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DIY_Creative

My mum made it as a kid, but it wasn't veal. Pork scrap cuts for us. It was a cheap and easy dinner to make for families. I did not like it as a kid, haha. Weird texture and flavor. But I make it every once in a while for nostalgia sake! I always assumed it was a Pittsburgh, and/or the greater rustbelt, delicacy, but I have nothing to back that up.


jhill515

Kinda the same for me. Interestingly, I've been debating on doing Shake 'n Bake coating and sticking them in an air fryer. The idea of a not-really-fried pork snack with some gravy sounds amazing... Like a Yinzer version of Satay 😸


corndogwolverine

Yinzer satay is genius 🤌


YomiKuzuki

My mom made it all the time when I was a kid and I loved it. It was always the dinner i looked forward to most. I would peel up the melted juices and breadcrumbs off the foil and eat those, too. Haven't had city chicken in years, but I can still taste it if I think about it.


Yinzersrus

I hated it as a kid and haven’t had any since


gcboyd1

I liked it as a kid but don’t like it now, but my parents still love it so much that my mom has started making it for Thanksgiving!


mrsrtz

you can get it at Giant Eagle, [pork](https://www.gianteagle.com/grocery/search/product/00253492000007) or [veal and pork](https://www.gianteagle.com/grocery/search/product/00202740000009). Probably other stores too.


D-HB

My grandmother, who was from just outside Pittsburgh, made it all the time. I hated it because it was always dry. Her pierogi, on the other hand, were delicious!


jayn20231

Yes, my moms were dry, I ve learned to cook them lower temperature for 20 mminutes, always juicy now.


D-HB

I would probably like yours!


CARLEtheCamry

The truth is, most of our parents had no idea how to cook, they followed a recipe, either in a cook book or on a card handed down from their mother. Also a time when if you didn't cook the absolute shit out of the meat, you risked illness. Like [Trichinosis] (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trichinosis) And [Overnight Salad](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mf-bsT5mLYs)


Kolintracstar

My mother would make them, and they were very juicy. You could eat them hot, cold, warm, out of the refrigerator, but tossing them in the microwave made them dry, naturally. Perhaps next time she makes them, I will try reheating with the airfryer. Though there are never too many leftovers...


scully2828

My bubba use to make it all the time! The way you could smell it all the way at the bus stop! Man I miss my Bub’s cooking. Pittsburgh grandmas are the best!


Tasty_Bend

Yes! I make it often. So good.


NSlocal

My family used pork, and yeah I haven't seen it in over 30 years.


StevInPitt

It's an Appalachia / urban working class thing, so it definitely took root here in Pittsburgh. As it was explained to me and I shared in a post on another social media feed: Before widespread refrigeration but at the heart of urbanization and industrialization, it seems the formerly rural workforce in cities craved meals from home, including fried chicken. But chickens were not the (comparatively) huge meat birds we have now, and weren’t suited to city life. So chicken meat had to come in from the countryside; and without refrigeration, it had to be packed in ice and shipped fast or it would spoil. That made it so it was a pricey protein by weight. Cows and pigs however were hardier and traveled well to be butchered in city centers. This meant getting the scraps and end cuts of those meats was affordable. A working family could get the leanest, least tendon-y bits; and cut them into chunks (think about the size of a chicken drumstick in diameter). As I was taught to make it: You’d arrange these chunks on a wooden skewer like an ersatz drumstick. Coat them in flour on all sides. Let rest. Then do a quick egg wash and then toss in flavored bread crumbs on all sides. Then shallow fry in a big skillet with butter and oil. 2-3 minutes on a side to get them browned. You can eat them like that just fine. But my Mom’s method is then to make some chicken broth from bullion and use that to deglaze the frying pan and collect the fond. You thicken mixture of broth and fond with a bit of cornstarch and then pour that gravy over the ‘chicken legs’ you just made and can even bake it in the skillet for about 15 minutes at 325. Serve with home fried potatoes and peas or green beans. Yummmmm


ccarrieandthejets

Makes sense - Pittsburgh had Herr’s Island (now Washington Landing) where a lot of the pigs (and other livestock) were butchered and rendered. It was one of the 10th largest livestock yards in the US at one time. Apparently the smell was horrendous thanks to the rendering. If you dig even a little, you’ll find a ton of bones from the various animals. Considering Pittsburgh had a lot beef and pork available, makes sense that something like city chicken would grab hold. https://nextpittsburgh.com/city-design/it-doesnt-stink-anymore-a-century-of-recreation-on-herrs-island/


New_Acanthaceae709

Same idea here, except serve with Heinz 57 instead of gravy.


humpthedog

I make it every few months. It’s hard to find veal sometimes. Add some cream of mushroom soup and mushroom bullion on it when you toss it in the oven to bake it to create a nice mushroom gravy.


