← Nouns Cooking · Greek

Ingredients

• 1.6 kg chicken pieces on the bone (skin on or off)
• 80 ml Olive oil
• 2 Onion, finely chopped
• 4 cloves Garlic, chopped
• 80 ml dry red wine
• 2 tbsp Tomato purée (paste)
• 400 g tin crushed tomatoes
• 2 tsp sweet paprika
• ½ tsp Chilli flakes
• 1 Cinnamon stick
• 3 whole cloves
• ½ tsp ground allspice
• 1 pinch Nutmeg
• 2 bay leaves
• 600 ml hot water or chicken stock
• 500 g bucatini or thick spaghetti
• 80 g Kefalograviera or kefalotyri cheese, grated, to serve
• Salt
• Black pepper

Method

1. Season the chicken. Heat the oil in a wide casserole over medium-high heat and brown the pieces for 4–5 min per side until golden. Set aside.
2. In the same oil, cook the onions over medium heat for 6–8 min until soft. Add the garlic, tomato paste, paprika, chilli and all the spices and stir for 1 minute until fragrant.
3. Pour in the wine and let it bubble for 1 minute, then add the tomatoes, bay leaves and hot water. Return the chicken and bring to a gentle simmer.
4. Cover and cook on low for 50–60 min, turning the pieces once, until the chicken is very tender and reads 75°C (165°F) by the bone. Uncover for the last 10 min if the sauce needs thickening.
5. Meanwhile, boil the pasta in salted water until al dente, drain and toss it with a few ladles of the sauce.
6. Serve the pasta with the chicken on top, more sauce spooned over and lots of grated cheese.

Tips

• Corfiots also make pastitsada with beef or rooster; beef needs about 2 hours of simmering.
• Pecorino is a good stand-in for kefalograviera.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Dimitras Dishes Real Greek Recipes Dimitras Dishes