Not many recipes have a birthday, but June 14 is credited as being the date of the creation of Chicken Marengo, a recipe that cooking authority Raymond Sokolov includes in his Cook’s Canon: 101 Classic Recipes Everyone Should Know.

According to Zenaide Giunta di Fiume, Napoleon Bonaparte’s great-great-grandniece, “The Emperor was not a big fan of fine cuisine; his meals were really frugal and he didn’t like to linger at the table.” Nonetheless, there is a famous recipe linked to Napoleon, created to commemorate his victory at the Battle of Marengo on June 14, 1800. 

The battle was pitched in Piedmont, Italy between French forces under Napoleon and Austrian forces under General Michael von Melas. The battle was such a great victory, the Emperor named his horse Marengo and issued a gold coin in the battle’s honor. The story goes that his chef Dunand created the recipe on the battlefield, with the ingredients plucked from a local farm. Napoleon appreciated the dish so much that it became the plate of choice after each victory. 

CHICKEN MARENGO RECIPE FROM A BONAPARTE FAMILY MEMBER

(Estate of Napoleon’s Great-Great-Grandniece)

Zenaide Giunta, owner of Le Torri di Bagnara, luxury castles in Umbria, offered for rent, shares a family recipe for Chicken Marengo and says, “All of our dishes are prepared with products from our farm and from other farms in Umbria.”

The ingredients used are: chicken from our farm – shrimp (from the river) – flour – mushrooms – tomatoes from the garden – white wine DOC from our vineyards in Tuscany – parsley from the garden – lemon  from our trees– stale bread – eggs from our hen-house – olive oil from our grove – salt and pepper

To prepare: Take a chicken, cut it in pieces, dust pieces with flour and put them in a pan to fry with abundant olive oil. Add chopped mushrooms, salt and pepper. When the meat is browned, add the tomatoes (diced), shrimp (previously blanched in white wine), chopped parsley and lemon juice. Continue cooking. In two different pans fry some slices of bread (equal to the number of diners) in olive oil. 
To serve the Chicken Marengo, place the bread in the middle of the plate, with fried eggs on top and surround with the meat pieces and sauce.

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For cooks who want measured ingredients:  

CRAIG CLAIBORNE’S CHICKEN MARENGO

1 cut up chicken, or bone-in breasts and thighs (at least 4 pieces of good size)

2 T unsalted butter

2 T olive oil

1 teaspoon dried tarragon

1 c dry white wine

2 cups canned tomatoes

3 cloves garlic, left whole but peeled

8-10 sliced mushrooms

salt and pepper

In a skillet, heat oil and butter, add the chicken and brown on all sides. Remove to a casserole dish. Drain the fat from the skillet, pour in the wine, and scrape the brownings from the skillet. Add wine to chicken. Add tomatoes, mushrooms, tarragon, salt and pepper, and mushrooms.  Place in a preheated 350 oven and bake for an hour. Sprinkle with parsley, if you wish, and serve with rice or noodles.

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