We are independent & ad-supported. We may earn a commission for purchases made through our links.
Advertiser Disclosure
Our website is an independent, advertising-supported platform. We provide our content free of charge to our readers, and to keep it that way, we rely on revenue generated through advertisements and affiliate partnerships. This means that when you click on certain links on our site and make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn more.
How We Make Money
We sustain our operations through affiliate commissions and advertising. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may receive a commission from the merchant at no additional cost to you. We also display advertisements on our website, which help generate revenue to support our work and keep our content free for readers. Our editorial team operates independently of our advertising and affiliate partnerships to ensure that our content remains unbiased and focused on providing you with the best information and recommendations based on thorough research and honest evaluations. To remain transparent, we’ve provided a list of our current affiliate partners here.
Culinary

Our Promise to you

Founded in 2002, our company has been a trusted resource for readers seeking informative and engaging content. Our dedication to quality remains unwavering—and will never change. We follow a strict editorial policy, ensuring that our content is authored by highly qualified professionals and edited by subject matter experts. This guarantees that everything we publish is objective, accurate, and trustworthy.

Over the years, we've refined our approach to cover a wide range of topics, providing readers with reliable and practical advice to enhance their knowledge and skills. That's why millions of readers turn to us each year. Join us in celebrating the joy of learning, guided by standards you can trust.

What Is City Chicken?

By Sheri Cyprus
Updated: Jan 29, 2024
Views: 7,912
Share

City Chicken is actually a pork and veal dish. It's said to date back to the 1930s in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, as a substitute recipe for chicken which was more expensive at the time. Cubes of veal and pork are coated, skewered and browned before being simmered in an herb flavored sauce. The completed mock chicken dish may be served over mashed potatoes, noodles or rice.

Pork and veal cubes are often coated, or dredged, in flour as well as dipped in beaten egg. Alternatively, some cooks prefer to use breadcrumbs or cracker crumbs rather than flour. The dipped and dredged meat cubes are then threaded onto wooden skewers and browned in heated oil in a frying pan, or skillet. The next step in making a basic City Chicken recipe is to create a sauce for which to simmer the skewered, browned meats until they're cooked through.

In the frying pan that the veal and pork skewers were browned in, chicken broth as well as herbs such as dried thyme and bay leaf are added. As the seasoned liquid simmers, any browned bits of meat or breading that had stuck to the pan can become lifted and blended into the sauce to add more flavor. Salt, pepper and garlic powder are also typically used to flavor the sauce. Cornstarch or flour mixed smoothly into a little water may be added near the end of cooking time to make a City Chicken sauce thick enough to spoon over the cooked meat as well as hot rice, noodles or mashed potatoes.

The pork and veal are skewered onto wooden sticks to make them look similar to chicken drumsticks. The chicken broth used in the sauce adds the flavor of chicken to the other meats. Some cooks who make City Chicken like to create a creamier sauce by adding cream of mushroom soup. Sauteed mushrooms as well as onions could also be added to the sauce.

If the cooked meats are removed from the skewers and placed onto bread slices before pouring on the creamy sauce, this open faced, hot sandwich version of the recipe may be eaten using a knife and fork. Otherwise the wooden skewers of meat may top mashed potatoes, rice or noodles that already have the sauce poured on them. City Chicken served with starch or grains plus a side salad or cooked vegetable can make a delicious, hearty and nutritious meal.

Share
WiseGeek is dedicated to providing accurate and trustworthy information. We carefully select reputable sources and employ a rigorous fact-checking process to maintain the highest standards. To learn more about our commitment to accuracy, read our editorial process.

Editors' Picks

Related Articles

Discussion Comments
By Cageybird — On Feb 03, 2014

I haven't had city chicken in years. When I was a boy in Ohio, the local grocery store meat departments actually sold city chicken cubes on skewers. I don't remember dredging it in flour, but I did pan fry it in a generous amount of butter or margarine. I'd use seasoned salt for spice.

The best part of city chicken was the texture of the meat after it was fried to a crisp. It was more tender than some other cuts of pork. I can see why it would pass as a chicken substitute.

Share
https://www.wise-geek.com/what-is-city-chicken.htm
Copy this link
WiseGeek, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.

WiseGeek, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.