Italian Kitchen Secrets: chicken

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9/17/2013

Chicken roulade with capers and lemon zest.

It's been a long time...

You know: holidays, too hot weather to cook, a lot of work (and that's a good thing!) and I couldn't post anything.

Today I'm back with a really light recipe that still has a summer taste.

I've tried it in a restaurant in San Marino (an indipendent state inside Italy, you can learn something more about it HERE and about the restaurant HERE ) and I really wanted to try this at home.

The result is good even if not just alike the restaurant one (but I didn't have the recipe, just tried all by myself) so I want to share it with you.

It could be a nice appetizer or a light second course.

2 servings:

4 thin slices of chicken breast

1/ cup salted capers

juice of 1/2 lemon

zest of 1 lemon

1/2 garlic clove

extra-virgin olive oil

The first thing to do is to unsalt capers: leave them in cold water for about 1 hour changing water now and then.

Peel lemon zest avoiding the white part and chop finely with a knife, then do the same with unsalted capers.

Put them in a small bowl with smashed garlic and a generous pour of olive oil and the juice of half a lemon.

Mix with a spoon (you shouldn't need more salt due to capers but just try it and see).

Beat chicken breast with a tenderizer then spread some sauce on it.

Roll it on the longer side and close it in tin foil or any cooking paper than can handle hot temperatures.

Do the same with all the slices then put them in a food steamer or in any pot where you can cook with steam and cook for about 45 minutes.

When the meat is cold cut pinwheels not too thick and cover them with a little sauce before serving.

You can prepare the meat one day in advance and store it in the fridge (same as sauce) but cut it only before serving.

You can decorate with some more lemon zest.

7/06/2013

Pollo alla cacciatora, chicken Cacciatore.

This is a really easy recipe quite common in the North of Italy but mainly in Tuscany.

You can cook it in advance and keep in the fridge for a couple of day or you can cook it and serve it.

You can use a whole chicken or just parts: as you see in the photo I used 2 chicken legs for 2 servings.

2 chicken legs with skin

1 garlic clove

rosemary stick

parsley

1 celery stick

1 carrot

1 onion

1 glass red wine

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

4 cups tomato sauce

Put the chicken, skin on, in a hot pan with oil, rosemary and garlic.

If you're on a diet you can avoid oil, skin is greasy enough to brown on its own, when the chicken is ready you can peel it.

Let it brown on both side then add red wine, let evaporate then add finely chopped vegetable, stir well and cook on medium fire for a couple of minutes, remove garlic and rosemary stick.

Add tomato sauce, cover with a lid and cook for about 40 minutes on low fire, few minutes before you turn off fire add chopped parsley.

Serve hot with a lot of bread to pick up sauce!

5/05/2012

Apple & curry dip sauce.

This idea came from my friend Elisa, she said she cook curry chicken with apples, I had some and I've tried.

It turned out a nice dip sauce in which I dip chicken bites and vegetables, I like it very much and it's really simple.

2 sweet apples like renetta

1 onion

curry powder

1 tablespoon butter or extravirgin olive oil

a pinch of salt

Cut the onion in slices and put in a pan with butter (or oil), sautee until golden then add apples in thin slices, let cook until apples are creamy then add curry and salt as much as you like.

To have a smooth consistence blend the sauce and serve room temperature with chicken or vegetables you like.

6/18/2009

Potado cutlets ( Patacotolette)

I'm back!

Tired and sick of this hot wheather (hot douring the week then raining on the week ends I plan to spend to the seaside...Lucky me) but relaxed enough to translate and post a new recipe.

This is quite unusual but funny, nice for children and quite healthy if you use a good frying oil and don't let it burn.

For 4 serves you need:

4 chicken breast's slices

1 potado, grated raw

2 eggs

7 oz. breadcrumb

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan

salt

frying oil

Prepare the crumble mixing grated potado, breadcrumb, cheese and salt.

Beat the 2 eggs apart then dip the slices in.

Once they're egg-covered pass them in the crumble, then once again in the beaten eggs then a last time in the crumble pressing a little with hands to stick the crumble at best.

Fry in a lot hot frying oil, serve with a green salad and a lemon slice.

So easy and quick!

You can of course change the kind of meat: turkey, veal or pork are suitable; you can also use grated Pecorino cheese instead of Parmesan.

4/20/2009

Chiken baked into the salt (Pollo al sale)

First of all I have to say this is, more than a recipe, a way of cooking.

It's very tasty and very healthy because it doesn't need any kind of fat.

You can cook this way also fish like salmon or trouts, turkey or other kind of white meat in quite big pieces.

You need:

a whole chicken, cleaned inside

cooking salt about 8 pounds (it depends on how big is the chicken)

1 lemon well washed, preferably organic

rosemary

pepper

garlic

Put the lemon into the chicken, cover it and fill it with some rosemary and ground some pepper on the meat.

Put into a capacious pan a layer of cooking salt, put in the chicken then cover it with the rest of salt untill the meat is well sealed.

Put in the oven at high temperature, about 500°F for 1 hour and 15', then let it rest 30 minutes out of the oven.

Crush the salt crust with a knife handle or something hard then keep off the salt and serve chicken.

It will be tender and juicy because nothing was evaporated douring the cooking.

