Chicken Vesuvio is served nowhere outside of Chicago, and even many new Chicagoans are unaware of it. An aromatic, intoxicatingly garlicked dish of sautéed and baked, bone-in, skin-on parts of chicken and wedges of potato saturated with white wine and presented as a mountain on the plate, it most likely was named after a pre–World War II downtown restaurant named Vesuvio’s. One culinary urban legend has long held that it was named because it looks like a huge volcano when plated. Only a handful of restaurants continue to serve it, among them steak houses Harry Caray’s and Gene and Georgetti, as well as such Italian bastions as Il Vicinato Ristorante and Francesco’s Hole in the Wall in the suburb of Northbrook.
Chicken Vesuvio
½ cup flour
½ teaspoon pepper
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Olive oil for frying
1 cut-up frying chicken, rinsed and patted dry
4 baking potatoes, cut lengthwise into eighths, soaked in ice water
4–8 cloves garlic, minced (to taste)
1 cup dry white wine
⅓ cup chopped fresh parsley
1 cup cooked green peas
1. Mix together the flour, pepper, salt, thyme, rosemary, and oregano. Lightly dredge the chicken in the flour mixture.
2. Heat about ½ inch olive oil in a large, heavy, ovenproof skillet to 360°F. Fry the chicken pieces a few at a time (don’t crowd the pan) until well-browned, turning once or twice and allowing 15–18 minutes per piece. Drain the chicken on paper towels.
3. Pat the potatoes dry, then add them to the skillet of hot oil. Cook until golden brown all over. Remove and drain on paper towels.
4. Heat oven to 350°F. Leave about ¼ inch of fat in the skillet, but drain off the rest. Return the chicken parts and the potatoes to the skillet, crowding them in as necessary. Sprinkle with minced garlic and pour on the wine. Sprinkle with parsley. Bake uncovered 20–25 minutes, until potatoes are tender and chicken is fall-apart soft. Serve drizzled with pan juices and scattered with peas.
4 SERVINGS