I want to address the dilemma of an unruly condiment collection. There are two of us in my household, and we love food, but I might say that we love condiments most of all. This includes pickles, mustard, syrups, sauces, squeeze tubes, anything jammed, canned, brined or fermented.

We spent seven months between 2021 and 2022 in a one-bedroom apartment with a mini fridge and two hot plates. Our greatest lament? Not the short shower stall or child-sized kitchen sink. Rather, the lack of space for sauces. We seriously considered getting another mini-fridge just for the bottles and jars we collect. (I promise, there are reasons one needs four to five types of mustard at all times.)

It’s not an issue of forgetfulness, no, there are no doubles in our collection. And I don’t see this as a bad thing. I like to think it’s an ever-present excitement and opportunistic outlook. Something comes home with us wherever we go. We’ll say, “It’s local!” “It’s a regional favorite!” “It will go really well on eggs!” to justify the purchase of yet another $8.99 bottle. We can’t escape this habit. And if you’re someone like me who gets fixated on the next bottle you’ve acquired, that sixth jar of smoked mustard is going to sit there for many, many months more.

To deal with this ever-growing collection, I have to find ways to fit this assortment of jarred goods into more meals. I was inspired to make Providence-style calamari after watching “The Great American Recipe” on PBS. One of the contestants routinely makes that dish for his fellow firefighters, and he talked about it enough that I had to try it. It was a success, and the only thing left after devouring the crispy tentacles and caps was half a jar of hot cherry peppers.

In turn, that inspired the recipe for Chicken Vinegar Bread. In addition to that mega jar of hot pickled cherry peppers, you’ll use half a sourdough loaf and bone-in chicken thighs. This recipe has turned into a comfort staple. It’s schmaltzy, vinegary, crunchy and soft, burnt and browned, with just enough heat to warm your face and belly.

I recommend any whole loaf of bread for this recipe over pre-sliced. This is for two reasons: 1. Getting to rip and tear the bread is truly cathartic, and 2. It’s a bit like the joy of English muffins, where most of the pleasure comes from the peaks and valleys, the nooks and crannies created from tearing the bread apart rather than slicing through the crumb. If your loaf end got stale, sprinkle it with a bit of water and set it in your oven at 450 degrees F for 5-7 minutes until it’s crusty and soft enough to pull apart.

This recipe would work for any spicy pickle kicking around in your cabinet or fridge. Pepperoncini, giardiniera or drop peppers all work. I would avoid standard pickles as cucumbers are 96% water and will steam rather than brown.

We pull this recipe out whenever the dreamy thought of schmaltzy bread chunks crosses our minds. Or, when the spicy pepper collection has gotten out of control. Like many favorite dishes, you can make it in an hour and it requires only two pans.

Chicken Vinegar Bread

I use coarse kosher salt for this recipe. If you only have table salt, or another variety, I would season this dish to your liking and scale back my recommended amounts.

Serves 4

5 cups torn bread, 1 ½-inch chunks (about half a baguette)
9 whole garlic cloves
1/2 yellow onion, sliced thin
1 small red bell pepper, sliced thin
1/2 cup sliced hot banana peppers
8 pickled whole sweet cherry peppers
5-6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon butter
Salt and pepper
4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs

Heat your oven to 400 degrees F.

Toss together the bread, garlic, onion, peppers and olive oil in a large bowl. Season the mixture with salt and pepper, roughly 1 teaspoon of salt and 12-15 cranks on the pepper mill. I like to mix this with my hands to make sure the bread fully absorbs the olive oil, but tongs also work well.

Spread your bread and pepper mixture evenly over a large sheet tray and bake for 12 minutes while you prep the chicken. I used a 12 x 17 standard tray, but any large, flat dish with sides will do. You want the most surface area to avoid steaming any of the components.

Set a large sauté or fry pan over medium-high heat. I used a non-stick pan, but a steel pan or cast iron will also work. While the pan heats up, pat the chicken thighs dry with a towel, rub the skin side with a teaspoon or less of olive oil, and generously season both sides with 1-1.5 teaspoons of salt total and a few cranks of pepper per thigh.

Add your teaspoon of butter and nestle the thighs in the pan skin side down, turn the heat down to medium and sear until golden brown. Don’t touch them! Seriously, unless you need to take a little peek towards the end, or want to swirl the rendering fat around the pan, leave them be. They need time to do their thing. This should take roughly 8-9 minutes. Remove the thighs from the pan and deglaze with a bit of the banana pepper vinegar from the jar, just a couple of tablespoons. Stir around to remove the fond (the browned bits stuck to the pan), and pour the reduced liquid over the bread.

Pull your bread tray from the oven and give it all a good stir. Spread the mixture evenly across the tray again and place the chicken thighs, placed a few inches apart from one another, on top of the bread. Return the tray to the oven. When stirring, I try to pull the darker, crunchier pieces of bread from the edges back to the middle to make sure they absorb more of the chicken juice and fat.

After 10 minutes, pull the tray, give everything a good stir again, and check the temperature of the thighs. Whatever hunks of bread were under the chicken, make sure they rotate to the edge of the pan to cook through.

Bake for 5-10 more minutes, or until the thighs reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. Pull your chicken onto a plate to rest, and continue roasting your bread and peppers until the bread has golden brown bits and the garlic has completely roasted. Pour a couple tablespoons of water over the bottom of the pan while still hot and scrape up the pieces of bread and onion that are sticking. This isn’t a saucy dish, but you do want to get the best of the browned bits!

Divvy up the bread, peppers, and onions on your plates and serve with the thighs. If you can resist eating the bread chunks while plating, all power to you! I’ve yet to make it to the table without snagging bite after bite of these chickeny, bready delights.

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MEET THE COOK, Rachel Getz

Food has always been a big part of my life; my parents baked bread, made cheese and continue to ferment and create magic in the kitchen today. I grew up with elaborate family holiday meals, all of the table leaves were needed for the gathering of extended aunts, uncles and cousins.

Now, I cook for my partner and myself at our home in Portland where we eat at the sweetest little table for two. We pull from all sorts of cookbooks, our shelves heavy with a variety of cuisines waiting to be cooked. My favorite lately has been “The Folk Art of Japanese Country Cooking,” although it can’t fully solve the creative dilemma of tackling multiple pounds and varieties of potatoes from our winter CSA. I might have to look at other Home Plates recipes for inspiration!

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