Chicken Riggies Recipe

You may be asking what "What are Chicken Riggies?".  Well, I am going to give you the history and recipe for the New York State dish.  My family and I love these and a lot of people, especially those not living in New York State don't know what they are. 

 

 

 

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Chicken riggies or Utica riggies is an Italian-American pasta dish native to the Utica-Rome area of New York State. It is a pasta-based dish usually consisting of chicken, rigatoni and hot or sweet peppers in a spicy cream and tomato sauce, although many variations exist.

Beginnings
The origins of "riggies" have been disputed and lost in time. Many of the chefs from the Utica area seem to have a claim to the dish, yet there seems to be no clear idea who was the originator.
In one version of the origin, Bobby Hazelton came up with chicken riggies when he and Richie Scamarto owned the Clinton House restaurant in the strip mall in Clinton. In another version, a chef from Dominique’s Chesterfield Restaurant in Utica invented riggies in the 80s.

Riggiefest
The first annual Riggiefest was held in Utica, NY, in 2005 at the Utica Memorial Auditorium. Riggiefest is a contest which determines what restaurant makes the best riggies in the area. The best riggies will win its creator the prestigious "Riggie Cup". All money made during the fest is donated directly to the YWCA. In 2008, the festival made over $300,000.
Recent Riggie Cup winners include:

• Teddy's Restaurant in Rome, NY (2010)
• Secret Garden Restaurant in Utica, NY (2009)
• Route 69 Steakhouse and Saloon in Whitesboro, NY (2008)
• Teddy's Restaurant in Rome, NY (2007)
• Teddy's Restaurant in Rome, NY (2006)
• Teddy's Restaurant in Rome, NY (2005)

Teddy's was inducted into the Chicken Riggies Hall of Fame in 2008 after winning the competition three years in a row. That year Teddy's stepped aside to allow other restaurants a chance at the title.  Teddy's winning recipe was published in Mohawk Valley Living

 

We have had Riggies from Teddy's but haven't tried the other restaurants yet.

 

And now for the recipe:

 

This is Utica, New York's specialty dish. Rigatoni (riggies) pasta is paired with chicken and spicy peppers in a creamy red/white sauce. Some other popular additions are mushrooms and black olives." — Conde54  

 

 

Original recipe makes 6 servings 

Ingredients

• 1 pound dry ziti pasta
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 2 (26 ounce) jars spaghetti sauce
• 6 ounces provolone cheese, sliced
• 1 1/2 cups sour cream
• 6 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

 

Directions

 

Step-by-step View

Directions

1.  Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add ziti pasta, and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes; drain.

2.  In a large skillet, brown onion and ground beef over medium heat. Add spaghetti sauce, and simmer 15 minutes.

3.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a 9x13 inch baking dish. Layer as follows: 1/2 of the ziti, Provolone cheese, sour cream, 1/2 sauce mixture, remaining ziti, mozzarella cheese and remaining sauce mixture. Top with grated Parmesan cheese.

4.  Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until cheeses are melted.

 

Follow this link for the Nutrition Information  http://allrecipes.com/recipe/chicken-riggies/detail.aspx

 

 

 

Enjoy!  If you try this recipe, I would love to hear your comments!