Recipe: Pollo in Umido alla Contadina/(Fricasseed Chicken with Tomatoes, Peasant Style)

POLLO IN UMIDO ALLA CONTADINA
(FRICASSEED CHICKEN WITH TOMATOES, PEASANT STYLE)

A 2 1/2-to-3-pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup thin-sliced onion
2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced very thin
Salt to taste
Black pepper in a grinder
1/3 cup dry white wine
1 1/2 cups fresh, ripe sauce tomatoes, peeled and cut up,
or canned Italian plum tomatoes with their juice

Wash the chicken pieces in cold water and pat thoroughly dry with kitchen towels. Choose a lidded saut pan that can subsequently accommodate all the chicken pieces without overlapping.

Put in the olive oil and onion and turn on the heat to medium. Do not cover the pan. Cook the onion until it is tender and turns a blond gold color without browning.

Put in the chicken pieces, skin side down, and the sliced garlic. Cook the chicken without turning it until it has formed a light brown crust on one side. Turn it and cook until the other side also forms a crust.

Add salt and several grindings of pepper. Put in the wine and turn up the heat. When the wine has bubbled long enough to become reduced to half its original volume, add the tomatoes, turn the heat down to medium low, and cover the pan.

Cook until the chicken feels very tender when pricked with a fork and comes easily away from the bone. If there should be too much fat left in the pan, tilt the pan and spoon off the excess before serving.

Ahead-of-time note:
The dish can be prepared several hours in advance and
kept a room temperature. If preparing it in advance, do not draw off any excess fat when the chicken is cooked.

Reheat just before serving over very low heat in a covered pan. When fully reheated, title the pan and draw off any superfluous fat with a spoon.

Serves 4 to 6
Adapted from Source: Marcella Hazan - Christmas in Cesenatico, 1945