The Capsule Pantry: Croatian Chicken "Gregada" (Croatian Kitchen Purists, Please Don't Kill Me)

And a quick recipe for leftover parsley

Brown, boring-looking food always tastes the best

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Last year my husband and I landed in a quiet (Covid-era) Zagreb. Because dining out was restricted, I decided to spend my free time learning how to cook Croatian at home.

I scoured the internet for recipes and came across Gregada - a dish from the Dalmatian islands in the south of the country. Not very Zagrebian which is in the inland north (and feels like an entirely different country to the south), but very simple to make and, I figured, infinitely flexible. Although don’t tell a Dalmatian that.

Gregada in its purest form is layered onions and potatoes spiked with fresh parsley, lemon, garlic and wine. Meaty steaks of white fish are placed on top of the dish which is usually made in a wood-fired barbeque. The broth simmers the potatoes until they’re soft and have taken on the flavor of the meat and stock. It’s punchy, fresh and comforting at the same time.

I didn’t have a wood-fired barbeque in Zagreb. Nor did I have access to fish. So I made it with chicken but friends, it was magical.

This is now one of my favorite dishes. Simple, easy and versatile. Just how we like our recipes at S+S.

The original recipe

Serves 4