Chicken

The addition of goat cheese, apricots, and pesto lends a Mediterranean flavor to chicken. The pesto is made with fresh mint and almonds, rather than the usual basil and pine nuts.

The barbecued chicken pizza Wolfgang Puck first served at Spago in Hollywood inspired this quesadilla, which we serve as a special at the Market. The combination seems kind of strange to people at first, but once they try it, they love it.

For the best flavor, marinate the chicken overnight. If you're short of time, use a 15-ounce can of cannellini or lima beans instead of the dried beans. With this rich, garlicky sauce, you need only a fresh salad to complete the meal.

Even though this version of hot wings is healthier than the classic—which is deep-fried and tossed in lots of butter and hot sauce—it's every bit as tasty.

Kale goes by another name, one much more dashing, especially in Italian. Cavolo Nero, black cabbage, may not evoke superhero status, but it's close. Kale does seem invincible and it's known to make the eater more so, too. It's also called dinosaur kale (also called lacinato), maybe because its leaves look like the back of a lizard. Those thin knobby leaves squeak. Do not confuse cavolo, accent on the first syllable, with cavallo, accent on the second, or you'll be ordering black horse, and in certain parts of the world will find it. Hearty and good for the spirit. I like soaked and cooked cannellini better than canned ones.

This dish is exceptionally easy to make and worth every second. That said, there is one thing to note: Be careful when checking the chicken for doneness. The tomatoes will likely drip into the chicken. If you cut into the chicken or poke it with a fork to test for doneness, be sure it’s not the liquid from the tomatoes making the chicken look pink even if it’s not.

Weighing down a chicken with bricks seems so ancient. Did the advisors to Roman emperors hatch the slogan, "A chicken under every brick," to go along with the bread and circus motif? Brick morphed so naturally from the good earth—add water and high heat (ecco fatto, terracotta) and civilization started to build in a big way. Roman bricks were longer and narrower than present-day bricks, but any brick will do. If you have a few handy, you should wash them, let them air-dry, and wrap them in a few sheets of aluminum foil. Otherwise, you can use a heavy pan of some sort. I've used an 8-quart Le Creuset, covering the bottom with aluminum foil.

For an easy dinner party, round this out with orzo on the side, a green salad, and a light Italian red wine like Dolcetto. Finish with sorbet and chopped dark chocolate.

This hearty dish was inspired by frango na púcara, a Portuguese chicken dish that's cooked in a terra-cotta jug. We've streamlined the method, but kept all of the smoky, tangy, sweet flavors. The chicken is even better the next day, when the flavors have had a chance to meld. Serve with crusty bread.

This easy Epicurious-exclusive recipe is from Chef Dave Northrup of Rush Street in Los Angeles. It's perfect for any Super Bowl or tailgating party. Just pick up an already cooked chicken at the store, shred it, add some fillings, roll up the tortillas, and pan-fry them.

Flash frying is a high-heat deep frying technique used to rapidly fry small shrimp to avoid overcooking them before the crust browns. Flash flying requires an oil temperature of at least 400°F—which means you have to use an oil with a high smoke point like grapeseed oil. By poaching the chicken first and then flash frying it, I was able to eliminate 20 grams of fat and at least 250 calories from traditional fried chicken. Because the chicken is already cooked, it only has to spend enough time in the hot oil to brown the crust, which means it absorbs less oil.

We hit upon our favorite recipe a few summers back, when we helped out a buddy with his annual Labor Day pig roast in Connecticut. In addition to the 125-pound porker we were planning to serve, we decided we should have some chicken just in case not everyone at the party wanted to partake of the sacred swine. We got about 100 birds, halved them, and soaked them in a simple marinade of just lemon, sage, and cracked black pepper. It turned out to be one of the first times—maybe the only time—there was a pig roast where chicken was the hit of the day. What really made it special was the marinade. It lent a nice acidity to the meat, which became really tender, and the sage and lemon flavors just exploded. For the most classic presentation, roast a whole bird and carve it tableside. If you want an especially crispy, golden-skinned chicken, have your butcher halve it, and roast the halves skin side up so they can self-baste as they roast.

Enjoy this soup-stew as is or, for a one-dish meal, ladle it over brown rice. Pass the hot-pepper sauce, please!

Sue Torres puts a creative spin on Mexican flavors at her Manhattan eatery, Sueños. According to Torres, many people overcook chicken breast because they're worried about salmonella. "You're not killing bacteria, folks —you're killing flavor and moisture," she says. Because it is easy to overdo the heat with the lean white meat, it's worth using an instant-read thermometer to check for doneness (the thickest part of the breast should reach 165°F). What to pair with that perfectly cooked meat? Torres has an idea. "Chicken works well with so many seasonings , but coriander gives it a tuxedo," she says .

Kajsa Alger, chef and co-owner (with super-chef Susan Feniger) of Street in Los Angeles, isn't a fan of chicken breast. "It's my least favorite meat," she says. So if chicken breast is to make it onto Street's menu, it has to be something special. This salad—inspired by Vietnamese green papaya salad—is anything but boring.

Ana Sortun, chef-owner of Oleana in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is known for her modern interpretation of Middle Eastern and Turkish cuisine. When it comes to chicken breasts, she seeks out local, organic birds and chooses a flavorful spice rub. One of her favorite seasonings is baharat, a Middle Eastern spice mixture that includes cumin, oregano, and dried mint. Here, she pairs chicken skewers with a cooling yogurt sauce and a colorful pomegranate and pistachio relish.