Adam's Chicken Riggies

Adam's Chicken Riggies

Adam's Chicken Riggies

I really enjoy finding and preparing U.S. regional dishes--Key Lime Pie from Florida, Shrimp and Grits from Charleston, City Chicken from Polish neighborhoods in the midwest, Cheesesteak Sandwiches from Philadelphia, etc.

I found this particular recipe on the Internet and it intrigued me as it appears to be a regional dish specifically associated with the Utica/Rome area of New York State. It is a spicy pasta with chicken and red and green peppers in a creamy tomato sauce dish.

I found most of the recipes for this dish to be much too spicy for me (and there are endless variations on the Net) so I played around with the recipe until I made one that suited my palate.  My contribution was using premade arrabiata sauce. You can easily make this dish spicier by adding additional arrabiata sauce, or dried red pepper flakes. I like it just as it is in this recipe. This recipe will easily feed five to six people.

Ingredients

MARINADE

1/2 cup dry sherry (I used 1/2 cup white grape juice and 1 teaspoon wine vinegar)

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed

SAUCE:

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 medium sweet red and green pepper, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 15 ounce can Italian diced tomatoes

1 1/2 cups arrabiata sauce

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1 box (16 ounces each) uncooked rigatoni

1-1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

4 ounces cream cheese, cut up

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

1-1/2 cups grated Romano cheese

Directions

1. In a large resealable plastic bag, combine sherry, 2 tablespoons oil, garlic and oregano. Add chicken; seal bag and turn to coat. Refrigerate 1 hour.

2. Drain chicken, discarding marinade. Heat 2 tables olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chicken in batches; cook and stir until no longer pink. Remove from pan.

3. In same pan, heat butter over medium-high heat. Add peppers, onion and garlic; cook and stir until tender. Stir in diced tomatoes, arrabiata sauce, salt and pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 8-10 minutes or until slightly thickened, stirring occasionally. Add chicken; heat through.

4. Meanwhile, in a stockpot, cook rigatoni according to package directions. In a small saucepan, combine cream and cream cheese over medium heat; cook and stir until blended. Add to chicken mixture; stir in Romano cheese.

5. Drain rigatoni; return to stockpot. Add sauce to pasta; toss to combine.

6. Plate pasta and sprinkle with fresh chopped basil.

Variations of this recipe on the Internet call for a much spicier version—too spicy for me. If you want to easily control the spiciness of the recipe you can add additional arrabiata sauce to taste.

If you try this recipe, I would love for you to post a comment and let me know what you think!