Chicken Scarpariello combines crispy chicken and potatoes, sweet fennel sausage, red bell peppers, and spicy cherry peppers in a pungent vinegar-based sauce. This sweet and sour dish is perfect for gatherings and special dinners, but so good you may just make it all the time!
Editor’s Note: Originally published on Novemener 14, 2020. Updated with all new pictures, expanded information, and improved recipe on October 4, 2024.
Chicken Scarp, or pollo alla scarpariello in Italian, translates to “shoemaker style chicken” in English, but in my experience, and after asking several restaurant staff on Long Island, the consenses is that it means “chicken with a bunch of stuff”.
This beloved dish graces the menus of many Italian family-style restaurants and each one adds their own spin; I’ve seen it made with mushrooms, green bell peppers, pearl onions, and even olives.
Despite the variations, the chicken and vinegar seem to be constants for chicken scarpariello, and are key ingredients in my recipe for scarpariello chicken wings.
Chicken Scarp is an all-in-one dish but is great alongside garlicky greens such as sauteed broccoli rabe or sauteed spinach.
Recipe Ingredients
All ingredients for this recipe are shown in the pic below and special notes are made in this bulleted list to assist you.
- Chicken. Bone-in chicken thighs are my preferred cut for chicken scarp. You can also make this with boneless skinless thighs, or chicken drumsticks. Yes, you guessed it, dark meat yields better results with this dish!
- Sausage. My go-to is Italian fennel sausage but you can also use spicy Italian sausage if the mood strikes you.
- Peppers. I love the combo of the sweet red bell peppers and hot cherry peppers. You could also include other types of vinegar peppers, such as peppadew.
- Wine. Use a dry white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to make it
Each number corresponds to the numbered written steps below.
- Preheat your oven to 425f and set the rack to the middle level. Slice 2 pounds of small potatoes in half, slice 2 large red bell peppers into 1/4″ strips, halve 15 cloves of garlic, and quarter 5 large cherry peppers, removing the seeds. Mince 1/2 cup of Italian flat-leaf parsley. Toss the potatoes with 6 tablespoons of olive oil and season with 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper and 1 1/2 teaspoons of Diamon Crystal kosher salt and spread them onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, cut side down. Roast the potatoes in the oven for 30 minutes or until nicely browned on the bottom sides.
- Cut off any excess overhanging fat from 3 pounds of chicken thighs, then dry them very well with paper towels and season with 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper and 1 1/2 teaspoons of Diamond Crystal kosher salt and set aside. Note: I like to season the thighs right before searing them in step 5 below so that they don’t wick off excess moisture, but either way will work.
- Heat a large oven-safe pan to medium heat with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 1 1/2 pounds of Italian sausage and sear until the sausages are brown, but not cooked all the way through, about 7-10 minutes total. Remove the sausage links and once cool enough to handle, slice them into bite-sized pieces and set aside.
- Add the bell pepper slices and cook for a few minutes or until they begin to soften, then set aside with the sausage and tent with foil to stay warm.
- Add the chicken to the same pan, skin side down, and sear until golden, then flip and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Use a bit more olive oil if needed and work in batches to prevent overcrowding the pan. Once seared, move the chicken to a plate and tent with foil to stay warm.
- At this point if there is too much oil or fat in the pan, discard some leaving about 1/4 cup in the pan. Add the garlic cloves and saute until golden, then add the cherry peppers and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add 1 1/4 cups of dry white wine and 3/4 cup of red wine vinegar and turn the heat to high. Boil the mixture for 5-7 minutes or until the liquid reduces by half, then scrape the pan with a wooden spoon to dislodge any brown bits.
- Add 1 1/4 cups of no-sodium chicken stock and bring to a boil until the liquid reduces by half, about 5 minutes, then turn off the heat.
- Add the bell peppers, sausage and potatoes, then toss to coat. Nestle the chicken pieces into the pan with the skin side facing up and spoon the sauce on top of everything and cover tightly with foil. Bake for 20 minutes at 425f, then remove the foil and continue to bake for another 15-20 minutes or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of at least 185-195f. Note: if the pan you used cannot accommodate all the ingredients, simply move everything to a baking dish or large roasting pan as I’ve done in the pictures below.
- When the chicken has finished cooking, add the parsley and toss to coat. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Top tips
- Use dark meat. Chicken thighs are juicier and far more forgiving to cook with. I highly recommend using them for chicken scarp over chicken breasts.
