Serves 4
Notes
This great summer lunch dish will also give you some leftover stock to use for another meal. Reserve the cooking liquid from the chicken. After you’ve removed the meat, put the carcass back in the pot and simmer for another hour or so, and you’ve got a soup base that you can use in most of the soup recipes that call for chicken stock in the soup chapter, for an added flavor boost. I like this salad when the chicken is at room temperature, not cold from the refrigerator, but if you are making this dish for a buffet table, then chill the chicken before serving. What gives this dish its texture and freshness is the giardiniera. Giardiniera is a popular way of preserving and pickling hearty vegetables like carrots, celery, cauliflower, cippolini, and peppers for the winter and is served as an antipasto year round. It is easily made at home but you can find glass-jarred giardiniera at many markets and it is delicious.
Active Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours (includes cooling time)
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken (2 1/2 to 3 pounds)
- 2 fresh bay leaves
- Kosher salt
- 1 carrot, coarsely chopped
- 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
- 1 stalk celery, coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup fresh Italian parsley leaves, coarsely chopped, a handful of the stems reserved
- 2 cups giardiniera, drained and chopped
- 1 cup drained marinated artichoke heart quarters
- 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
- 2 heads frisee, torn into bite-sized pieces
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Directions
Put the chicken in a large pot with water to cover by about 2 inches. Add the bay leaves, 2 teaspoons salt, the carrot, onion, celery, and parsley stems. Bring to a rapid simmer, and cook until the chicken is very tender, 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Let the chicken cool in the broth.
Remove the chicken, and discard the skin. Shred the meat into a large bowl.
Add the giardiniera, artichokes, tomatoes, parsley leaves, and frisee to the bowl with the chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with the oil and vinegar, toss well, and serve.
