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This Chicken Vesuvio is made with simply seasoned, crispy-skinned chicken thighs simmered to tender perfection in a lemony white wine sauce. The dish is finished with peas and served over crispy roasted potato wedges.
Equally delicious and sure to round out your repertoire of chicken dishes, check out my recipes for Chicken Marbella and Crispy Air Fryer Chicken.
Growing up, one of my favorite dishes was the classic chicken Vesuvio. It features these amazingly juicy chicken thighs that are seared to a gorgeous golden brown and simmered low and slow in a white wine sauce packed with lemony flavor, garlic, and hints of oregano. The result is tender and flavorful chicken that is served with crispy roasted potatoes along with the sauce and a smattering of green peas for the perfect pop of color.
Similar to my baked chicken thighs with potatoes or even our garlic sauce chicken, this Italian dish is a fantastic choice for busy weeknights. It provides us home cooks with a reliable go-to recipe that is both delicious and easy to prepare. I really hope it becomes a favorite in your home, as it definitely is in mine!
Why You’ll Love This Chicken Vesuvio Recipe
- Simple Ingredients: In the classic Italian way, this dish uses simple and few ingredients that all shine through beautifully in the finished product.
- Juicy: Every bite of chicken is so tender and absolutely saturated with all of the lemony, garlicky goodness of the sauce. It’s some of the best chicken I’ve ever had.
- Versatile: This Vesuvio chicken recipe is just light and bright enough to serve as a summer entree but also has enough richness to make it a wonderfully warming wintertime meal. It’s a year-round favorite.
What Is Vesuvio Chicken?
Vesuvio-style chicken is an Italian-American dish. It came to be in Chicago but is named after the famous Mt. Vesuvius in Naples, Italy. The dish includes perfectly seared chicken seasoned simply with salt, pepper, and oregano and finished in a garlicky white wine-lemon sauce with peas. The result is a flavorful chicken dish that is served over golden brown potatoes.
Recipe Ingredients
From chicken pieces to potatoes, chicken Vesuvio combines all the essentials of classic comfort food. Below, you’ll find everything you need to bring this delicious meal to your table.
- Bone-in skin-on chicken thighs – You could use boneless skinless thighs, drumsticks, legs, or chicken breasts, but be aware that the cooking time will vary.
- Yukon gold potatoes – Yukon golds are ideal for roasting as they hold their shape well.
- Seasoning Mix – Salt, Ground Black Pepper, and Dried Oregano
- Chicken Stock & Dry White Wine – The combo of chicken broth and white wine forms the base of the rich and flavorful sauce. For the wine, I usually grab a Chardonnay or a Pinot Grigio.
- Garlic – You’ll need 10 fresh garlic cloves for this classic recipe.
- Olive oil – Used to sear the chicken thighs. Canola, avocado, and vegetable oil are okay to use.
- Butter – Flavors the sauce and cuts through the tang of the lemon juice and wine.
- Frozen Peas – You could also use fresh peas or canned peas. Green beans or chopped asparagus are great alternatives.
- Lemons: I highly suggest using fresh lemons here as opposed to bottled lemon juice.
How to Make Chicken Vesuvio
Whether you’re serving this as a weekend family meal or as a part of a festive gathering, this dish is very impressive with its rich flavors and satisfying deliciousness.
- Roast the potatoes. Toss the potatoes in a roasting pan with the salt, ground black pepper, oregano, olive oil, and lemon juice, and roast at 425˚F for 25 minutes.
- Sear the chicken. Season the chicken with sea salt, ground black pepper, and oregano, and sear in olive oil over medium-high heat for 2 to 3 minutes on either side for a browned, crispy skin. I like to use my cast iron skillet for this recipe. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.
- Make the sauce. Sauté the garlic in butter; add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add the white wine and cook to evaporate a bit. Reduce the heat to low.
- Finish it off. Stir in the chicken and the lemon juice. Cover and cook for 25 minutes, adding the peas 10 minutes before the cooking time is up.
- Serve. Serve the chicken and peas on top of the potatoes with the sauce, and garnish with fresh parsley.
Recipe Tips
- Chicken Cuts: A chicken Vesuvio recipe is traditionally made with bone-in breast and leg quarters. However, I used bone-in chicken thighs. If you’d like to use other cuts, you can, but keep a close eye on the internal temperature — 165°F for breasts and between 180 and 185°F for drumsticks ensures the chicken is cooked perfectly. Or, you know, save the chicken breasts for chicken saltimbocca so that everyone knows you’re an Italian cuisine genius!
