This Italian-style chicken recipe from ‘Everyday Italian’ by Giada De Laurentiis is delicious and a crowd-pleaser. Easy to double, it can largely be prepped a day ahead. I like to serve it with parmesan polenta and sliced tomatoes with fresh basil, toasted pine nuts and more balsamic vinaigrette! I often buy pre-cut, bone-in chicken pieces so I can align the amount of white meat and dark meat to accommodate people’s eating preferences.
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS:
- ½ cup balsamic vinegar
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- ½ cup grainy Dijon mustard
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- ½ cup olive oil
- 4-5 lbs chicken cut up into pieces (or 5 lbs of cut up bone-in chicken pieces with skin of your choice: breasts, thighs, drumsticks)
- 2 tablespoons chopped up fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 2 -3 teaspoons grated lemon zest (from 2 lemons)
DIRECTIONS:
- Whisk the vinegar, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, garlic, salt and pepper to blend. Whisk in the oil.
- Pour marinade into a large nonreactive bowl. Add chicken pieces and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate, turning the chicken pieces occasionally, for at least 3 hours or up to 1 day.
- Preheat the oven to 400′. Roast the chicken uncovered until just cooked through, about 45 minutes. Keep warm or briefly throw on grill or under broiler to crisp up the chicken before serving.
- Carefully pour the leftover marinade and any cooking liquid into a small saucepan and spoon off the excess fat. Boil until reduced to half and thickened slightly, about 8 minutes. Add additional balsamic vinegar, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.
- Put the chicken on a large platter and pour the sauce over the chicken. Sprinkle the parsley and lemon zest over the chicken and serve.