Chicken Calabrese Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of oil onto a rimmed baking sheet and use your fingers to evenly spread it out and coat the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle with the Italian seasoning, 1 tablespoon salt and a few grinds of pepper. Scatter the cherry tomatoes on the baking sheet and shake it back and forth so they become evenly coated in the oil and seasoning. Arrange the chicken in the center of the baking sheet, pushing the tomatoes out to the perimeter, and drizzle the chicken with the remaining tablespoon of oil.
• Bake until the tomatoes are soft, blistered and begin to burst, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Meanwhile, add the vinegar to a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Lower the heat to medium and simmer until the vinegar has reduced by half and is thick enough to coat back of the spoon, 7 to 8 minutes.
• Remove the baking sheet from the oven and drape a slice of mozzarella over each chicken breast. Bake until the cheese melts and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast has reached 160 degrees F, 5 to 7 minutes (the chicken will carryover cook to 165 F).
• Sprinkle the chicken and tomatoes with the basil and drizzle with the balsamic reduction. Spoon the collected pan juices over the tomatoes and chicken. Serve on a bed of arugula and with crusty bread to mop up the pan juices.

Steps:

• Split or butterfly the chicken breasts. Layer prosciutto, a teaspoon of pesto, and 1 tablespoon of sun dried tomatoes. Roll up the chicken breasts while tucking in the sides to completely envelop the filling.
• In a deep skillet, brown the chicken rolls on both sides. In the same skillet, add the wine, the tomato sauce and the basil.
• Salt and pepper as needed and simmer 30 minutes.
• Serve with rice or polenta.

Steps:

• Heat a cast iron skillet or Dutch oven with extra-virgin olive oil, a turn of the pan, over medium-high heat until very hot. Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper, add to the pan and brown on both sides and cook through. Remove the chicken to a plate.
• Add the salami to the pan and stir 1 minute, then add in the onions, celery, peppers, garlic and stir a couple of minutes more. Add the fennel seed and smoked paprika. Deglaze the pan with the red wine, then add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, parsley, and the reserved chicken. Bring the mixture to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Turn off the heat and cool completely to store for make-ahead meal.
• Reheat in the same pan with a splash of water or stock to get things going. Top with an extra drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and serve with bread crusted up in a hot oven.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir garlic into hot oil and cook until slightly softened, about 2 minutes, stirring often. Add spinach and toss with hot oil and garlic; cover and remove from heat. Set spinach mixture aside to wilt spinach.
• Heat 3 more tablespoons olive oil in an oven-safe skillet. Cook chicken breasts in hot oil until browned, about 4 minutes per side. Season with salt. Layer 1/4 of the wilted spinach, tomato slices, and mozzarella slices on top of each breast. Season with ground black pepper and drizzle with balsamic vinegar.
• Bake in preheated oven until cheese has browned and chicken is no longer pink inside, about 15 minutes. An instant-read meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a breast should read at least 160 degrees F (70 degrees C).

Steps:

• Place chicken breasts, Italian salad dressing, Italian herb seasoning, and chicken seasoning into a resealable plastic bag, knead bag several times to coat chicken with marinade, and squeeze air from the bag. Seal and refrigerate 4 to 6 hours.
• Preheat oven to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C).
• Pour canola oil into a large cast-iron or ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Heat the oil until a small droplet of water pops in the oil. Remove chicken breasts from marinade and discard used marinade. Place chicken breasts into hot oil, fry for 2 minutes, and flip chicken.
• Place skillet into the preheated oven and bake until chicken is no longer pink inside and the juices run clear, about 12 minutes. Top each chicken breast with a slice of mozzarella cheese and a tomato slice.
• Return to oven and bake until cheese has melted, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer chicken breasts to a serving platter and top each with a basil leaf and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar.

Steps:

• Lay a game hen breast side-down on a work surface; use kitchen shears or a sharp knife to cut the backbone out of the game hen, cutting through each side of the bone from top to bottom. Remove the backbone. Use a sharp knife to slice through the cartilage of the breastbone. Flip game hen breast side-up, flatten bird lightly with your hands, and twist the wing tips underneath the wings. Repeat for remaining game hen.
• Place white wine vinegar, vegetable oil, rosemary, orange juice, garlic, egg, Calabrian chili sauce, orange zest, kosher salt, and anchovy fillet into a blender. Pulse several times to combine; blend until marinade is smooth and creamy.
• Place game hens into a resealable heavy plastic bag and pour in marinade. Squeeze out air, seal bag, and refrigerate at least 4 hours but preferably 8 hours to overnight.
• Preheat grill for medium heat and lightly oil the grate.
• Remove game hens from marinade, reserving marinade. Dry birds on paper towels. Season breast sides with salt.
• Place game hens with breast sides down onto the preheated grill and cook until skin shows browned grill marks, about 5 minutes; rotate hens 45 degrees and grill 5 more minutes to make crosshatch grill marks.
• Flip game hens onto their backs, brush with reserved marinade, and grill with the lid on for 5 minutes. Brush hens with more marinade. Repeat, cooking 5 minutes, then brushing with more marinade, until game hens are deep golden brown and an instant-read meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a thigh reads 160 degrees F, about 35 more minutes. Flip hens breast sides down, brush once more with marinade, and cook with lid closed until marinade has glazed onto chicken, about 5 more minutes.
• Transfer hens to a serving platter, let rest for about 5 minutes, and serve.

Steps:

• Pat chicken dry. Cut a lengthwise pocket into the thick side of each breast without cutting all the way through to the other side. Season breasts inside and out using 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
• Stuff each breast with a quarter of the mozzarella, 2 to 3 tomato slices (depending on size) and 4 to 5 basil leaves. Enclose the filling as much as possible by pulling the chicken over the filling. (The chicken can be prepared to this point, covered and refrigerated up to 24 hours.)
• Heat olive oil in a large 12-inch nonstick pan over medium heat. Sauté garlic, stirring, until golden, about 4 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, scoop out garlic and transfer to a paper towel-lined plate, leaving the oil in the pan.
• Increase heat to medium-high and sauté chicken until golden on the bottom, about 6 minutes. If the breasts darken too quickly, lower heat. Flip and cook for 5 minutes, then cover and cook 2 to 3 minutes more, or until chicken is cooked through and filling is hot.
• Using a spatula, carefully transfer chicken to a platter or four plates. Pour pan juices over the chicken. Garnish with pesto, reserved garlic and remaining basil leaves.