Chicken Riggies

Ingredients

• 1 Pound Rigatoni Pasta
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 5 medium cherry peppers
• 2 bell peppers (red)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 8 cloves garlic
• 28 oz can of crushed plum tomatoes (mezzatta!)
• 1/2 cup grated pecorino romano cheese

Instructions

1. Chop 5 medium cherry peppers and remove the seeds and stems.  Slice 2 red bell peppers lengthwise.  Chop 8 cloves of garlic.  Set these ingredients aside and bring a large pot of salted water (2 tablespoons of kosher salt per gallon of water) to a boil.
2. Pat 2 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken thighs dry and season with salt and pepper on both sides.
3. Heat a large pan to medium heat and sear the chicken in 2 tablespoons of olive oil until cooked through (about 5-6 minutes per side).  Place the chicken on a plate and tent it with foil.
4. If needed, add a touch more olive oil to the pan and saute the bell peppers for 7-10 minutes or until they brown a bit and soften.  Add the garlic cloves to the pan and cook for 2 minutes or until the garlic turns golden.
5. Add the cherry peppers and cook for about 1 minute.
6. Add 1 cup of dry white wine and turn the heat to high, cooking until the liquid reduces by half (about 2-3 minutes).  Using a wooden spoon, dislodge the brown bits from the pan.  At this point, add the pasta to the boiling water and cook to 1 minute less than al dente.
7. Add 1 28-ounce can of crushed plum tomatoes to the pan and turn the heat back down to medium.  Cook the sauce over a lively simmer for about 5 minutes.
8. Add 1 cup of heavy cream to the pan and mix to combine with the tomatoes.  
9. While the sauce continues to thicken, slice the chicken into bite-sized pieces.
10. Add the chicken to the pan and continue to simmer, turning down the heat a bit while waiting for the pasta to finish.  Note:  Be sure to reserve at least 2 cups of pasta water as you'll need it in a bit.
11. Once the pasta is 1 minute less than al dente, add it to the sauce and mix well to coat.  If the sauce is too thick, add a ½ cup more of the reserved pasta water and continue to cook until the pasta reaches al dente (about 1 more minute).  Turn off the heat and remove the pan from the burner.
12. Add ½ cup of grated Pecorino Romano cheese and mix to combine.  Add a touch of pasta water if needed to loosen the sauce.  Add ¼ cup of hand-torn basil leaves to the chicken riggies and serve immediately.  Enjoy!

Notes

From SipAndFeast