Source: Neill Curran (inspired by our friend Sue Paludi)
Food Memories: lovely meals round at our friend's Sue & Mario Paludi - with Malcolm and Nina and Claire's Mum and Dad.
Chicken with peppers is a colourful dish from the south of Italy - where sweet peppers are plentiful.
Mario was originally from Pescara in the Abruzzo region of Southern and Sue had spent some time living there when they were first married. When she lived in the UK, our friend Sue used to make this with added potatoes for a relatively humble but incredibly tasty meal.
Thanks Sue xx
This recipe is something that I have 'cobbled together' from a few different recipes, a bit of trial and error PLUS the memory of the taste of the dish that Sue used to make.
Based on Niamh and Claire's reaction - this dish is always well appreciated and Claire assures me it is pretty damn close to the dish that Sue used to serve us.
“. . . a relatively humble but incredibly tasty meal."
Ingredients:
1.2kg of boneless, skinless chicken thighs
3 large fresh peppers: preferably 1 x red, 1 x yellow and 1 x green
900 g potatoes, peeled and sliced
6 tbsp (90ml) olive oil
2 large white onions, finely sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp dried chilli flakes
180ml (6 fl oz / 3/4 cup) dry white wine
500 ml chicken stock
1 tbsp oregano
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Serves: 4
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F / gas mark 4.
2. Wash the potatoes thoroughly, peel them and slice thinly. Part cook them in salted boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain and place them back in the saucepan - cover with cold water to arrest the cooking process.
3. Trim any fat off the chicken and remove any leftover skin. Wash the peppers. Prepare by cutting them in half, scooping out the seeds and cutting away the stem. Slice into strips.
4. Heat half the oil in a large heavy saucepan or casserole and cook the onion over a gentle heat until soft. Remove to a side dish. Add the remaining oil, raise the heat to moderate heat and add the chicken pieces. Brown the chicken all over - this should take about 6-8 minutes. Remove to a side dish.
5. Return the onions to the pan, add the garlic and dried chilli flakes and stir well. Pour in the wine and cook until it has reduced by half. Add the peppers and stir well to coat. Season to taste. After 3-4 minutes remove the pan from the heat. Remove half of the onion and pepper mix to a side plate.
6. In the pan, layer the potatoes on top of the remaining peppers and onions - remembering to add a little more seasoning in between layers. Gently pour the chicken stock over the potatoes (stop if it covers them).
7. Place the chicken on top of the potatoes and carefully add the remaining onion and pepper mix on top. Cover the pan with a tight-fitting lid and cook in the oven for about 25-30 minutes, until the peppers are soft and the chicken is cooked. Remove the lid from the pan for the last 5 minutes in the oven.
Serve and enjoy!
Top tip: great served with steamed green beans - dressed with a little butter and seasoned to taste.
Source: Neill Curran (inspired by our friend Sue Paludi).
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