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Chicken Scarpariello, Take Two

May 14, 2009

It was nearly a year ago that I first tried making Chicken Scarpariello, a dish I’ve ordered several times in restaurants and always enjoyed. I made it way too spicy that time, though, and my mom and I struggled through the dish — we could tell it had potential, but were just blasted away by the heat. It bears repeating that we both have a relatively low tolerance for chili-type spice; levels that make my eyes water and my nose run, for instance, taste like minimal seasoning to J.

I wanted to come back to this recipe, though, and I did so last night. While doing a little online research on how I might tweak my original preparation, I found a Rachael Ray version which was chicken only, no sausage. I’m a lot less enamored of kosher sausage than I once was, and rarely buy it anymore. Her recipe also used fresh peppers plus some jarred hot peppers rather than all jarred, which appealed to me. And so instead of fixing the recipe I had, I used hers instead (with some changes).

It was great! I used a very minimal amount of pre-sliced hot cherry peppers packed in oil (Victoria “So-Hot” Cherry Peppers), and it was pretty spicy to me and my dad. I liked using the slices rather than chopping those hot little orbs to bits, because we treated them like bay leaves — they were there to flavor the dish but not to eat. There was a nice amount of sauce, and the orange peppers and onions lent a sweetness to the dish that helped balance the heat. I should have let the parsley cook in the sauce a little longer, though. The texture was kind of woody and not soft enough; I was trying to keep it nice and green by barely cooking it. If I was ever going to make Chicken Scarpariello again, I’d work off this recipe. But I’m still not sure I will… maybe next year.

Chicken Scarpariello
Adapted from Rachael Ray’s Chicken Scarpariello

This is a relatively mild version — adjust the amount of hot cherry peppers you use to regulate the heat

1½ lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 Tbsp. olive oil
ground pepper
2 red, orange, or yellow bell peppers, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 medium onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/4 c. sliced hot cherry peppers
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1/2 c. dry white wine (I used a Chardonnay)
1/2 c. vegetable broth
3/4 c. flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped (a small bunch)

Rinse, trim, and pat dry your chicken cutlets, then cut into 1-2 inch chunks. In a large skillet, heat olive oil and then add chicken, cooking over medium heat for about 8-10 minutes until it is nicely browned. Season with ground pepper. Remove chicken to a plate and set aside.

Add bell peppers, onion, hot peppers and garlic to the pan. Saute for 5 minutes, until softened. Add wine and adjust heat to bring the liquid to a simmer for a minute or so. Add in the stock, keeping the pan at a simmer — make sure to scrape the bottom of the pan so any browned chicken and vegetables are released in to the sauce.

Add your chicken and parsley back into the pan, stirring thoroughly, and simmer for 3-5 minutes until chicken is cooked all the way through. Serve over pasta or roasted potatoes.

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Filed under: Poultry

Tags: Chicken Scarpariello, cooking, Rachael Ray, recipe, sauce, spicy, Victoria So Hot Cherry Peppers