Vinegar-Braised Chicken with Farro and Watercress by Alison Roman

For the past 8 months, the vinegar-braised chicken recipe  has sat unwritten in my blog’s Google Doc. Every time I saw the title sitting there, unaccompanied, I opted to write about another recipe. I didn’t have much to say about this chicken when I first made it, but now I’ve really put myself in a pickle because I can’t remember anything about how I made it or how it tasted. All I know is that I made it on April 5, 2021 because there’s photo evidence that tells me as much. 

What I can deduce from all of this is that the chicken wasn’t a ton to write home about. I had to skip on the farro because of my gluten-aversion, which left only watercress and a simple roasted chicken to try. This recipe also has one of the shortest ingredient lists of all of Alison’s main course dishes, leaving the burden of flavor to just salt, pepper, vinegar, garlic, and a tablespoon of Yuzu Kosho. 

Now hear me out, there are plenty of tasty chickens that use the same small amount of ingredients for flavor. But such a short list is off brand for Alison. One of her defining features is bold, in-your-face flavor. She doesn’t hold back. Which is why this recipe felt like a departure from her normal routine. 

Perhaps I’d find this chicken refreshing if I made it again. I’ll probably give it a try! If you’re reading this and felt differently, please tell me? 

216 recipes cooked, 9 to go.

Tiny Peppers with Yuzu Kosho by Alison Roman

I agree with Alison that serving tiny peppers that have been tossed in a paste also made of tiny peppers is kind of funny. Meta, even. But regardless of how odd the concept might sound, these little green dudes were surprisingly a hit. 

The recipe calls for shishito peppers: small, green, slightly wrinkly and mildly spicy peppers widely found at Trader Joes. I’ve never seen them at Whole Foods, but they seem to be at TJ’s every week. These peppers are ever so slightly more spicy than a bell pepper, and most of their kick lies in their seeds. I’m not known for having a particularly high spice tolerance, and I still felt confident enough to eat them whole (save the stem) and in one bite. Believe me, that says something. 

I tossed the peppers with olive oil, salt, and pepper before placing them over the grill, set to medium-high. I could blame this on Alison, or I could just admit that I wasn’t really thinking, but I should have known that the peppers were likely to fall through the grate. An extra 30 seconds of critical thinking could have provoked me to put a grill pan underneath them. In the end, we lost about 20% of our peppers that day. May they rest in peace. 

The survivors were tossed with several tablespoons of yuzu kosho, a tangy pepper paste, and lime juice before hitting the table. Our meal that evening consisted of smoked ribs (my father-in-law is a master), Alison’s Crushed Baby Potatoes (aka her far better version of a potato salad), the peppers, and corn bread. For dessert, we had Alison’s Sour Cherry and Sesame Galette (post to come). Toward the end of the meal, Jordan turned to me and said, “This one goes in my top 3 Alison appetizers.” So I call that a win. 

120 recipes cooked, 105 to go.