- Use homemade chicken stock. Whenever possible, I recommend using homemade chicken stock. It not only gives you greater control over the sodium levels in your dishes, but it elevates the flavor.
- Thickening the sauce. If you find the sauce to be a little thin toward the end, you can strain it and cook in a pan to further reduce. If you properly reduced it in stages, initially, this step is almost always not needed.
More chicken recipes
If you love chicken scarpariello, be sure to try these other great chicken recipes!
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Chicken Scarpariello
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (120g) extra virgin olive oil divided
- 1 1/2 pounds (680g) Italian sausage
- 3 pounds (1.4kg) chicken thighs trimmed of overhanging fat
- 1 tablespoon (10g) Diamond Crystal Kosher salt divided
- 1 teaspoon black pepper divided
- 2 pounds (908g) small potatoes cut in half
- 2 large red bell peppers sliced into 1/4" strips
- 15 cloves garlic halved
- 1 1/4 cups (300g) dry white wine
- 3/4 cup (180g) red wine vinegar
- 1 1/4 cups (300g) no-sodium chicken stock
- 5 large cherry peppers quartered and seeds removed
- 1/2 cup minced Italian flat-leaf parsley
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425f and set the rack to the middle level. Toss the potatoes with 6 tablespoons of olive oil and season with half of the salt and pepper. Spread the potatoes out onto a parchment paper lined backing sheet cut side down. Roast the potatoes for 30 minutes or until nicely browned on the bottom sides.
- Heat a large (14-inch works well) oven-safe pan to medium heat with the remaining olive oil. Add the sausage links and sear until brown but not cooked all the way through (about 7-10 minutes total). Remove the sausage links and set aside. When the links are cool enough to handle, slice into bite-sized pieces.
- Add the bell pepper slices and cook for a few minutes or until they begin to soften. Remove the peppers to the same plate with the sausage and set aside and tent with foil to keep warm.
- Dry the chicken pieces very well with paper towels and season with the remaining salt and pepper on all sides. Using the same pan, sear the chicken pieces skin side down until golden and crisp then flip and cook for another 3-4 minutes. If required use a bit more olive oil for searing. Work in batches to not overcrowd the pan. Place the seared chicken pieces on a plate and tent with foil to keep warm.
- If there is too much oil and fat in the pan, pour it out, leaving a 1/4 cup in the pan. Add the garlic cloves and saute until golden, then add in the cherry peppers and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add the white wine and vinegar and turn the heat to high. Boil for 5-7 minutes or until the liquid reduces by half. Make sure to scrape the pan with a wooden spoon to dislodge all of the flavor bits.
- Next, add in the chicken stock and bring to a boil once more and again reduce by half (about 5 minutes) then turn off the heat.
- Add the bell peppers, sausage, and potatoes. Toss to coat. Nestle the chicken pieces into the pan with the skin side facing up. Spoon the sauce on top of everything then cover the pan tightly with foil. Bake for 20 minutes then remove the foil and continue to bake for another 15-20 minutes or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of at least 185-195f.
- RIght when the chicken has finished cooking, add the parsley and toss to coat. Serve immediately. Enjoy!
Notes
- Chicken thighs are juicier and are far more forgiving to cook with. They are recommended for this dish.
- If you don’t own a 14-inch pan, the dish can be baked in a large baking pan.
- If the sauce is a little thin at the end, strain it and cook in a pan to further reduce and concentrate. This is not often required.
- Dry white wines such as Pinot Grigio, and Sauvignon Blanc both work well for the wine component of this recipe.
- Leftovers can be saved for up to 3 days in the fridge and can be reheated covered with foil in the oven at 325f until warmed through.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This recipe was originally published on November 14, 2020. It was completely updated on October 4, 2024.
As a comfort meal this is a five star I didi not change a thing, thank you Jim.
We’re so happy you enjoyed!
Thank you for a great recipe! Very favorable and easy directions! Keep recipes coming! Barbara
So happy you liked it, Barbara!
HI Jim and Tara – I am so glad you re-visited your chicken scarp — I have been meaning to write to you. There was a restaurant in East Rutherford NJ called “Jerry’s”. Jerry passed 12-13 years ago and the restaurant closed. I went there for over 20 years and only ordered the Chicken Scarp. IT WAS THE BEST. I found your website initially because I was searching for Chicken Scarp recipes. I’ve tried to make a bunch. When I found your original recipe…you had the sauce down perfect. But the crispiness was still lacking. FYI at Jerry’s they used to serve it in small cast iron pans (like a fajita cast iron dish) – so the potatoes, the chicken – everything had such a great texture – combined with that wonderful sauce. I can’t wait to try your new twist on the recipe. The sheet pan might make the difference in ingredients things crispy! Im a big fan.
