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April 9, 2006
Mom's Chicken
This weekend I made an old timey Italian-style marinated chicken recipe that was a staple growing up. In fact, this dish is a classic from my mom's kitchen. We have no idea where she got it from or how long it has been in the family. It makes for wonderful grilled chicken. It has served as a mainstay of summer evenings since his childhood. Moreover, it seems to have secured the immediate approval of our good friend Miguel Herce, who is notorious for his suspicion of chicken and has become a mainstay for the Good Rabbi. It can, if necessary, be prepared in the oven, or it can be quickly or slowly (the best, it yields really soft, tender bird) grilled. You can use any cut of chicken that you want in this dish. I prefer to grill up a variety of cuts.
Ingredients for the Sauce*
8 oz. basic tomato sauce**
4 oz. extra-virgin olive oil
4 oz. orange juice (use the pulpy stuff)
2 oz. vinegar
1 1/2 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. salt
chopped garlic to taste
Mix together sauce. Use it to marinate chicken for at least 3 days in the fridge (note: my mom thought I was crazy for marinating so long). After several days of marinating, you are ready to cook. In the oven, give it 350 degrees (F) for 90 minutes or so. On the grill, cooking time will depend on the heat of the fire. Either way, you must always intially place your chicken fat side up (NEVER skin the chicken before marinating or grilling). Leave it there for 80% of the cooking time. This is essential for tender chicken: the fat will render through the chicken as it cooks, making it really juicy. Brush sauce over the chicken 2-3 times during cooking. You can certainly drizzle over the remaining sauce after you plate the chicken, but remember to heat it to a simmer first since its been with raw chicken for days (the heat of the plated chicken probably is not enough to kill all harmful bacteria).
Serve with a nice, simple garlic and oil pasta as a side. Alternatively, serve with a cold pasta salad. It goes well with a nice, lively young red wine.
* Make enough Sauce to submerge all of the chicken for marinating. These amounts are provided for proportions.
** Believe it or not, plain old Prego traditional style seems to work really well.
***On the grill, you have to be very careful of flareups. Chicken is flareup prone to begin with, and the oil in the sauce for this chicken doesn't help. Therefore, do not overload the grill, and perhaps use the ``ring of fire'' technique (with plenty of coals) to avoid direct suspension over coals or to provide a safety zone to which the chicken can be moved in the event of flareup.
Posted by dag at April 9, 2006 11:55 AM