| chicken | 1 whole or cut into parts |
| wine vinegar | 1/2 c |
| olive oil | 1/4 c plus 1 t |
| garlic | 1 clove |
| yellow onion | 1/2 small |
| mushrooms | 1/2 to 1 c |
| chianti or dry red wine | 1/c c |
| chicken broth | 1/c c |
| rosemary | 5 inch sprig or |
| 1 t dried | |
| oregano | 2 t |
| tomato paste | 2 T |
| flour | 1 t |
| salt | to taste |
| pepper | to taste |
| water | as required |
Although more typical of central Italy than the Piedmont, this was Grandmother Garavelli’s signature dish at the restaurant she had for several years in the 1950’s. I remember eating it both there and in her kitchen. She used the freshest possible chicken for this dish; grabbing one from the small coop in her back yard, she had it in the pan in what seemed like minutes. While this degree of freshness is now almost unattainable, Grandmother did not have to endure our modern concerns for healthy cooking, and her dish always left the skin on the chicken. I never liked the clinging, chewy skin, anyway, so I have modified the recipe to use skinless chicken. Rabbit works well instead of chicken, though it may have to be cooked just a little longer. Grandmother also usually had to make do with the nearly tasteless white mushrooms, but used dried porcini or cepes when she could find them. Now markets in the United States regularly have a variety of fresh mushrooms like the brown crimini or portabello.
Skin the chicken, cut into parts and marinade in wine vinegar for 30 minutes. Heat the oil in a large skillet, break the rosemary twig into several pieces and cook in the oil for a few minutes to flavor it. Add the chicken, a few pieces at a time, brown them on all sides, then remove to a warm platter. Chop the onion and fresh mushrooms, and sauté them thoroughly in the hot oil. Slice the garlic, add it and the oregano, and sauté lightly. Add the wine, broth and pepper to taste, then bring to a vigorous boil for several minutes. Return the chicken to the skillet, lower the heat, cover and cook for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until the meat is tender. Add water to the skillet as necessary. In a small pan cook the flour with a little oil and salt. When the flour has lightly browned, add some liquid from the skillet, and cook with strring until it thickens. Blend in the tomato paste. Add the thickening sauce to the skillet, stir in well and cook for 10 minutes.
Recipe from An Eclectic Cookbook (Copyright © 1987, John S. Garavelli), page 6–12.
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