City chicken is a dish that remains popular in certain regions of the United States especially the Midwest. But despite its name city chicken contains no actual chicken. So what exactly is city chicken made of? The interesting history behind this dish provides the answers.
A Budget-Friendly Alternative to Chicken
During the early 20th century, chicken was relatively expensive in urban areas compared to other meats like pork and veal. City chicken originated as a budget-friendly way for working class families to enjoy a “mock chicken” dish using more affordable ingredients.
The exact origins are unclear, but recipes and references to city chicken appeared in newspapers and cookbooks in cities like Pittsburgh, Detroit, and Cincinnati in the 1920s and 1930s. Households would fashion skewers from scrap meats, giving them a leg or drumstick shape similar to fried chicken.
Pork is the Most Common Base
Today, pork is the most typical base meat used for city chicken, though combinations of pork, veal, and sometimes beef are also common Ground meat may be molded around skewers into a drumstick form Cubed meats are also threaded onto skewers before cooking.
Whatever the form, city chicken is breaded and fried or baked in the oven. The end result resembles fried chicken in look and taste, but without any actual poultry involved.
Regional Variations Abound
There are numerous regional variations when it comes to the preparation of city chicken:
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In Pittsburgh, it is almost always breaded and baked.
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Binghamton, New York features a fried version that is battered and deep fried.
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Cleveland style bakes unbreaded city chicken dredged in flour and served with gravy.
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The Cincinnati area enjoyed city chicken served “en brochette” (on a skewer) at upscale restaurants in the 1930s.
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A Canadian take includes skewering three kinds of meat – pork, veal, and beef.
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Some versions are made entirely from veal.
While the variations differ, pork remains the dominant ingredient in most city chicken recipes.
Convenience Products Emerge
As city chicken grew in popularity through the early 1900s, commercial products emerged to make preparation easier. Special molds allowed cooks to easily form ground meat around skewers into the classic drumstick shape.
Food companies like AMPCO sold “chicken sans volaille” (chicken without poultry) molds for making city chicken. These products made it simpler for home cooks to shape the meat while retaining the look of chicken.
Why “City” Chicken?
The “city” in city chicken refers to its origins in urban working class households as a chicken substitute. It was commonly found in cities with large immigrant populations who worked in factories, mills, and mines.
Living in crowded tenements and row houses, these city dwellers did not have space to raise chickens themselves. But city butcher shops and meat packing plants made pork, veal, and beef easily available.
City chicken was likely named as such to highlight its accessibility for urban families as an alternative to unaffordable chicken.
Remains a Favorite in Certain Regions
While less common nationwide today, city chicken continues to be a favorite dish in several regions where it first emerged like:
- Northeast Ohio
- Western Pennsylvania
- Upstate New York
- Michigan
It is often considered a comfort food and nostalgic meal in these areas. City chicken reminds long-time residents of family dinners growing up or meals at popular local restaurants.
For instance, Cleveland grocery stores still sell pre-skewered city chicken for convenient home cooking. It is also served at beloved establishments like Sharkey’s in Binghamton, NY.
A Creative, Budget-Driven Dish
What began as a thrifty meat option for urban immigrants evolved into a regional comfort food phenomenon over a century later. The unique history of city chicken showcases the creativity of home cooks making due with inexpensive ingredients.
While chicken costs less today, city chicken remains a meaningful dish celebrating the ingenuity of past generations. Its versatility and adaptation over the years proves food traditions can evolve in unexpected ways while retaining regional relevance.
So next time you encounter city chicken on a menu or recipe, consider the resourcefulness that brought this Midwest favorite into existence. With its budget-minded origins and morphing meat combinations, city chicken is a distinctive culinary tradition worth savoring.
My low carb gluten free version.
Because I am mostly a low carb blogger I of course had to make a gluten free, low carb city chicken version that you can see below. The breading is made with a blend of almond flour and a few other ingredients. You can see it pictured below.
I made it in the air fryer and it was fantastic. My family liked it just as much as my mom’s recipe. If you are on a low carb or gluten free diet this might be a good recipe to check out.
Recipe ingredients and what type of meat to use.
All you need to make this simple recipe is pork or veal cubes, eggs, seasoned breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, salt, black pepper, paprika and vegetable oil.
Classic city chicken is usually made with a mixture of lean pork and veal and not chicken. However sometimes I just use pork because it’s cheaper and easier to find. Today I stopped by a great local butcher, Lampert’s, that my friend had told me about. They had great cuts of meat and lots of delicious looking prepared food.
And there in the case was city chicken already cut and placed on wooden skewers as you can see below.
Many grocers in the area carry city chicken packs with skewers made up of a combination of pork and veal cubes ready for you to assemble.
If your grocer does not carry these, do not despair. Just find some wooden skewers and a nice piece of boneless pork and/or veal and cut it into pork cubes yourself.
Sometimes I just use boneless country pork ribs and since they are already cut into thick strips it’s very easy to cut them into cubes. And while it a bit more expensive than country ribs you can also use pork tenderloin which is more tender.
What is City Chicken?!
FAQ
What kind of meat is city chicken?
City chicken is not actually chicken. It is typically made from pork and/or veal. The meat is cut into cubes, skewered, breaded, and either fried or baked, often shaped to resemble a chicken drumstick.
Why is it called city chicken if it’s pork?
Edit: The name comes from using off cuts of meat to fake a “drumstick” like you would get from a chicken. Poultry farms were largely in rural areas whereas slaughter houses for pigs and beef were generally in the city, hence “city” chicken. (Chickens were generally slaughtered on farms and eaten fresh.)
What is the difference between mock chicken and city chicken?
City chicken is actually made with cubed pork or veal, which in the early 1900’s was cheaper and more available in urban areas than chicken was. Initially referred to as “mock chicken”, scraps of pork or veal are placed onto skewers and lightly breaded to mimic chicken drumsticks.
Is city chicken a Pittsburgh thing?
Pittsburgh has all but claimed the dish, though recipes for it have emerged in cities in the Midwest, such as Cleveland, Detroit, and Youngstown, OH.