If you’re like most North Americans, it’s a safe bet that roughly three nights a week you’re having some form of chicken for dinner. Chicken is the food that dominates the center of our plates, with per capita consumption now topping 90 pounds. That figure has more than doubled since 1970, and beef consumption has declined as a result.

Poultry does not share this place of honor in Italian homes. The country ranks about twenty countries behind the United States in poultry popularity. However, most regions have some wonderful chicken dishes, and those are the recipes you’ll find in this chapter. Many of the chickens are cooked in red wine and can be served with it at the table too. The “white wine with white meat” approach is not part of Italian cuisine. At the end of the chapter are a few recipes for turkey, which is not a traditional meat in Italy, and duck too.