Truman Capote's Chicken Hash.

I made this dish a couple of months ago before I went away on vacation. I have been wanting to make this ever since I saw Ina Garten make this and I was not disappointed!

Brunch on a Sunday afternoon is a great way to entertain in my books. You get to spend a casual meal with your friends then relax the rest of the evening :) Our friends Ken and Fay are in town for the next few weeks and brunch seemed like a great idea. I later found out that I was involved in a training session for interns at work the day before the brunch - I did not get home till late Saturday and still had a brunch that I had to plan for.



I went through a mental list of recipes that I have stashed away in my recipe box and settled for Ina Garten's Chicken Hash - the one Truman Capote made for his black and white ball. Chicken hash, a loaf of challah, some fresh pineapple, a couple bottles of Prosecco for mimosas and I was ready for brunch. The original recipe calls for home roasted basil stuffed chicken breast. I bought a roast chicken instead and and picked the meat of the bones of the chicken. I did not shred the chicken as I wanted medium sized pieces in the hash. I really enjoyed the flavours of this hash - especially the smoked paprika and the fresh thyme that I picked from the patio garden ( the herbs are still green).

Spanish smoked paprika comes either sweet (dolce), semisweet (agridulce) or spicy (picante). Spanish sweet smoked paprika has deep smoky flavour and a slight smokiness and this is the one that I often use. The semisweet smoked paprika has an oaky smoky flavour and tends to be a little bitter.

This is a great way to use up whats left of the thanksgiving turkey that you have stashed in the freezer.

Chicken Hash - adapted from Ina Garten

1 roast chicken - deboned

7 medium sized potato - peeled and diced
2 red onions - chopped
3 red bell pepper - large dice
5 garlic cloves - minced
2 tsp fresh thyme
2 tsp smoked paprika
1 Tb tomato paste
4 minced scallions
1/4 cup chopped parsley
3 Tb olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in large saute pan on medium heat. Saute diced potato with onions. Sprinkle salt and freshly ground black pepper until the potatoes are cooked. This will take around 15 minutes. I cooked the potatoes covered and stirred very 5 minutes. Boiled diced potatoes would work here as well.

Once potatoes are cooked, remove from pan. In the same pan, saute minced garlic and diced sweet peppers. Add fresh thyme, paprika and tomato paste. Mix well. Once the pepper starts to caramelize, add potatoes and cut chicken. Adjust seasonings and take off heat. Sprinkle scallions and chopped parsley before serving. Makes 6 servings.