When I did this for my family, I sauteed some yellow and zucchini squash slices in another dutch oven as a tasty side dish.
Mediterranean-style Layered Chicken
12” Shallow Dutch oven
10 coals below
16-18 coals above
10” shallow Dutch oven
10-12 coals below
- 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast
- Salt
- Pepper
- Paprika
- 3x 14 oz cans diced tomatoes
- Oregano
- Parsley
- basil
- Salt
- Pepper
- Garlic powder
- Cayenne (just a little)
- Lemon juice
- 1 lb ricotta
- 1/2 cup parmesan
- 2 medium Onions
- 2x 14 oz cans Artichoke hearts
- 2x 14 oz cans olives
- Fresh Parsley
- Green onions
- 16 oz grated mozzarella
While the coals were getting hot, I started by prepping the food for the layers. I began by blotting the thawed chicken breasts dry, then cutting them into 1” cubes. I seasoned the cubes with the salt, pepper and paprika, which is my go-to meat seasoning.
Then, I made the tomato mix by opening up the cans of diced tomatoes and adding in all of the seasonings in the second set of ingredients. I was pretty liberal with the flavorings, except for the cayenne, and I tasted all along the way, just to make sure that the balance of seasonings was good. Next, I mixed the ricotta and the parmesan cheeses. I actually added some feta in, too, because we had some. After that, I sliced the onions (in circles).
The last prep step was to assemble the layers in the Dutch oven. I started by spreading about a third of the tomato mix over the bottom of the Dutch oven. Then, I added these layers, in order, assembling upward:
- Artichoke hearts (drained)
- Olives (drained)
- Chicken cubes
- Cheese mix
- Onion slices
- The rest of the tomato mix
- Minced fresh parsley/green onions
- And finally, a layer of shredded mozarella
Here are some pics:
Once it was all assembled, it was just a matter of putting it on the coals and baking it for about 45 minutes. I kept some fresh coals going in the chimney and replenished the coals on the oven about every 15-20 minutes.
While it was baking (in fact, when it was almost done), I put the 10” Dutch oven on the coals, with a little olive oil in it. I sliced a couple of zucchini and yellow squashes each, and tossed them into the heated oil to sautee with a little salt and pepper. I only cooked them for about 10 minutes or so, just long enough to get hot and a little soft, but still be crispy.
Then, it was ready to serve!
Mark has discovered a love of Dutch Oven Cooking. Mark also has other sites and blogs, including MarkHansenMusic.com and his MoBoy blog.