Grandpa's Chicken: A Family Recipe Worth Preserving

Chicken is a protein that I typically do not eat. Growing up it was often roasted in the oven with a little lemon and rosemary until it was so dry I needed a glass of milk in order to swallow it. Having to eat this multiple times a week under protest, is my guess for why chicken is something I almost never cook for myself in my adult life. There are however a few exceptions to this rule and today I will teach you one of them. The recipe for my grandfather's chicken.

When I was in highschool, I used to go over to my grandpa's on the occasional friday afternoon. Once or twice during the winter time he would make us the family recipe for stewed chicken and polenta. This is a recipe his mother made for him on cold winter days when he would come home from school for lunch. My dad grew up eating this and both of his siblings have very fond memories of it as well.

As time went on and I got a little older, grandpa would let me help him in the kitchen and finally, I learned to make this traditional family recipe. I had a day off from school for some reason I can't remember and grandpa called and asked if I wanted to spend the day with him learning to make this recipe and playing cards, a favorite pastime we shared. I was thrilled and went over early that morning.

When I got to his house, all the ingredients were laid out on the kitchen table and a large heavy pot was on the stove. We began making the chicken and I took notes as we went along. Grandpa started by peeling several cloves of garlic and a couple large onions, he said this recipe begins like all my grandmother's recipes did, will oil and butter and garlic and onions in the bottom of a large pan, to this we added a few celery ribs, Once the vegetables had softened and become translucent we added in the chicken pieces and a whole bottle of wine.

Grandpa used to pour in the wine and look the other way and then act surprised when the whole bottle would disappear into the pot. Making a rye smile and saying "oops, guess that was the correct amount to use." This was followed by a small chuckle, then we would soak some dried porcini mushrooms in a 2 oz. paper bathroom cup until they had rehydrated. Once the mushrooms were nice and soft, we removed them from the cup and added both the mushrooms and the liquid to the pot, careful to make sure any dirt and sediment remained at the bottom of the cup and not in the stew.

Next he said we bring the whole concoction up to a boil. We waited a few minutes and once this had been achieved, the heat was turned down to low and the stew would simmer until the chicken was so tender the meat would fall off the bones completely, this took anywhere from 2 to 4 hours depending on how much chicken was used.

This meal was ALWAYS served with polenta, an Italian version of grits. Polenta is something I have very fond memories of eating but not quite so fond memories of making. For those of you who have made it in the past, will know that polenta needs to be stirred almost continuously for about 45 minutes, or it will stick to the bottom of the pot and burn; or worse become lumpy.

Grandpa used to say, the polenta is ready when your arm feels like its about to fall off. Then he would smile and laugh a little bit to himself. Once the polenta was done and my arm was numb, the rest of the family had arrived and we would plate up the dinner and eat it. On a large plate with high sides, the high sides are important as the gravy for this dish is a little thinner and you will want quite a lot of it as it is so tasty, first place several pieces of cheddar cheese on the plate in a star pattern, top with a heavy spoon of polenta and a generous portion of chicken, then pour over a healthy amount of gravy and sprinkle with grating cheese. Serve piping hot with bread and a crisp white wine.

This meal never failed to satisfy my family and was one meal that always stopped the dinner time conversation in its tracks. We would all be far too focused on enjoying the warm hearty meal of creamy polenta and succulent chicken to stop long enough to speak.

Once everyone had eaten their fill and our belts were far too tight on our waists, dessert would be served. Something light but delicious, coffee ice cream and gingersnaps; grandpa's favorite flavor of ice cream and his favorite cookies, truthfully I don't know if they were his favorite cookies but there was always a box of them in his cabinets.

I'm thrilled to be able to share this recipe with you and would encourage you to try it out the next cold winter day; it'll warm you up from your toes to your smile.

Here is a link to a video of me making it!

Ingredients:

Chicken:

4 or 5 cloves of garlic.

3 large onions.

3 ribs of celery, include the leaves if there are any.

2 oz bathroom cup full of dried porcini mushrooms.

1 bottle of drinkable white wine.

2 sticks of butter

1/4c of EVOO

Chicken pieces, I used 9 whole thighs for this recipe but you can use any combination of drumsticks, thighs, breasts, and wings, just make sure you have chicken with bones and skin, that's were all the flavor is

Salt and Pepper to taste.

Polenta:

A handful of grating cheese(parmesan, romano or similar)

1 cup of dry cornmeal(1 cup for every 3 to 4 people eating)

1/8 cup of milk

Salt and Black Pepper to taste

Method:

1. In a large heavy bottom stew pot melt the butter and heat the EVOO.

2. Salt and pepper the chicken and lighty brown the chicken pieces on all sides in batches.

3. While the chicken is browning, puree the garlic, onions and celery in a blender or food processor until liquified.

4. Once the chicken has finished browning, add the pureed vegetables to the pot and saute until they have reduced in volume by half and the color has changed from pale green to light brown.

5. While the vegetables are sauteing, soak the mushrooms in boiling water to rehydrate them.

6. Once the vegetables have finished cooking, add the chicken pieces back to the pot and pour in the whole bottle of wine. Remember to turn the other way while pouring it and act surprised when it's all disappeared into the pot.

7. Scrape the brown fond off the bottom of the pot and make sure the chicken is nicely nestled under the liquid.

8. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer.

9. Cook until the chicken is tender, succulent and falls off the bone. Then turn off the heat to allow the fat to float to the surface. This fat will be used to make the polenta.

10. In another large pot, add the fat from the chicken pot. Be sure to measure the amount of liquid you add. Polenta required 4 cups of liquid for 1 cup of dried cornmeal. Try your best to keep this proportion and know that it is better to have a little more liquid rather than a little less.

11. Make up the remaining liquid with water or chicken stock.

12. Bring to a boil and stir in the polenta vigorously at first to prevent lumps forming and then continue to stir over low heat for about 45 mins until the polenta is done.

13. I usually add in a handful or two of grating cheese and a splash of milk or cream.

14. Once the polenta is done, place slices of cheddar cheese on a plate, dollop some polenta on top, then top with chicken gravy and grating cheese. Serve with plenty of fresh bread. Enjoy!

Follow the meal with gingersnaps and coffee ice cream. Happy foraging!