Of course the cooking time depends on the weight of the piece you're going to cook: pay attention!^^

3/05/2009

Green sauce ( Salsa verde)

This sauce is perfect for boiled meat, grilled chicken, grilled or boiled seafood.

I love this sauce so much I use to put it on bread slices all alone too. ^^

It's perfect on bruschetta according to me but it depends on tastes!

This recipes comes from Piemonte, a region in the North- West of Italy famous for truffles, asparagus and hazelnuts with whom they produce a great chocolate called " Gianduia".

You need:

red wine vinegar

1 slice tuscan /italian bread

1 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 garlic clove

1 hard boiled egg

1 big bunch fresh parsley

salt and pepper

Soak the bread in enogh vinegar untill it's soft.

In a food processor mix parsley and garlic untill they're chopped extremely fine.

Add the hard boiled egg (someone uses only yolk, someone uses the whole egg, it depends on taste), the oil and the drained bread, mix again a little, untill you have a smooth cream.

Add salt and pepper to taste, store in refrigerator untill use.

The sauce is even tastier if you prepare it 1-2 days in advance.

11/27/2008

Grilled chicken breast (Petto di pollo grigliato)

Grilled chicken breast: anything easier than this recipe?

Or more banal?

No, but you can create a tasty dish if you take care of the preparation and of the ingredients, the preparation is quick and you can surely afford and recover the things you need.

It's a light second course, ideal for the ones on a diet: low fats, digestible.

You need:

2 chicken breasts

2 tablespoons extravirgin olive oil

salt and pepper

a stick of fresh rosemary

1 garlic clove

half a lemon

Slice each chicken breasts in 3 thin slices.

Pound the slices with a meat pounder to make them thin and tender.

Cook the chicken on a simple grille or even a non-stick pan.

Do not use any fat or oil to grease the pan, just rub the garlic clove on the whole pan few times to give a light garlic smell.

Season with the extravirgin olive oil, add salt and freshly grated pepper if you like then some rosemary needles and a squeeze of lemon juice.

Serve warm with plain fresh salad or with stirfried spinach.

11/06/2008

Teryaki chicken with leeks (pollo teriyaki con porri)

Ok maybe it's not an Italian recipe, you can called it "fusion" but I use to cook with ingredients I discover during my travels.

I've been in Japan during my honeymoon and I loved it so much.

I've tried this recipe in a small food stand in the old part of the Kyoto's station, I loved it, my husband loved it and once at home we would like to eat it once again: it's not the very same of the japanese one but it's ok, tasty and quick to prepare.

It' really really easy: chop chicken breast in small pieces, put it in a bowl with teriyaki sauce, mix well and let it rest in fridge for about 2 hours.

Then prepare a pan, add extravirgin olive oil, leeks cutted round ( don't add the green part of course), salt and chicken with the sauce.

Stirfry untill leeks are tender and chicken is well cooked, if it dries add a little more teriyaki sauce and a sprinkle of sesame seeds on top.

You can serve it with white rice, it's perfect!

4/27/2008

Grandma's lemon chicken (Pollo al limone della nonna)

ingredients/6 persons:

6 chicken tights (or even better the upper part)

4 carrots

1 onion

2 celery stalks

1 lemon

3 laurel leaves

parsley

flour

white wine

salt

butter

extra virgin olive oil

Keep off skin from chicken tights then pass them in the flour.

Chop in tiny pieces carrots celery and onion, put in a pan with a little butter and a little E.V.O. oil, add a glass of white wine, laurel leaves, 3 slices of lemon (keep off skin and white part and seeds) salt and half a glass of water.

Cover and let it cook gently for about 15 min. then add tights.

Add a little water if needed (the vegetable sauce must remain really creamy) and cover again.

Cook for about 45 min., turn the meat sometimes.

5 min. before turning off fire add juice of half a lemon and parsley as much as you prefer.

Keep off laurel leaves before serving, it's fantastic with mashed potadoes.

This is my grandma's best recipe according to me: enjoy it!!

4/03/2008

Chicken with balsamic vinegar and Parmesan (Pollo al balsamico e parmiggiano)

After a while I'm back with a little quick recipe.

Just take a chicken breast, chop in pieces and put it in a bowl.

Add abundant balsamic vinegar, a little salt and abundant grated parmesan cheese.

Mix well and let it rest for about 2 hours in fridge.

When dinner time comes put the chicken and the balsamic in the bowl and put in a hot pan.

Let it cook well, serve hot with fresh salad as side dish.

Light, healthy, tasty...

What do you want more?

Italian Kitchen Secrets

9/17/2013

Chicken roulade with capers and lemon zest.

7/06/2013

Pollo alla cacciatora, chicken Cacciatore.

5/05/2012

Apple & curry dip sauce.

6/18/2009

Potado cutlets ( Patacotolette)

4/20/2009

Chiken baked into the salt (Pollo al sale)

3/05/2009

Green sauce ( Salsa verde)

11/27/2008

Grilled chicken breast (Petto di pollo grigliato)

11/06/2008

Teryaki chicken with leeks (pollo teriyaki con porri)

4/27/2008

Grandma's lemon chicken (Pollo al limone della nonna)

4/03/2008

Chicken with balsamic vinegar and Parmesan (Pollo al balsamico e parmiggiano)

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