One of my FAVORITE spicy Italian dishes. Chicken Scarpariello is the perfect dish to eat with a loaf of Italian bread to soak up all the delicious flavors of this sweet but slightly sour sauce.
If you love this Italian chicken dish you will love these meals too: Chicken Pizzaiola, Restaurant-Style Chicken Marsala, or Restaurant-Style Chicken Saltimbocca.
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What is Chicken Scarpariello
Chicken Scarpariello is a classic NY Italian-style chicken dish served with a combination of sausage, peppers, and chicken. It is a sweet and sour vinegar-forward dish and depending on the type of peppers you use, can have a bit of a kick! But it's not quite as spicy as my Spicy Chicken Saltimbocca but it does have the tanginess of Chicken Piccata.
It combines two of my favorite things: sausage and crispy chicken skin. It is a classic New York Italian dish like Escarole and Bean Soup that will have people begging for this recipe to share with friends and family.
Whatever they call it, this dish is unbelievably tasty. The sauce is liquid gold and serving it without a loaf of Italian bread or some Crispy Garlic Parmesan Potatoes would be a sin!
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Vinegar. I like to use the vinegar from the cherry peppers. The recipe on Serious Eats does the same. It's a perfect vinegar for the sauce. It's a great way to eliminate waste, plus it's tasty. But it does make the dish a bit spicier, so if you're not looking for spicy, try using white wine vinegar instead.
- Peppers. While going through the testing phase of this recipe, I tried cooking it with a lot of different peppers and I saw people use all different peppers including cherry peppers, bell peppers, peppadew peppers, or even homemade pickled Italian peppers. Use what you like or what you have. I love sweet and hot cherry peppers because my mom used to cook with them all the time in the winter when she would make Spicy Chicken Riggies.
- Chicken. This dish calls for a skin-on bone-in chicken thighs. Bone-in chicken thighs have so much juice that when they braise in the oven they add a ton of flavor to the sauce without becoming dried out. This is similar to Easy Chicken Cacciatore.
- Sausage. I like to use a combo of sweet(mild) and hot Italian sausage. It's a preference thing and you could substitute whatever variety of sausage you prefer.
*Please see more information about ingredients below in the recipe card.
How to Make Restaurant-Style Chicken Scarpariello
Chicken Scarpariello is a really easy one-pan style Italian dish that is great for serving a crowd.
Crispy Chicken Thighs
To get the crispiest chicken skin, we'll start by trimming the chicken thigh skin so that it only covers the top of the chicken thigh. Then pat it down with a paper towel until dry. Season chicken thighs liberally with salt and pepper on both sides.
Step 1: Start with your dutch oven on the stovetop on medium-high heat. Add the olive oil. Once shimmering, place your chicken thighs in with the skin side down. Sear the skin for 8 minutes without moving. When you flip them the skin should be golden brown. Sear the other side for 3-4 minutes and then remove and set aside (The chicken will not be cooked through).
Step 2: Place the sausage in the dutch oven and sear on each side for 3 minutes. Try to roll the sausage to the next side before it starts to curl. The sausage should brown on all the edges as shown above. Remove and set aside (The sausage will also not be cooked through).
Preheat the oven to 400℉.
The Peppers and the Sauce
Step 3: Lower the heat to medium and add oil to the pan if necessary, but some oil should remain from the sausage and chicken. Add your green pepper and onion. Saute until soft about 5 minutes.
Step 4: Add the garlic and saute for another minute.
Step 5: Stir in the cherry peppers and vinegar (or cherry pepper juice if you like it spicy) until combined. Add 2 tablespoon lemon juice and the white wine.
Step 6: Bring the sauce to a simmer and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the chicken back to the pan. Cut the sausage into thirds and add back to the sauce.
If the sauce is not enough, you can add some chicken broth. It should go halfway up the chicken thigh. Place the dutch oven in the oven for 20 minutes or until the chicken reaches 165℉.
Step 7: Remove the dutch oven from the oven. Check the temperature of the meat before removing.
Step 8: Remove the chicken and sausage from the dutch oven. Add cold butter to the sauce and combine. The sauce should become opaque as shown in the image above.
Stir in the parsley and basil with another squirt of lemon. Pour the sauce with peppers and onions over the chicken and sausage and serve with crusty Italian bread or roasted potatoes.
Try our delicious Italian Cast Iron Pork Tenderloin if you're looking for another one-pan meal!
Pro-tips
- Pat the chicken thighs thoroughly with a paper towel to remove all of the water before searing. Any remaining moisture will create steam. When searing the chicken thighs, it is best not to move them at all during the process to develop the best crust. Be mindful of the smoking though. If the chicken appears to be creating a lot of smoke, it is likely burning. Lower the heat and check the chicken.
