I came home from work one night and wanted to make a simple chicken dish. It was late and I didn’t want to eat at 9pm. This is one of the easiest methods of making this chicken and it is delicious! This is a chicken that is loaded with flavors. You cut and throw all of the ingredients into the roasting pan and pop it into the oven. Doesn’t get any easier than that! In an hour you have dinner. With a loaf of crusty Italian bread to mop up the delicate wine sauce and accompany the olives, and a side salad, this is a very satisfying meal. Cut the potatoes small enough so they will cook quickly and everything will be browned and done in about an hour. If you have a convection oven, even better. Set it for 375 and everything will happen even faster. I love these dishes with thighs and legs but feel free to use any chicken part you and your family like.
Baked Chicken in Wine
- 4 chicken legs and 4 thighs, washed and dried
- 2 medium potatoes, cut into small pieces
- 4 whole cloves garlic, crushed
- 3 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion sliced thin
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup rinsed capers
- 1/4 cup pitted Kalamata or oil cured olives
- 4-5 peeled plumb tomatoes, chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley
- salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
In a large roasting pan add all of the above ingredients except the chicken. Mix well with your hands so everything is coated. Now add the chicken pieces in between the potatoes and onions skin side up. Bake in oven for 30 minutes. Turn the chicken skin side down and stir up the potatoes and onions and cook another 25 minutes. Turn the chicken again so it is skin side up and cook another 15 minutes until the skin is golden brown.
Remove from oven and let rest 15 minutes before serving. Top the chicken with the sauce of capers and olives and serve with the potatoes and onions on the side..
cookingitaliancomfortfood 
was this a “nonna favorite” or did you concoct it?…in any case, i’m going to make it this week. it looks easy to prepare after work & i invision it baking while i answer e.mails & ‘phone messages…nothing left to do but set the table, make a big italian salad then…tutti alla tavola e mangiamo! best, marianna ricci
Marianna, my grandmother used to make this chicken in wine, I just made it a bit more user friendly. Hope you enjoy it!
Made this for Sunday dinner. Out of this world good! My wife, Italian, said it tastes like Italy. Snapped a pic as well, would love to share.
Matt, so glad to hear you enjoyed the recipe. I’d love to see the picture. I have a facebook page “Cooking Italian Comfort Food” Like that page and you can download the picture there. I’d love to share it with my other readers.
Peter
yes, matt…you & your wife are correct. “nonna’s chicken in wine” is devine. did you love the juices [sauce] it formed? a chunk of italian bread speared on a fork, dipped into it is heavenly. it was truly a hit w/ a few friends last sunday. an impromptu invitation after church resulted in a great little dinner party…the star of the show was the chicken in wine. thank you, peter, for this easy, elegant, savory, quick, inexpensive “keeper”. god bless your nonna. marianna
Thank you Marianna!
Peter – What can I say? Another amazing recipe! So easy to make and my house smelled like heaven. My husband absolutely LOVED this! As I mentioned in my first post to you, I am cooking my way through your recipes – The Sunday Chicken was delicious and I just made a pot of Italian Wedding soup for tomorrow nights dinner. I’m thinking the bolognese next…or the veal…hmmm decisions, decisions 🙂
I actually did grow up with a full-blooded Italian grandmother, but the only thing she cooked when I was a kid were elbow macaroni with tons of melted margarine and frozen pizza bagel bites. I am laughing as type this because people would questions whether she was “really Italian” when I told them of her complete lack of cooking (those pizza bagels are still a guilty pleasure of mine… shhhhh- don’t tell). So, thank you, again, for sharing your wonderful recipes and stories. I look forward to making memories with my own family as I cook them.
~Jen
Jen, sounds like you are on the right track. I’m sure your grandmother made those pizza bagels with love! I love to hear you are enjoying my recipes. Thanks for saying so!