Name: Agrodolce Chicken With Fennel and Celery Gremolata
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 1 3½–4-lb. whole chicken; 2 Tbsp. plus ¾ tsp. Diamond Crystal or 1 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. Morton kosher salt, divided; plus more; ¼ cup raw almonds; ½ cup red wine vinegar; ¼ cup honey; 1 small Meyer lemon or regular lemon; 1 small fennel bulb, cut into ¼" pieces; 1 small red onion, cut into ¼" pieces; 3 celery stalks, cut into ¼" pieces; 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped; 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling; 2 oil-packed anchovy fillets; ½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes; 2 tsp. chopped oregano, plus more leaves for serving; ¼ cup dry white wine; ¼ cup coarsely chopped parsley; ¼ cup coarsely chopped Castelvetrano olives; 3 Tbsp. coarsely chopped drained capers; Freshly ground black pepper; Flaky sea salt

A plate of Agrodolce Chicken with a bowl of Fennel and Celery Gremolata from Irwins restaurant in Philly

Photograph by Jutharat Pinyodoonyachet

If your mental image of a gremolata involves mostly parsley, this version of the condiment—which is part topping, part side dish—will come as quite the surprise. Sure, there’s some fresh herbs in there (both parsley and oregano), but the bulk of the chunky, spoonable mixture is finely chopped fennel, celery, red onion, and a whole lemon, rind and all. Olives and capers add a briny note, and toasted almonds provide welcome crunch. You’ll find yourself coming back for scoop after scoop, even after the chicken is gone.

The agrodolce part of this recipe, which hails from chef Michael Vincent Ferreri of Irwin’s in Philadelphia—one of our 10 Best New Restaurants of 2022—appears in two places. First the mixture of honey and red wine vinegar, cooked until thickened and syrupy, coats the cooked and carved chicken for a final stint under the broiler, where the skin gets blistered and crisp in spots. Then you’ll add any drippings from the pan to the remaining agrodolce to bulk it up and add some meaty complexity. Don’t be shy when drizzling this over the final plate—it’s deeply flavorful and takes the chicken to the next level.

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