Fall

Denny's Tetrazzini

by:
November 27, 2011
4.5
2 Ratings
Denny's Tetrazzini
  • Serves 4 to6 (can easily be doubled)
Author Notes

Denny Deluca was a restauranteur in the northern suburbs of Detroit some years back. His restaurant, Deluca's, was a family oriented American-Italian place serving pasta, pizza, steaks, chops etc. My mom fell in love with his Chicken Tetrazzini and eventually was able to get him to give her a cryptic recipe for it which I still have, written on the back of a paper placemat. His recipe called for a whole skinned and boned chicken cut up in pieces and skin and bones used to make stock. I've taken the liberty of using leftover turkey or chicken, leftover ham and a few stray mushrooms to make a quicker, simpler version. —inpatskitchen

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 8 tablespoons butter (one stick)
  • 4 cups bite size pieces of cooked turkey or chicken
  • 4 tablespoons instant flour (Wondra)
  • 1 cup diced onion
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup finely diced ham
  • 2 cups sliced mushrooms
  • 8 ounces tomato sauce (your favorite)
  • 1/2 cup dry Sherry
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup chopped parsley plus more for garnish
  • 3 cups chicken or turkey broth
  • 1/2 cup grated Romano cheese plus more for serving
  • 1 pound pasta such as fettucini or linguini which has been preferably cooked in chicken broth but water is ok
  • Save a little pasta water if needed
Directions
  1. Place the poultry pieces in a plastic or small paper bag with the instant flour and shake to coat the pieces.
  2. In a large saute pan, melt the butter, add the poultry and saute for a few minutes. Add the onion, garlic and mushrooms, cook another minute, then add the Sherry.
  3. Continue to cook another couple of minutes, then add the ham and tomato sauce.
  4. Stir in the parsley and broth and simmer until the mixture thickens a bit.
  5. Stir in the cheese and pour the mixture over the cooked pasta. Stir it around, adding more pasta cooking liquid if necessary. Garnish with more cheese and parsley.
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  • JanetFL
    JanetFL
  • AntoniaJames
    AntoniaJames
  • inpatskitchen
    inpatskitchen
  • GiGi26
    GiGi26
inpatskitchen

Recipe by: inpatskitchen

I think I get my love for food and cooking from my mom, who was an amazing cook. She would start baking and freezing a month before Christmas in order to host our huge open house on Christmas afternoon. I watched and I learned...to this day I try not to procrastinate when it comes to entertaining. My cooking style is pretty much all over the place, although I'm definitely partial to Greek and Italian cuisine. Oh yes, throw a little Cajun in there too!

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8 Reviews

JanetFL
JanetFL December 30, 2015
Pat, this sounds delicious - saved!
 
inpatskitchen
inpatskitchen December 30, 2015
Thank you Janet! Hope you give it a try!
 
GiGi26
GiGi26 November 29, 2011
Ahhhh haaaaa, I'd forgotten all about your mom's Tetrazzini!! But my mouth is watering as I remember having it at your house!! Will be making it soon!! Thanks for posting it.
 
inpatskitchen
inpatskitchen November 29, 2011
I haven't made it in so long but when I was assessing all the leftover turkey I thought about it and made it for Matt the other night...he loved it! ( but then again, Matt loves almost everything LOL!)
 
AntoniaJames
AntoniaJames November 27, 2011
Yummm! Thanks for posting this. Saved!! ;o)
 
inpatskitchen
inpatskitchen November 27, 2011
Thanks so much AJ..it's a great way to use up chicken or turkey leftovers, but you can certainly start with raw and just saute a little longer. I've done it both ways.
 
AntoniaJames
AntoniaJames November 28, 2011
I can easily see making this with leftover roast chicken. It's just the kind of food my sons love (and love to eat in great quantity). I plan to take out of the freezer some of the turkey I just put in there, when my boys are both back from college next month. They will love it!! ;o)
 
inpatskitchen
inpatskitchen November 28, 2011
Our son Matt is in from San Francisco and he really enjoyed this. We fried 3 extra turkeys the day after Thanksgiving and I plan to pull one out for sandwiches etc when he's back in a few weeks..I'll probably make this again also. Hope you enjoy!!