Hi Everyone! My name is Cara Cicconi Hafferty, I love food, wine, yoga and travel (all second to my kids) and this is my first blog post - hopefully the first of many random musings about my above mentioned loves. Many thanks to our Facebook followers @BinEndsWine, who asked about this recipe.
The picture above is of what I, as a tribute to by Sicilian heritage, affectionately call "Guinea Chicken". This was a childhood staple for me; growing up, my mother made this dish very often as it was passed down by HER mother and it was one of her favorites. I loved loved LOVED it when my mother made this simple dinner, with its silky-soft potatoes, tender onions and juicy chicken - all bathed in a perfectly seasoned tomato sauce.
Despite its simplicity, my love of cooking and my relative fearlessness in the kitchen, I have never attempted to make this dish. Why, you ask? Maybe my reluctance stemmed from my reverence - I have put Guinea Chicken on a pedestal and have feared that my efforts could never measure up to my memories...
Anyway, I finally decided to take the bull by the horns and GET THIS THING DONE. I even stepped it up by making a simple sauce and not just dumping ground peeled tomatoes onto the whole thing, like my forebears did. The results were nothing short of scrumptious - even my fussy kids loved it!
So, what follows is my attempt at a concise, easy-to-follow recipe. Keep in mind that we Eye-talians are masters of instinctual cooking - that is, we don't measure ingredients, we improvise - and taste - as we go along and our results sometimes differ a bit each time. This is just how we roll. Don't be afraid of this fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pantalones technique. Feel free to add more of this or that. My only caution to those of you who like to cook with more precision is to watch the salt and the oregano - too much of either or both will ruin the dish. Also, taste as you cook. Otherwise, don't worry - it's all good!
Good luck and bon appetito!
Guinea Chicken - This recipe is for a large batch, so feel free to halve it if you don't have that don't-let-anyone-in-the-house-go-hungry mentality like I do.
Ingredients
2 small whole chickens, cut in half - feel free to buy parts already cut
4 (upped form 3) 28-oz. cans ground peeled tomatoes
olive oil - a lot, so just have the big ol' bottle of it on-hand - and, as always, make it extra virgin!
2 lbs. potatoes
4-6 onions
2 heads of garlic
salt
black pepper
dried oregano
dried sweet basil
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Use the roast function if you have it.
In a pot, pour in the contents of the three cans of ground peeled tomatoes, salt to taste and one onion, sliced. Use a lot of olive oil - at least one cup. It seems like a lot, but remember, it is spread out over many servings. It's good fat and most native Sicilians consume boatloads of the stuff while maintaining a healthy weight and living a long life. Olive oil is the backbone of the Mediterranean diet, so no worries! Simmer the sauce on low to medium heat while you are prepping the veggies.
Slice up the remaining onions. Slice the potatoes in half, halve the 2 pieces, then halve the four pieces, so that each potato is cut into 8 pieces. If you have small spuds, cut them into fourths. Teeny spuds only need to be cut in half. Separate the garlic heads into cloves and smash each clove. How do you do this? You take a clove of garlic and place it on your cutting board. Take the flat side of a chef's knife (or other big knife) and place it on top of the clove. Place your palm on top of the knife and PUSH DOWN ON THAT SUCKER until it gets smashed. Peel off the skin, revealing the slightly smashed garlic clove. Mix all of the veggies in a bowl with a few shakes from the bottle of olive oil and a little bit of salt, pepper, basil and oregano.
You will need two large cast iron pots - or any pots that you can put in the oven. I know it seems like a lot of food, but, again, this is how we Italians roll - we don't like anyone to go hungry and we love leftovers! Spread the veggies on the bottom of the two pots. Place the chicken parts on top of the veggies. Sprinkle some salt, pepper, basil and oregano on the chicken. Now spoon the sauce all over it-half in each pot. Don't fill the pots all the way to the top. If your pots are on the shallow side just reserve some of the sauce and use it later when you serve the chicken. If you're really feeling randy, spritz a bit more olive oil over the whole thing. Cover the pots - if they don't have covers use aluminum foil - and place in the oven for about 60-75 minutes. Baste the chicken with the sauce after 30 minutes and 60 minutes. The chicken should be at least 165 degrees. Ideally, you should have a meat thermometer, but if you do not, you can slice into the chicken to make sure it is cooked thoroughly.
When it is done, take the covers off the pots, put them back in the oven and set the oven on broil at 500 degrees for about 5 minutes.
Well, viola, presto, there you have it! My favorite childhood dinner is actually pretty easy. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
Cara
