Chicken and Ziti in a Smoked Ghuda Red Pepper Sauce

Just a quick recipe today.  No tales of drunken grilling this week.  Happy Easter, Everyone!




I will admit that this is a stolen recipe, however, the place that had it is now closed (if you want to know why its closed, look for my Tapas Tirade, coming soon) so I have no problem posting it and, since I have worked this over a few times, I think I've earned the right to use it.  

Smoked Ghuda and Red Pepper Sauce 
5 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk, 3 cups heavy cream
2 cups shredded smoked ghuda cheese. 
Salt and Pepper to taste


Melt butter in a sauce pan and slowly add and whisk in the flour. In a different pan, heat milk and cream to just below boiling being careful not to burn it. Slowly add milk/cream mixture and whisk into flour/butter mixture keeping about 2 cups reserved. Slowly add cheese until desired consistency is reached. Adding the cheese will cause the sauce to thicken beyond what you expect. Use any reserve milk to thin as needed. Add pepper to taste and I like a good bit of fresh ground black as well as a small amount of red pepper flakes.

Roast 2-3 red bell peppers over coals on the grill. This can also be done over a burner on a gas stove but that is really just cheating yourself out of flavor. Roast until most of the skin is blackened and set aside to cool.  Cut off tops, de-seed and de-vein the peppers and lay them out flat on the cutting board as this will make it easier to scrape the blackened skins off. When they are scraped clean of skin, cut to a fine julienne and add to the sauce. Let this simmer for a bit to let the flavors marry.

The prefered method for this dish would be to roast an entire bird and them break it up into the dish. However, if this isnt an option, salt, pepper, and garlic powder a few breasts, sear them in an oven safe pan until golden on both sides and finish in an oven at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. Roughly chop and add to the sauce.

This recipe could use almost an entire box of Ziti pasta. If your not lucky enough to get fresh pasta locally (and currently, I am not) spend the money on a top notch pasta brand. Boil to Al Dente and add to the sauce as needed. Finish with finely chopped basil or parsley on top of the whole dish if you're serving Family Style or individually when you plate it.  

If you would like wine with this (and why wouldn't you?) it could go a couple of ways. Although there is a certain sweetness to the sauce and chicken, Reisling would work well or, my new favorite, Muscato. However, with certain underlying flavors, Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, or another dry white wine would also pair well.

Now that thats over with, I would like to invite you to send this recipe straight into freakin' orbit. 

Forget the chicken. Pack the chicken a nice bag lunch, pin a note to its coat and send it down the road. Add some extra reserve milk to thin up the sauce.  Add about 1-2 lbs of peeled shrimp and let it cook. When it is cooked, add one tub of Jumbo Lump Backfin Crab meat. SLOWLY stir in thre crab as not to break apart the lumps then serve over the Ziti or you can use Fettuccine . You will utter the phrases that tender ears should not hear. It is that freakin' good.


Party Well, Eat Better,
Rob