- Pat the chicken dry. If you want succulent, crispy-skinned chicken, I encourage you to pat your chicken dry with a paper towel before searing it. Removing excess moisture from the meat will allow the chicken to sear instead of steam, giving it that nice, golden brown you’re looking for.
- Don’t crowd the pan. When browning the chicken, make sure that each thigh has plenty of room to wiggle. If you crowd the pan, the temperature will drop. As a result, the chicken will steam instead of sear and will likely release its juices. This is always key when making a saucy chicken recipe, which benefits from a good sear to develop its rich flavors.
- Scrape the pan. When you add the stock to the pan, scrape the bottoms and sides to get any browned bits into the sauce. They contribute greatly to the flavor of the sauce.
- Let the wine evaporate. After adding the wine, let the alcohol cook off for a couple of minutes before reducing the heat to low. If you’d like to avoid the wine altogether, use extra chicken stock instead.
Serving Suggestions
I love pairing this delicious chicken dish with my homemade Italian salad dressing drizzled over a fresh green salad. You could also try this tomato burrata salad or my green goddess salad. Pair it with these skillet zucchini and mushrooms, air fryer carrots with honey balsamic glaze, or these awesome roasted artichokes.
Sop up the delicious lemony, garlicky sauce with a slice of slow cooker basil pesto bread, whole wheat focaccia bread, or these low carb keto garlic breadsticks.
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
- To store: Cool completely before transferring the chicken and potatoes to an airtight container; keep it refrigerated for 3 to 4 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
- To reheat: If the chicken is frozen, allow it to thaw in the refrigerator before proceeding with the following instructions. To reheat, arrange the chicken Vesuvio on a sheet pan, cover with aluminum foil, and bake at 350˚F for 10 to 15 minutes or until heated through.
More Chicken Dinner Ideas
- Roasted Spatchcock Chicken with Vegetables
- Chicken in a Pot with Lemon Orzo
- Italian Dressing Chicken
- Mozzarella Chicken in Tomato Sauce
- Creamy Cilantro Chipotle Chicken
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Chicken Vesuvio
Ingredients
For the potatoes
- 2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, quartered lengthwise
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 lemons, juiced
For the chicken and the sauce
- 4 large bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 10 cloves garlic, smashed
- 1 cup chicken stock
- ½ cup dry white wine, or ¼ cup chicken stock if you would prefer not to use alcohol
- 2 lemons, juiced
- 1 cup frozen peas
- ⅓ cup chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
Instructions
For the potatoes
- Prep. Preheat the oven to 425˚F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Season the potatoes. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine the potatoes, salt, ground black pepper, oregano, olive oil, and lemon juice. Toss to coat the potatoes evenly.
- Roast. Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown and easily pierced with a fork.
For the chicken and the sauce
- Season the chicken with salt, ground black pepper and oregano.
- Sear the chicken. Heat the olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken thighs, skin side down. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until the skin is golden brown. Flip the chicken and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside, leaving the drippings in the pan.
- Saute the garlic. Add the butter to the pan. Once it has melted, add the garlic cloves and sauté until aromatic.
- Make the sauce. Add the chicken stock to the pan. Bring the mixture to a boil, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the white wine and cook until evaporated, about 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to low.
- Finish cooking the chicken. Return the chicken to the pan and squeeze the lemon juice over it. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the frozen peas. Cover and simmer for an additional 10 minutes or until the juices from the chicken thighs run clear.
- Serve. Serve the chicken and peas over the potatoes with the sauce and garnish with fresh parsley.
Notes
- Chicken: Usually, chicken Vesuvio uses a quartered chicken, including the bone-in breast and leg. But, for ease, I went with bone-in thighs. If you prefer other parts, that’s fine; just check the internal temp — aim for 165°F for breasts and 180-185°F for drumsticks to make sure it’s fully cooked.
- Potatoes: I like using Yukon gold potatoes, but any baking potatoes will work, including russet.
- Peas: Canned peas work just as well in most recipes that call for fresh and frozen. I suggest rinsing the canned peas before adding them to the pan 5 minutes before the dish is done.
- Pat dry the chicken first for a crispy skin.
- Don’t overcrowd the pan when browning the chicken to prevent it from steaming.
- Use fresh lemons for the lemon juice.
- Leave behind the chicken juices in the pan for extra flavor. Scrape the pan to mix any browned bits into the sauce.
- Let the wine cook off for a few minutes after adding, or use more chicken stock instead.
- Leftovers: Cool completely before transferring the chicken and potatoes to an airtight container; keep it refrigerated for 3 to 4 days.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
