Lucia's Chicken Rigatoni
By
Jim Frigyes
@Jfrigyes
8
This is my momma's favorite dish. My uncle Gino serves this dish at his hotel on the Italian Riviera, where we stay when visiting. His chef taught me this recipe when I was only 19 years old. I've been making it ever since.
Note: This is a great recipe to use leftover rotisserie chicken. You can also substitute cooked Italian sausage or shrimp in this recipe. Gustare! (Enjoy)
Note: This is a great recipe to use leftover rotisserie chicken. You can also substitute cooked Italian sausage or shrimp in this recipe. Gustare! (Enjoy)
Ingredients
- 1 large
- onion
- 1/4 c
- extra virgin olive oil
- 2 Tbsp
- real butter
- 8 oz
- mushrooms, sliced
- 2 clove
- garlic, minced
- 12 oz
- grilled chicken beasts, cut into bite sized pieces
- 3 tsp
- minced, fresh basil (reserve 1 teaspoon for garnish)
- 3/4 c
- marsala wine
- 2 1/2 c
- heavy cream
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 lb
- rigatoni pasta, cooked according to package directions
- 1/2 c
- romano cheese - plus more for garnish
How to Make Lucia's Chicken Rigatoni
- 1Do ahead: Slice the onion into thin strips & saute in 1 tablespoon each of the olive oil & the butter over low heat until the strips are very dark brown & almost mushy - this is caramelizing the onion. This cannot be done in a hurry, so leave yourself plenty of time to let the onion slowly cook. Higher than low heat will scorch/char the onions.
- 2In a large skillet, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon butter & 3 tablespoons oil together & add the mushrooms, cooked chicken pieces, garlic, 2 tsp. basil, & caramelized onion. Saute for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the contents from the pan & set aside.
- 3Deglaze the pan with Marsala & simmer for another minute. Return the chicken mixture to the pan. Add the heavy cream & bring to a boil, then immediately reduce the heat to a low simmer, until the sauce is slightly thickened. Season with salt & pepper to taste.
- 4Add the cooked rigatoni & Romano cheese to the Marsala cream sauce & combine well to blend all the ingredients. Garnish with Romano cheese & 1 tsp. basil - serve in warmed bowls.
