Chef Johns Chicken Spaghetti Recipes

CHEF JOHN'S CHICKEN SPAGHETTI

Steps:

• Place chicken in a pot and pour marinara sauce on top. Add water and anchovies. Bring to a simmer, uncovered, over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer, without stirring, for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
• Transfer chicken to a bowl using tongs. Let cool to the touch.
• Meanwhile, bring sauce to a simmer over medium-high heat. Cook, skimming off the fat from the surface, until sauce is reduced by at least half, 20 to 35 minutes.
• Tear off chicken meat by hand and transfer to a bowl, breaking the pieces into your desired size.
• Add the chicken, red pepper flakes, and salt to the reduced sauce. Cook and stir until chicken is heated through, about 2 minutes. Keep on low heat while you cook the pasta.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti in the boiling water according to package instructions, reducing time by 1 minute, about 11 minutes. Drain and return to the pot; reduce heat to low.
• Add the chicken sauce and Pecorino Romano to the pasta. Sprinkle in basil and add butter. Stir until butter melts, about 1 minute. Turn off the heat and add remaining Pecorino Romano cheese. Cover and let sit for 1 minute. Stir and serve.

CHEF JOHN'S SUNDAY PASTA SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil in the bottom of a large roasting pan. Place beef, pork, and chicken in pan and turn to coat with olive oil.
• Roast in the preheated oven until meat is well browned, 20 to 30 minutes.
• Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook and stir onion with a pinch of salt in hot oil until onion is soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic; cook and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.
• Pour crushed tomatoes, 1 1/2 cups water, and tomato paste into onion mixture. Add roasted beef, pork, and chicken to tomato sauce mixture.
• Pour remaining 1/2 cup water into the roasting pan, and bring to a boil while scraping the browned bits of food off of the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Pour roasting pan water mixture into tomato mixture. Stir Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, Italian parsley, 2 teaspoons salt, ground black pepper, and red pepper flakes into tomato sauce; bring to a simmer, reduce heat to low, and simmer gently until sauce reduces and meat is tender, about 4 hours. Transfer meat to a dish. Adjust sauce seasonings to taste.

CHEF JOHN'S QUICK CHICKEN PICCATA

Steps:

• Place chicken breasts between 2 layers of plastic wrap and pound to about 1/2 inch thick. If you don't have a meat mallet, you can use a small frying pan.
• Season both sides of chicken breasts with cayenne, salt and black pepper, to taste; dredge lightly with flour and shake off excess. Alternatively, the flour can be put in a tea strainer and shaken over each side of the chicken.
• Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Place chicken in the pan, reduce heat to medium, and cook until browned and cooked through, about 5 minutes per side; remove to a plate.
• Add the capers to the remaining oil in the pan, smashing them slightly to release brine, until warmed through, about 30 seconds.
• Pour white wine into skillet. Scrape any browned bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon (or other appropriate tool). Cook until the wine is reduced by half, about 2 minutes.
• Stir lemon juice, water (or stock), and butter in to the reduced wine mixture; cook and stir continuously to form a thick sauce, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low and stir parsley though the sauce.
• Return chicken breasts to pan, cook until heated through, 1-2 minutes. Serve with sauce spooned over the top.