Greek Chicken (or Lamb)

I got this recipe for Greek Chicken from the Dinah Shore Cookbook. It is attributed to Alex Karras' mother. It's one of my favorites recipes, and although it was written for chicken, I have often used it with lamb as well. I've given suggestions for the lamb version at the end of the recipe. The time posted is for the chicken; you will have to adjust the cooking time if you use lamb, based on the size and cut of the meat used.

• Ready In: 1 hr 10 mins
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 2 (2 1/2lb)  chicken, cut into serving pieces (see below for suggestions on using lamb)
•  salt & pepper
• 1⁄4 cup butter
• 2  onions, finely chopped
• 1  clove garlic, minced
• 1 (28 ounce) can whole tomatoes
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1  teaspoon sugar
• 1  dash cinnamon
• 1⁄2 cup sherry wine
• 2  cups chicken broth
• 1  cup water
• 2  cups  uncooked rice

Directions

1. Wipe chicken dry and sprinkle with salt& pepper.
2. Melt butter in a dutch oven and brown the chicken pieces on all sides; remove and set aside.
3. To the same pot, add onions and garlic and saute until onions are soft; add tomatoes, tomato sauce, sugar and cinnamon, then stir in sherry.
4. Return the chicken to the dutch oven and correct seasonings with the salt& pepper.
5. Simmer for 25 minutes, adding hot water as needed, until chicken is tender (you do want this saucy as you will need a cup of sauce for the rice, plus extra to pour over the finished dish).
6. (If you are using lamb, depending on the cut, cook longer as needed until the lamb is tender).
7. Remove from the heat.
8. In another pot, combine the chicken broth with 1 cup water and 1 cup tomato sauce in which the chicken was cooked; bring to a boil, add the rice, salt lightly, and stir.
9. Cover, lower the heat, and simmer for 20 minutes (do not uncover during cooking).
10. Remove the rice from the heat, stir gently with a fork and cover, and let stand a few more minutes.
11. While the rice is standing, if you wish, reheat the chicken.
12. To serve, pack the cooked rice into demitasse cups or teacups and unmold with the chicken on warmed plates.
13. Pour more sauce over the chicken and rice.
14. If needed, arrange any remaining chicken and rice on a platter and pour more sauce over all.
15. NOTES: I've used shoulder lamb chops, lamb stew, and shanks, but my favorite was to sometimes get a thick slice (about 1 1/2") from the leg or shoulder from a butcher; it made almost a potted lamb roast that way and was delicious sliced up and served in the same manner as the chicken.