Thank you for all you do.
HI Arlene, thanks for the comment and please let us know how this version turns out for you!
Hello! This sounds delicious! Could you possibly give some suggestions for where to find ‘sweet fennel sausage’ or some brand names for this type of sausage you have used in this recipe. Thanks!
Hi Lisa, we’re not sure where you’re located so can’t give you too much guidance, but your best bet would be go to a grocery store and inquire with the butcher/meat department. Where we live in New York nearly every grocery store carries Italian sausage with fennel. You may also find it at Costco (Premio brand is ok if that’s all that’s available to you), or Whole Foods. If you live near an Italian grocery store you can try that as well.
Hi guys,
Question, my wife cannot take anything too spicy. Reducing from 5, how many cherry peppers would I add to make it just a bit piquant?
Hi Joe, as with any type of hot pepper, cherry peppers can vary in heat so your best bet is to taste test yourself to see just how spicy they are and make your determination from there. You can also use sweet peppers instead of spicy if she can’t tolerate heat.
Yummy! I love a good Scarpiello! my FIL uses jarred sweet and spicy salad peppers in his version, and uses the leftover marinade as the vinegar.
I am looking forward to trying out your variation!
I love this recipe! How has the recipe improved? What’s new?
Hi Michael, the original recipe was 1 hour of cooking time so it’s a little less now. Jim improved the reduction process of the sauce so it takes less time and the sauce sticks to the ingredients better. There’s also more garlic and cherry peppers. Jim’s always looking to make things easier for readers and improve on the process.
Hi Jim and Family:
a question regarding your site.
How and where do i sign in?
I don’t see any place to do this, unless i save a recipe.
what am i doing wrong?
thanks.
Hi David, there isn’t a sign in for our website – you can access anything on our website.
I just found your postings. I’ve carefully read the recipes. I am very impressed. This is how I love to cook all the right flavors are added the instructions seem well written I definitely will be subscribing to your newsletter and can’t wait to cook with them! Bravo!
We’re happy to have you here, and thanks for the comment!
Absolutely the BEST dish I have ever made. (4 times already) Follow your recipe to a T. If you prep ahead, this dish is worth the wait!! The taste and aroma are so unique. My only wish for this dish is that I had a commercial oven and roasting pan big enough to cook for a feast!! 10 stars!
We’re so happy you’ve been loving this dish, Lorna! Thanks for the great comment!
I would rather use chicken breast. How long should it cook?
Hi Nanette, cook for less time – start checking for doneness around 45 minutes but the chicken breast should be cooked to 165f.
I made this for my wife and mother-in-law. Added a bit of the pepper brine too. Nothing but raves. 😋 Definitely will make this again.
i really loved this recipe! i’m italian american and never heard of it. my only change to it is i deboned the chicken thigh. i saw this on a japanese recipe. of course kept the skin.. i thought it would make the dish easier to eat and it did! worth the effort. skin was crispy. it was great. i did decrease the oven cooking time to 45 min.
I’m not Italian. married into the family (45 yrs now). i make this at least twice a month. we use skinless boneless thighs. so much easier. in certain recipes regarding this recipe, the addition of sausage and potatoes are sometimes considered country. Which we absolute find delicious. 🙂
The tangyness is addictive !!! I love it and now my husband is also a fan. What a job you do on recipes..It’s amazing how wonderful they taste and how I want to make so many of yours only.. I true love is italian food and will always be..
Thank you for the wonderful comment, Patricia!
Outstanding flavor and even better a day later!!
I make this weekly.. sometimes I used drums and still delicious! The best ever!
Great recipe nice to see you added all the ingredients to make it authentic.
Great recipe I have made this dish many times.
Made this last night – DELICIOUS! Your instructions are very clear and complete and make the recipe approachable for me. Thank you. I’ve made several of your recipes and they are all wonderful. I’m so glad I find your channel. I also enjoy seeing you and Tara on the podcast.
Hi Brenda, we are so happy you enjoyed the recipe and the podcast as well! Thanks for the comment!
Great dish! Struggled some with finding a lid large enough for my skillet; can I use a Dutch oven instead?
Hi Boomer, you can use a Dutch oven but what Jim often does when he can’t find a lid that fits is he’ll use foil to cover the pan. This works really well!