TRADITIONAL GREEK ROAST CHICKEN WITH RIGANI AND POTATOES

First off, although it's easy to guess:  Rigani in Greek means oregano. This recipe is representative of one of the most typical way Greeks prepare roast chicken. It's fast to make and delicious. It contains the holy trinity of Greek seasonings: olive oil, lemon and oregano, and believe me, the chicken here gets seasoned with a lot of oregano. Don't be stingy with the stuff.  I 'm always surprised at how juicy the chicken is when it comes out of the oven! I think the meat stays moist because of the way the chicken skin is prepared: a large pot of boiling water is poured over the uncooked chicken. The effect of this is to toughen the skin a bit. Since the skin gets tougher, it protects moisture from escaping during baking, and so the roasted meat is juicier.

The classic accompaniment to this dish are roasted potatoes, which are baked alongside the bird. Love it! 

Along with the potatoes I usually serve vegetables such as string beans or carrots, and a green salad made up of arugula or Romaine lettuce. Sometimes, if they are available, I'll serve boiled dandelion greens seasoned with olive oil and lemon (plus oregano). Also, one of my favourite things is to have feta cheese on the side. That's a habit I acquired during childhood when my aunt would mash a bit of feta into my potatoes so that I would find them more palatable ...  Thanks, auntie, it worked! 

Ingredients:

One 3 to 4-pound chicken (1.5 to 2 kilograms), organic is best
Salt and pepper 
dried Greek oregano
1 small onion, peeled and cut into quarters
2 cloves garlic smashed and peeled
4 large baking potatoes, or use more if you want leftovers
the juice of two lemons
1/4 cup olive oil 

If you want to be really traditional, use a round baking pan.  Perhaps the choice of a round pan dates back to the days when round clay pots were used for baking.

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 450°F/230°C. 
• Traditionally, before Greeks roast a chicken, they wash it well, then place it in a bowl in the sink and pour a kettleful of boiling water over it. This will kill some bacteria, but it will also toughen the skin so that the chicken will be juicier when fully cooked. So pour the hot water over the chicken, then remove the bird from the sink and pat it dry with paper towels. (When it's time for clean up, use a 10% bleach solution: that's a ratio of 10% beach and  90% water — on the surfaces that were exposed to the raw chicken). 
• Sprinkle the juice of one lemon into its cavity and season it with salt and pepper. 
• Place the onion pieces and the garlic into the cavity and tie the legs together with kitchen twine. 
• Peel the potatoes, cut them in half lengthwise and then slice each half in four.  The slices should look like wedges. 
• Place the chicken in a roasting pan and surround it with the potato wedges. 
• Use the juice of the second lemon to season the potatoes and the outside of the chicken. 
• Pour the olive oil over everything and season again with salt and pepper.  
• Get your oregano and sprinkle it all over the chicken and potatoes. Don’t be stingy with it, but don’t pour it on too liberally, either. (I have never measured exactly how much I use). This dish requires a strong oregano flavour, but if too much is used, the chicken and potatoes might come out tasting bitter. 
• Pour 1/4 cup of water into the pan, taking care not to spill any of it on the chicken.  
• Place the pan in the preheated oven and cook for 30 minutes.  
• Lower the heat to 400°F/200°C and cook for another hour.  The end result:  a golden chicken, and potatoes deliciously saturated with the cooking juices! 

This picture triggers so many memories for me...  I remember winter Sundays trotting to my aunt's house for dinner ... stopping to gaze up at the bare trees and grey sky, then picking up my walking pace so as to outrun the approaching dusk. I was a pre-teen on a mission. Skip on the sidewalks, stop to see what goodies the candy shops had for sale and what new comic books had arrived at the newsstands. Then skip again across streets and sidewalks till I reached the archway which led to my aunt's home. My face and legs were red from the air that had grazed my skin, and my toes needed the comfort of a warm fire. I anticipated the pleasure of spending time with family. When I reached my destination, a cousin waited at the door to envelop me in a hug. Wonderful sounds and smells would greet me. Laughter, talk, a fire, the aroma of this familiar chicken and potatoes dish. This description is idyllic, perhaps it may even give the impression of being a daydream; it was real, however, real and ephemeral ...

CHICKEN WITH PEPPERS AND MUSHROOMS CACCIATORE STYLE

This is a family favourite. I like to make it with skinless, boneless chicken. Before cooking the chicken, I like to marinate it so that its flavour is enhanced. When the dish has finished cooking, the flavour of the peppers, chicken, thyme, and oregano blend together very nicely. We have served this dish accompanied by noodles with some of the sauce poured over, but usually, we eat it with no accompaniment other than a slice of bread.

