Mains
Chicken Kokkinisto
Κοτόπουλο Κοκκινιστό
Kokkinisto (pronounced ko-kin-oh-sto) refers to the method of cooking in tomato sauce. In Greek, kokkino ( κόκκινο ) means red and kokkinisto ( κοκκíνιστο ) means reddened. Chicken Kokkinisto is a simple dish that comes together in just one pot and is sure to be a home cooking staple. When serving, the rule is to have 2 potatoes per person (unless you’re Caitlin, who gets 3 potatoes per serving). Whether you mash up your potatoes, keep them whole or drench them in lemon, there's no wrong way to enjoy this dish.
Main
Ingredients
- 1 cup canola oil
- 1 whole chicken, portioned
- (or chicken marylands broken into
- drumbsticks and thighs)
- 12 medium/large potatoes,
- peeled and cut in quarters
- 3 tablespoons of olive oil
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons cracked pepper
- 1 cinnamon stick, broken into large
- pieces (or a generous sprinkle of
- cinnamon powder)
- 1.5 tablespoons tomato paste
- ½ cup lemon juice
- (the juice of approximately 2 lemons)
Method
- Heat up a splash of canola oil in a large, deep pot over a medium high heat
- Place your chicken into pot and cook for a few minutes until golden brown but not cooked all the way through. Remove chicken from the pot and set aside
- Add one cup of canola oil to the pot over a medium high heat. Once the oil has warmed, add potatoes and shallow fry. Be careful with this step and avoid handling the potatoes too much. There has been many a burn in Yiayia’s kitchen
- Once potatoes are golden brown, remove them from the pot and set the potatoes aside. Pro tip: strain the oil and keep it in a jar in the pantry. The starch from the potatoes makes this oil excellent for making schnitzels and crispy potatoes (see pages 52 and 83).
- Keeping the pot on the stove but with the heat off, place the browned chicken at the bottom of the pot and place the potatoes on top of the chicken
- Pour olive oil over the chicken and potatoes, or re-use your canola oil from before.
- Cover the chicken and potatoes with cold water, ensuring all of the pot’s contents are submerged
- Add salt, cracked pepper and cinnamon
- Turn the stove on high heat to bring the chicken and potatoes to a boil. Once boiling, reduce to a low heat to simmer
- Once simmering, add tomato paste to your liking. You can adjust the amount you use until you reach the desired colour. Yiayia likes to have hers bright red, using around 1.5 tablespoons. It’s not called Kokkinisto for nothing!
- Add lemon juice straight after the tomato paste
- Let it simmer for around an hour, or until the potatoes go soft
- Serve and add salt and lemon to taste