A Chicken Marengo Tapenade

Legend has it that Napoleon commissioned this dish originally after a successful military campaign near Marengo, Italy in 1800. Apparently, he sent his chef's team out to scour the local farms and countryside for what food might be available to serve at a feast to celebrate their victory. They found chickens, garlic, tomatoes and crayfish. Historians consider this story more popular myth than anything, especially since tomatoes were only starting to be eaten in the region at the time. Many in Europe continued to believe the tomato poisonous until the early to mid 1800's.

In any case, culinary folklore ran with the chicken and tomatoes theme which has endured time. My version here graces the chicken with zesty tapenade (an Italian condiment of green olives, capers and garlic), and with savory roasted red peppers.

Whatever the actual origins of this dish, this version is sure to please.

Sauce:

1 shallot, minced

2 Tbsp sun-dried tomatoes, sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp fresh thyme or rosemary, minced (or 1 tsp dried herbs)

Crushed red pepper flakes, to taste

2 Tbsp tomto paste

1 cup dry white wine

1 28 oz can fire roasted crushed tomatoes

1 Tbsp honey

2 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar

6 skin-on, bone-in chicken breasts, trimmed

6 Tbsp olive tapenade

1 jar roasted red peppers, cut into strips

Prepare the sauce in a medium pot. Sauté the shallots and sun-dried tomatoes in a dash of olive oil for about 5 minutes over medium heat, stirring often. Add the garlic, herbs and red pepper flakes and cook another 2-3 minutes, stirring often.

Add the tomato paste and cook another 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, to darken the paste and deepen its flavor. Stir in the wine, tomatoes, honey and vinegar and bring to a gentle boil. Lower to the lowest, gentle simmer you can achieve. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook for at least 20-30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375F. Brown the chicken thighs, skin-side down until well browned.

You may need to do the browning in batches - better not to crowd the pieces in the pan for the best browning. You don’t need to cook the thighs completely through as they will bake in the oven.

Place about a half inch depth of tomato sauce in a 9x13 baking dish. You may not use all the sauce - save for another use. Nestle the chicken thighs, skin-side up in the sauce. Spread each thigh with a tablespoon of tapenade.

Now layer the red peppers among the thighs.

Bake for about 30 minutes.

Serve over pasta if desired. Serves 4-6.

Comments

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