoons olive oil and the crushed garlic. Once the garlic begins to sizzle, toss in the onions and oregano. Deglaze with the white wine. When the white wine has reduced by half, add the chicken stock.
• Return to a boil, and then pour all the contents of the skillet into the roasting pan. Toss in the bell peppers and sprinkle everything with the remaining 2 teaspoons salt. Drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil.
• Place in the oven, and roast 20 minutes; then scatter in the peas. Stir and return to oven, to roast until the chicken is tender and caramelized and only a thin layer of liquid remains in the bottom of the pan, about 30 to 40 minutes more, stirring occasionally during roasting. Serve family-style on a warm platter.
• NOTE
• To get fourteen pieces from the chicken, cut as follows: two wings, two drumsticks, two thighs, each breast half in two pieces, neck chopped in two pieces, back in two pieces.

CHICKEN WITH EGGPLANT (LIDIA BASTIANICH)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400ºF degrees.
• Trim the eggplants, and peel if you prefer. Lidia stripes them,
• Slice on an angle, so that you have 12 good slices in all.
• Dredge the eggplant in flour that has been seasoned with salt, pepper & Italian seasoning.
• Heat a large skillet (preferably with a lid), add enough oil to coat the bottom, and fry the eggplant on medium-high heat until caramelized on both sides.
• Set aside on paper towels to drain while you make the chicken.
• Lightly pound the chicken breasts and dredge in the seasoned flour.
• Reheat the same skillet on medium heat, add two tablespoons of oil and tablespoons of butter, swirling to mix.
• Cook the chicken until caramelized on the one side.
• You want the chicken to brown--but do not try to hasten the process by cooking it on high heat.
• You want to do it over gentle heat so as not to toughen the meat.
• Turn them over to caramelize on the other side, and top each breast with two slices of eggplant, then a spoonful of sauce, two basil leaves, and a good sprinkling of cheese, and as much Italian seasoning as you want.
• Let cook for about two minutes, turn up the heat to medium-high, add the wine to the pan, then the remaining tomato sauce.
• Shake the pan a bit to mix, add in the last two tablespoons of butter and shake again to mix.
• Put the lid on the pan (if your pan does not have a lid, cover with foil that has been sprayed with cooking spray) and finish cooking in the oven--approx 20 minutes.
• Remove from oven and serve with a flourish.
• Try to use homemade tomato sauce, this is one of those dishes where you will be greatly rewarded for using the homemade sauce.
• To cut down on the fat/calories, you can grill or roast the eggplant instead.
• It is this final oven cooking that makes the chicken meltingly tender and the wine, tomato sauce and butter transform themselves into an incredible sauce.