Ingredients:

6 pieces of boned, skinned chicken
5 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, sliced
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 cup of sliced mushrooms
2 yellow peppers, sliced
1 cup chicken broth
2 fresh medium tomatoes peeled, seeded, and chopped
2 tablespoons fresh thyme
1 tablespoon dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste
chopped parsley for garnish

For the marinade: 

salt and pepper 
1 clove of garlic, finely chopped

a few sprigs of thyme 
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon Pecorino Romano cheese
a few dashes of balsamic vinegar

Directions:

1. Rub the chicken with the marinade ingredients and place it in a bowl. Refrigerate for about two hours. Bring the chicken to room temperature before cooking.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown the chicken on all sides, remove it to a bowl and set it aside.
3. In the same Dutch oven heat the rest of the oil, add the onions, peppers, oregano, and garlic, season with salt and pepper, and cook for 10 minutes until the peppers have softened.
4. Add the mushrooms, stirring, and cook until they are soft. As you are stirring, the pan will deglaze.
5. Stir in the tomatoes and the thyme and season with salt and pepper.
6. Add the chicken broth. 
7. Add the reserved chicken and simmer until it's tender and the liquid is almost gone, about 40 minutes. You want this dish to be juicy and saucy, not dry.
8. Serve the chicken accompanied by noodles if desired. Spoon the sauce over, and garnish with Parmesan cheese and parsley.

How a chef honoured a legend: CHICKEN TETRAZZINI

The coloratura soprano Luisa Tetrazzini was a native of Florence, Italy, and a beloved international presence on the operatic stage of the early twentieth century. One of her most beloved cities was San Fransisco, where she performed often and where the fans adored her. Although Miss Tetrazzini was Italian, chicken Tetrazzini is an American dish, invented in honour of the soprano by a San Fransico chef. 

Tetrazzini possessed an amazing voice, masterful, powerful, technically superb. Her delivery as she raced up and down the scales was seamless and overwhelming to hear. I include here a perfect example of her singing prowess: her rendition of Rosina's aria Una Voce Poco Fa from Rossini's "Il Barbiere di Siviglia," sung in her soaring, clear coloratura. This recording, amazingly moving in its beauty, was made in 1911. I hope you enjoy it. Thank you Diva Luisa Tetrazzini!!!

Tetrazzini, Una Vocce Poco Fa

CHICKEN TETRAZZINI:

Ingredients:

2 to 2.5 pounds of skinless chicken with bones
1 carrot, washed and roughly chopped 
1 onion studded with 2 cloves
3 stalks celery with leaves, roughly chopped 
2 bay leaves

2 tablespoons of dill 

Salt and pepper
Water

1 large onion, finely chopped 
8 ounces sliced mushrooms 

8 ounces green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces

• 8 ounces frozen peas 
• 8 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon dried tarragon leaves

4 tablespoons flour
2 cups half and half, at room temperature
2 cups hot chicken broth
1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley 

3 tablespoons ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup shredded fontina cheese

1/4 cup breadcrumbs
sliced almonds

1package linguini

Directions:

• In a kettle place the chicken, onion with cloves, celery, salt and pepper to taste, bay leaf, dill, and carrot. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the chicken is tender. 
• Remove the chicken from the broth and let cool. Remove the meat from the bones and discard the bones. Cut the chicken meat into chunks and place in a large bowl. Strain two cups of the chicken broth and reserve it, making sure it stays hot.
• Preheat the oven to 400° F.
• Grease a 13” x 9” x 2” baking dish with 1 tablespoon of butter.
• Heat the oil and 1 tablespoon of butter in a nonstick frying pan. Add the mushrooms and sauté over medium-high heat until the liquid from the mushrooms evaporates, and the mushrooms become pale golden. Add the onion and green beans and sauté until the onion is translucent. Add the garlic, thyme and tarragon and sauté for one more minute. Remove from the heat and mix in the peas.  
• Transfer the mushroom and pea mixture into the bowl with the chicken.
• Melt 4 tablespoons butter in the same pan over medium-low heat. Add 4 tablespoons flour and whisk until blended. Whisk in the reserved 2 cups hot broth, 2 cups half and half, and salt and pepper. Increase the heat slightly. Simmer, whisking until the sauce thickens. Turn off the heat, add the ricotta cheese and mix well.
• Add the sauce and parsley to the chicken mixture. 
• Add the fontina cheese and half the Parmesan cheese. Toss until the sauce coats everything and the mixture is well blended.
• Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish. 
• Mix the rest of the Parmesan cheese with the breadcrumbs, remaining butter and sliced almonds. Sprinkle over the chicken mixture. Bake until golden brown on top, about 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions. Drain.
• Serve the pasta topped with the chicken.