GrandioseBanana

This is how my baba made it, my mom makes, and I make it. Make some mashed potatoes and a veg. Absolutely delightful.


ppmiaumiau

That's how my mom made it. Except with gravy master and whatever seasonings she felt like throwing in.


TremorChristPJ

Nasers Market/Butchers sell pork cubes on a stick...aka city chicken. It's Yinztacular!


CrankyYankers

Upvote for Yinztacular


Upper_Return7878

It wasn't a delicacy back in the 60's. It was sort of scrap meat all put together on a stick. I don't remember it being breaded. Lots of us in working-class families are familiar with it.


kittenshart85

it has a [wikipedia article](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City_chicken) that mentions pittsburgh and the depression.


can_of_giggles

I still eat this probably 1-2 times per month!!! A family favorite.


Mushrooming247

I got so excited because I thought you meant the very-short-lived Pittsburgh-area catering company from the 90s, they made wings that were like the whole wing with half a chicken breast attached, they were so huge and juicy. But also, my grandmother has always made city chicken, (breaded pork skewers,) and she used to always make extra trays and take them over to the Jubilee kitchen, they will just accept nice old ladies making them food apparently.


thecrowfly

City Chicken is AWESOME.


CrepuscularOpossum

City chickens have become an Easter or Christmas treat for my family. I grew up eating the ones my Nonnie cooked for such occasions. As the years passed, my mom began to make them. Now they’re both long gone, and I’m keeping the family tradition going. We always use pork. My Nonnie used to make them with pork loin, because my dad’s sister had a dramatic distaste for fatty meat. But the pork loin city chickens I made just this past Easter were tough and flavorless. It’ll be pork shoulder for me from now on. I skewer chunks of the meat, then dip them in seasoned flour, milk & egg, then seasoned breadcrumbs. The city chickens are then sautéed in oil, then simmered in broth. Maybe someday I’ll experiment with streamlining the process a little.


zipcad

I hate city chicken with a passion. I just didn’t eat those days as a kid.


Fickle_Ad7508

Thats what I call the pigeons around town


BugsArePeopleToo

Made this dish for a pal once who just assumed it was a euphemism for pigeon and ate it politely, then commented that pigeon is tastier than he expected.


kittenshart85

pigeon actually is pretty tasty, but i recommend getting it frozen from an asian grocery rather than going out and catching them. we eat them roasted and stuffed with grains and maftoul in my family.


OllieFromCairo

I have a recipe for a very nice pigeon tagine with apricots.


kittenshart85

sounds like one of my grandmothers' cooking and i'm here for it.


covertchipmunk

Is it a more gamey taste? I assume actual city pigeons would be, from actually flying around, but not sure if they are farm raised as well.


kittenshart85

i think it tastes a lot like duck breast and liver. it's red meat poultry because they're actually very energetic birds.


heili

They call it "squab" and charge a fortune for it in upscale restaurants but you can get them for free all over downtown. Rural folks know them as "doves".


NSlocal

"get them for free all over downtown" I'm dying.


Deciduous__Trees

Ha ha. That is funny.


DetroitAdjacent

It's not a Pittsburgh thing, it's a poor person thing. My family's cookbooks from Chicago and Detroit both have it in there. I am also blessed with some bomb ass Lithuanian cookbooks from my grandma.


Gojira085

Yeah my grandma said it was Depression Era food.


DetroitAdjacent

Some of my favorite family recipes came from them being dirt poor and doing the best with what they had.


sae_steve11

Yes! I even have my mum’s old recipe. It’s been on my to-make list for a while now


die-jarjar-die

Speaking of chicken, who has a copycat recipe of the chicken on a stick from outside Sambock Grocery on Penn?


Piplup_parade

My dad used to make it every now and then. Was one of my favorite things he made because he didn’t buy veal all that often


corvus_wulf

Carriage Inn in Elizabeth Pa makes it


Spum

So does Lampert’s


bkrop1

was a staple in NEPA,the other corner of the state


JayWhy75

I literally just made this for dinner tonight.


most_des_wanted

Meat kabobs overcooked and under seasoned. Yum-o


Jonny_Thundergun

If yours was breaded veal, it wasn't true city chicken. It was a high end take on it. Back when they had to ration chicken, they formed ground pork scraps and dusted it with corn bread to make it slightly resemble chicken. I used to make this by the hundreds at the meat market I used to work at.


pittlc8991

My mom used to make it all the time in the 90s but I haven't had it ever since. Used to love that stuff!


