Chicken Vesuvio Coming Soon

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Quick Bite

Chicken Vesuvio is a Chicago Italian-American dish made with roasted chicken, potato wedges, garlic, white wine, olive oil, herbs, and often green peas. It is crisp, garlicky, comforting, and very Chicago.

History

Chicken Vesuvio is strongly associated with Chicago, though its exact origin is a little cloudy. Some stories point to a long-gone Vesuvio Restaurant on Wacker Drive in the 1930s, while others connect the dish to broader Southern Italian cooking traditions adapted by Italian-American cooks.

What makes the Chicago version special is the combination of chicken on the bone, potato wedges, garlic, oregano, white wine, and olive oil. The chicken is roasted or sautéed until the skin crisps, while the potatoes soak up the garlicky pan juices.

The dish became a staple of old-school Chicago Italian restaurants. It sits comfortably between home cooking and restaurant comfort food: not fancy, exactly, but deeply satisfying when done right.

Chicken Vesuvio also became a technique. Chicago menus may offer steak Vesuvio, pork chop Vesuvio, shrimp Vesuvio, or simply Vesuvio potatoes. But chicken remains the classic — golden, juicy, and smelling like garlic before it even reaches the table.

Fun Facts

• The peas are partly for flavor and partly for that little pop of color.
• “Vesuvio” likely refers to Mount Vesuvius, giving the dish an Italian-sounding dramatic flair.
• Chicago restaurants apply the Vesuvio treatment to more than chicken, including steak, pork chops, and potatoes.

Where to Try

The Village at Italian Village Chicago, Illinois
A classic downtown Italian restaurant whose menu lists Chicken Vesuvio as a house specialty.

La Scarola Chicago, Illinois
An old-school Italian spot serving Chicken Vesuvio with potatoes, wine, peas, and garlic sauce.

Harry Caray’s Italian Steakhouse Chicago area, Illinois
A Chicago steakhouse institution known for its version with chicken, quartered potatoes, peas, garlic, and white wine.

Recipe

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Chicken Vesuvio Servings: 4 Prep: 15 minutes Cook: 45 minutes Difficulty: Medium Style: Illinois / Chicago Italian-American

Ingredients

For the Chicken Vesuvio

• 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs or 1 cut-up chicken
• 1 ½ pounds Yukon gold potatoes, cut into wedges
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• ½ cup dry white wine
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven: Heat the oven to 425°F.
2. Season the chicken: Season the chicken with salt, pepper, and oregano.
3. Brown the chicken: Heat olive oil in a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat.
4. Brown the chicken skin-side down until golden, then flip and brown the other side.
5. Remove the chicken to a plate.
6. Brown the potatoes: Add the potato wedges to the skillet and brown them for 5–7 minutes.
7. Add garlic: Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
8. Deglaze: Pour in the white wine and scrape up the browned bits from the pan.
9. Build the sauce: Add chicken stock and lemon juice, then return the chicken to the skillet.
10. Roast: Transfer to the oven and roast for 35–45 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the potatoes are tender.
11. Add peas: Stir in peas during the last 5 minutes of cooking.
12. Serve: Sprinkle with parsley and serve with the pan juices.

Traditional note: To make it more traditional, use bone-in chicken, white wine, garlic, oregano, olive oil, potato wedges, and peas. The chicken should be browned first so the skin stays crisp.

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