- The sauce can be very spicy if you use the pepper juice. If your family does not like spicy, I HIGHLY recommend using white wine vinegar. It gets spicier on day two, especially the meat. As the meat sits in the juices overnight, this dish takes on more flavor and spice which is great but not ideal for kids. Be mindful of the level of spice.
- This is a dish that is often just as good or even better on day 2. It's a sauce that develops more overnight! Prepare for delicious leftovers!
Serving for a Large Group
Chicken Scarpariello is absolutely delicious and I highly recommend braising it in a dutch oven, but it can be hard to serve large groups of people if you have to fit all of the chicken in a dutch oven.
If you had to cook more chicken thighs and sausage, follow the recipe the same all the way up to simmering the sauce. Sear the chicken and sausage in batches when necessary to not overcrowd the pan.
Then place the chicken and sausage on a baking tray and pour in some sauce and peppers onto the pan. Cook the chicken for 15-20 minutes. Continue simmering the rest of the sauce in the dutch oven. When the chicken reaches 165℉ remove the pan from the oven.
Place the chicken and sausage on a serving dish or an aluminum tray. Add the remaining sauce to the tray. I do this similarly when I'm making Restaurant-Style Chicken Francese, Chicken Rollatini, or Restaurant-Style Chicken Marsala for a big group!
Recipe FAQs
Scarpariello means shoemaker's chicken for which the true reason is unknown but if you ask any Italian they'll give you an answer like they read it out of a dictionary. Some believe it has something to do with the dish being thrown, or cobbled, together, like a shoemaker or cobbler.
The spiciness all depends on the peppers you choose. If you don't like spicy, make this with sweet cherry peppers instead of hot/
Restaurant-Style Italian Classics
Please leave a comment and star rating below in the recipe card! I love to hear what you think of our recipes. Feel free to tag us on Instagram @vindelgiudice.
📖 Recipe
Chicken Scarpariello
Equipment
- 1 dutch oven
Ingredients
- 4 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs
- 4 Italian sausage, mild or hot
- 1 green bell pepper, sliced
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, sliced
- 4 sweet cherry peppers
- ½ cup white wine
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 2 tablespoon parsley, minced
- 10 basil leaves, julienned
- ¼ cup white wine vinegar or vinegar from the cherry peppers
- salt and pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoon butter
Instructions
- Season chicken thighs liberally with salt and pepper on both sides. Start with your dutch oven on the stovetop on medium-high heat. Add the olive oil. Once shimmering, place your chicken thighs in with the skin side down. Sear the skin for 8 minutes without moving. When you flip them the skin should be golden brown. Sear the other side for 3-4 minutes and then remove and set aside. (The chicken will not be cooked through.)
- Preheat the oven to 400℉. Drain any leftover juices from the chicken onto the plate with the chicken. Place the sausage in the dutch oven and sear on each side for 3 minutes. Remove and set aside.
- Lower the heat to medium and add oil to the pan if necessary, but some oil should remain from the sausage and chicken. Add your green pepper and onion. Saute until soft about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for another minute. Stir in the cherry peppers and vinegar (or cherry pepper juice if you like it spicy) until combined. Add 2 tablespoon lemon juice and the white wine.
- Bring the sauce to a simmer and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the chicken back to the pan. Cut the sausage into thirds and add back to the sauce. If the sauce is not enough, you can add some chicken broth. It should go halfway up the chicken thigh. Place the dutch oven in the oven for 20 minutes or until the chicken reaches 165℉.
- Remove the chicken and sausage from the dutch oven. Add cold butter to the sauce and combine. Stir in the parsley and basil with another squirt of lemon. Pour the sauce with peppers and onions over the chicken and sausage and serve with crusty Italian bread or roasted potatoes.
Notes
- When searing the chicken thighs, it is best not to move them at all during the process to develop the best crust. Be mindful of the smoking though. If the chicken appears to be creating a lot of smoking it is likely burning. Lower the heat and check the chicken.
- None of the meat will be cooked through until it goes into the oven. I still use an instant-read thermometer to make sure that the temperature is right when I finish cooking them.
- The sauce can be very spicy if you use the pepper juice. If your family does not like spicy, I HIGHLY recommend using white wine vinegar. My son spit this out immediately because of the spice level.
- It gets spicier on day two, especially the meat. As the meat sits in the juices overnight, this dish takes on more flavor and spice which is great but also not great for kids. Be mindful of the level of spice.
Chuck
Made this tonight and it was terrific. I wish the chicken had a little more flavor. Seemed a bit bland. The sauce was amazing so any tips are much appreciated.
Vinny
This sweet and spicy chicken dish is one of my family's favorite rustic meals. Please enjoy!