Chicken all’ Arrabbiata
I kept running across a variety of recipes for this dish. It was usually featured as a low fat way to prepare chicken. As with any Arrabbiata it is spicy although you can control just how spicy. And the original recipes all called for braising for a short time at a high temperature. The sauce was great, but the chicken was not so flavorful. So I think braising for a bit longer at a lower temperature will yield a better result.
I also call for a hot pickled pepper. I do this to add heat. But I also do it because the vinegar from the pepper gives the sauce a little bit of briny character. If you cannot find the pickled variety then use a fresh jalapeno or spicy banana pepper.
- 4-6 chicken drum sticks, and 4- 6 chicken thighs, skin on
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 red onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic mined, or put through a garlic press
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1 large pickled hot pepper, jalapeno or hot banana pepper, cut lengthwise in narrow strips
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1, 28 oz can diced tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1/2 tablespoon dried thyme
- kosher salt and ground black pepper to taste
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
In a large saute pan heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Sprinkle salt and pepper over the chicken pieces. Brown the chicken in batches skin side down first, 4-5 minutes to each side. Hold the cooked chicken on a platter.
When the chicken is cooked pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat. Add the onion, the red pepper flakes, and the pickled pepper and saute until wilted about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, the thyme, the oregano, the tomato paste and the bay leaves and cook an additional 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and the vinegar and heat the sauce to the boiling point. If your saute pan is big enough you can add the chicken to the mixture and put the pan in the oven. Or, if you are like me, you can add the chicken pieces to a dutch oven, cover in the sauce, and place the dutch oven uncovered in the oven.
The chicken should cook for at least one hour. Once cooked I like to let the mixture rest, covered for about 15 minutes. It is ready to serve with rice or pasta.