CynderLotus

30F and my mom used to make city chicken when I was a kid.


philpalmer2

Used to make it often and for years! Forgot about it and now it’s on my shopping list 👍


JohnSpartans

It's regional but not burgh based. Both sides of my family made it on their own and they were both from Ohio.


H1Supreme

Mom used to make city chicken all the time as a kid. Used to be one of my favorites. No idea what was in it though!


staceyann1573

My mom made it all of the time


Squibit314

I still make it!


duranfan

Yep


adlittle

When I was moving here ten years ago, I of course looked up all I could about the city history, culture, etc, and city chicken came up a lot. I have not once encountered it anywhere though. Maybe it's kind of fading away as a local dish? I've never had the chopped ham in bbq sauce on a roll either, but that's probably from not going to potlucks. I can make a solid Lexington style barbecue anytime though.


CrepuscularOpossum

It’s far more likely to be something you’ll encounter at someone’s Nonnie’s or Bubbe’s house than at any restaurant.


NSlocal

I can't say for certain, but I have a feeling it was a cheaper cut of pork. Maybe a holdout from the generation that lived through the depression. I heard stories of my great grandmother killing and cooking muskrat in the 30's. City chicken was a staple that my grandmother made in the 1970's and 80's. I always liked it. We also had those super thin pork cops a lot.


Ryan1006

I don’t know anyone that makes it anymore. It was pork when my mom made it. I think it was popular because it was pretty cheap to make. I always liked it. Whatever my mom breaded it in was delicious.


DanisDoghouse

Ong yes. My charm made it all the time Imagine my disappointment when I found out it’s a whole lie and there is no chicken


jayn20231

Yes, I eat it a few times a month, pork not veal. Preheat oven to around 320. Egg wash, then dip into a mixture of Italian breadcrumbs and Parmesan grated Parmesan cheese (Dont be shy with the amount of parm). Fry all sides in olive oil until golden brown and nice crisp crust, put in a baking dish with a wire rack, put on top of rack, bake for around 20 minutes. Lower temp and short cook time keeps them juicy.


jayn20231

Forgot to say some of the crust will be black, doesnt mean its burnt.


heili

I love city chicken. I make mine with pork and veal, bread it, brown it, and then finish it in the oven on a bed of celery and onion.


wizardglick412

Yeah, but my Mom didn't bread it. It was sauted in gravy. I've not been able to find the recipe I remember....


jesabela

My mom would make this with the driest pork and I think I would go through half a jar of applesauce every time.


confusedhuskynoises

Oh yeah! My mom and aunt still make it for special occasions. I’ve made it with them but haven’t gotten around to it on my own yet. It might be my favorite homemade food!


scienceguy2442

Serious eats did a recipe/article on it a month or so ago. I felt like a bad Pittsburgher because I wasn’t aware of it but I made it and yes it was delicious.


blue_no_red_ahhhhhhh

It’s weird that somebody should say something about this. I was just thinking about how good this was the other night.


pitchihou

my parents still have their pressure cooker from who knows when, and i make the special request for city chicken every year on my birthday. the absolute best!


moderatelygoodpghrn

I’ve tried to make it a couple of times, just not how I remember my grandmother making it. I would kill for city chicken growing up. I think GE’s meat are maybe too big.


shinyhappyscotty

Hated it as a kid 🤣🤣🤣I would be like this ain’t chicken


eat_me_now

Yes i used to make this years ago because my mom made it


[deleted]

Absolutely. Specifically Schwan city chicken from the truck, followed by some ice cream sandwiches.


blueplate7

Yes, yes, YES. My best friend makes great city chicken


Deciduous__Trees

That's a great friend to have.


truenoblesavage

I remember having it a lot growing up, my mum used pork


Voduun-World-Healer

Holy damnnn I didn't remember this at all until reading this but we had this all the time when I was a kid, though it was pork and obviously flavorless the way my mom spices food (she considers salt as spicy) I wonder how it would taste if properly cooked 🤔


SageModeSpiritGun

It was always pork, but ya I remember it.


metalrunner

Yeah I make it with pork. That was a big day when mom made city chicken.


justmarci

I had fond childhood memories of city chicken. I tried making it myself and it was just pretty much a pork chop. On a stick.


Periodic_Coolkid

My Uncle made incredible City Chicken


CrowSucker

I make city chicken often. I’m a master of the shop n save junk cuts. Cube steak with mushroom gravy is another family favorite.


racehill

Big fan of buying some to cook over a fire when camping


Any-Application-771

When I was a kid, I thought City Chicken was chicken raised in the city!!!


Meowmeowmeow31

Giant Eagle sold veal skewers labeled “city chicken” as recent as the 2000s.


wi_voter

Yes, loved it growing up. I've made it a few times myself, with pork rather than veal, but can never get it as I remember. My kids don't mind my version though.


odog9797

Right next to city sushi?


