In the mid 19th century, as mechanical milking of dairy cows became a thing, veal was much cheaper and more widely available than chicken. Thus was born the “veal bird” or “city chicken”, a recipe designed to simulate poultry. One of my favorite dishes as a boy, I make this recipe semi-frequently, though I usually make “pork birds”. Today, for the first time, I brought it full circle and used chicken breast, thus making the amusingly-named “chicken birds”.
