Pollo alla Nissena | Sicilian “Fried” Chicken Recipe

Chicken isn’t the most popular meat in southern Italy (“why eat chicken when you have pork?”), so it isn’t every day that we get to share a traditional pollo preparation. This is an excellent exception, courtesy of the Sicilian city of Caltanissetta. The end result is a lemony, cheesy chicken with a crispy crust that seems like it must have come out of the fryer. There’s no frying here, though! The chicken is cooked using an unusual process of boiling, marinating, and baking to achieve similar results.

A Note on the Vegetable Broth

Before baking, the chicken is boiled in a vegetable broth. You can make the broth using an assortment of just about any vegetables you have on hand, such as potatoes, tomatoes, zucchini, onion, celery, carrots, etc. Cut the vegetables into big chunks and place them in a large pot of water, and you’re ready to go.

Watch the Pasta Grammar Video

Pollo alla Nissena Recipe

Makes: 4 to 6 servings

Cook Time: 1 ½ to 2 hours

For this recipe, you will need:

• Assorted vegetables for broth (see above)
• 4 chicken thighs, skin on
• 4 chicken drumsticks, skin on
• Salt
• Grated zest of 1 lemon
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 2 tablespoons (30 milliliters) extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano, or to taste
• 1 ½ cups (150 grams) dry, plain breadcrumbs, or as needed
• ½ cup (50 grams) grated pecorino Romano cheese, or to taste
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
  

Place the vegetables (see above) in a large pot and fill with water, leaving enough space to add the chicken later. Bring to a rolling boil, then add the chicken thighs and drumsticks. Generously salt the broth. Bring the broth back to a boil and cook for 25 to 30 minutes.

Remove the thighs and drumsticks from the broth and arrange the chicken in a deep dish, ideally just large enough to hold all the pieces so that the marinade can be most effectively applied. Sprinkle the chicken with the grated lemon zest.

In a small bowl, stir the lemon juice, olive oil, and oregano together. Drizzle this mixture over the chicken and let it marinate for 30 minutes, turning the pieces occasionally so that the chicken is evenly seasoned.

Preheat a convection oven to 395°F (200°C) or a conventional oven to 410°F (210°C).

In a rimmed dish, thoroughly mix the breadcrumbs, pecorino cheese and black pepper. Place a chicken piece into the breadcrumb mixture and generously bread it on all sides, pressing the crumbs in so they stick well. Place the breaded chicken onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and repeat to bread the rest of the chicken pieces.

Drizzle the chicken with olive oil and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the crust becomes golden and crispy.

For best results, serve warm and fresh (although leftovers are pretty darn good, too).

Buon appetito!