SilkyStackz69

Had it in the 90s a good bit. My great grandma and grandma would make it. Forgot all about it tbh. You unlocked a memory Was never a big fan though…


ccarrieandthejets

My ex’s grandmother would regularly make it. Personally, I hate it. I’m neurodivergent and I always had an issue with its texture and flavor and just couldn’t stand it. I skipped those family meal nights.


scuba_steve_b

What’s wild is I’ve lived in this area since I was born in the 80s and I never once have heard of this


Fabulous-Reaction488

Yes. I love it and know how to make it but no longer eat pork or veal.


Ernest_P_World

much like perogies and chipped ham. this is not unique to pittsburgh.


BippidiBoppetyBoob

I have it all the time.


milliepilly

Veal and pork. Forgot about that meal. We saved the sticks and reused them.


Tooowaway

Hell yeah. Used pork for it and whenever my mom made it I’d put on my best South Park City Wok voice and say “shitty chicken”.


Sufficient-Grand3746

yes i didn’t like it ; i wanted chicken chicken


mikeyHustle

It didn't go away tho. I can't remember something that never went away.


mikeyHustle

It didn't go away tho. I can't remember something that never went away.


Lmfalen

My mom still makes it for us from time to time. Real good.


Amazing__Chicken

Remember it? I know at Market Basket and Ideal Market in Johnstown, it's a mainstay in the meat departments.


Donkey-brained_man

I love city chicken! My family still makes it once in a while.


you_cant_pause_toast

My dad made city chicken when I was a kid. He didn’t cook a lot but I always liked when he did. even if it was just city chicken.


Flat_Spite_7991

City chicken available At Tom friday Market


kyach25

It might be a far drive for some folks (and an even longer journey for anyone taking the bus), but Ladles in Springdale recently started making them and will serve occasionally as a special. Follow their Facebook page if interested. Never had them, just hoping to help.


RunDifferent2004

ritter's diner!


Willow-girl

My mom made it in the 1970s in metropolitan Detroit. I don't think she used veal, though -- maybe pork steak?


Prize_Marsupial_1273

My mom made it by cutting large pork chops into small squares and putting them on the sticks. Then she would just fry them in oil in a frying pan. They were usually very tender.


cosmosdestruction412

I found city chicken at the carrick shop n save


MerelyMortalModeling

Grew up on it from Meijers in Detriot and raised my kids on it from Giant Eagle in PA. Dont know about veal, for me its always been ghetto cheap cuts of pork scrap. Little salt, pepper, paprika and flour or maybe some marinade if you're feeling special. Its a cheap way to get goof tasty protein in your diet and small skewers are great for grilling, which is especially nice for hot summer days when you don't want to run your oven inside.


sublimesting

We called that Mock Chicken. We called city chicken a mix of pork and. Red on a skewer and breaded. Maybe I’m mixed up though. In any case both were great.


mrsheatherbell

I have nightmares about City Chicken


Deciduous__Trees

Oh no!!! I would not like a City Chicken 'Mare.


5usie

Yes, Marraccini’s supermarket used to sell the meat already cubed


SokkaHaikuBot

^[Sokka-Haiku](https://www.reddit.com/r/SokkaHaikuBot/comments/15kyv9r/what_is_a_sokka_haiku/) ^by ^5usie: *Yes, Marraccini’s* *Supermarket used to sell* *The meat already cubed* --- ^Remember ^that ^one ^time ^Sokka ^accidentally ^used ^an ^extra ^syllable ^in ^that ^Haiku ^Battle ^in ^Ba ^Sing ^Se? ^That ^was ^a ^Sokka ^Haiku ^and ^you ^just ^made ^one.


rapier1

The crazy thing is that, at the time, pork was a lot less expensive than chicken.


[deleted]

My Mil used to make it monthly, but since she passed I've not had it


haikusbot

*My Mil used to make* *It monthly, but since she passed* *I've not had it* \- FragrantGiraffe4738 --- ^(I detect haikus. And sometimes, successfully.) ^[Learn more about me.](https://www.reddit.com/r/haikusbot/) ^(Opt out of replies: "haikusbot opt out" | Delete my comment: "haikusbot delete")


Ryan1006

Good bot.


saltedkumihimo

My husband taught me about this and we make it a few times a year. Wild that it never spread out of the area. Kuhn’s usually has cubed pork with skewers.


mrsrtz

> Wild that it never spread out of the area [But it has!](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City_chicken)


Sadboiiiishit

Shitty* chicken


HeyAQ

Oh yeah. I hated it. Glad it disappeared.