FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Meghan Flynn
Stew Leonard's
203.750.6106
mflynn@stewleonards.com


STEW LEONARD’S HATCHES NAKED CHICKEN

Chef Jeff Customers are clucking about the 100 percent all-natural fresh chicken that Stew Leonard’s has launched under the brand name “Naked Chicken.” The chickens are raised on family farms in Pennsylvania’s Amish country, where they are fed a pure vegetarian diet of corn and soybeans, given ample room “to streak” in the barn, and are never given antibiotics or hormones.

“We did not want anything unnatural coming between Stew Leonard’s Naked Chicken and our customers’ dinner tables, including preservatives, antibiotics or hormones,” said Stew Leonard, Jr., President and CEO of Stew Leonard’s. “You can see and taste the difference. Our Naked Chicken has a natural creamy color, is moist and juicy, with an authentic chicken flavor.”

To launch the brand, Stew Leonard’s will sample Naked Chicken in store from July 19 through July 30, featuring the product in a recipe from Stew Leonard’s Winning Recipes Cookbook. A new “Naked Chicken” walk around character, a white chicken wearing a wooden barrel similar to the product logo, will be introduced and help distribute recipe cards and coupons to customers. Shoppers also have an opportunity to “get naked” five times and “take off” $1.00 on any Naked Chicken product through newspaper FSIs (free standing inserts) and online coupons.

Americans eat more chicken than any other meat, averaging 86 pounds per person a year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. This number reflects a 22 percent increase in chicken consumption over the last decade, while beef consumption has been flat.

“Because of the increasing popularity of chicken, and consumer interest in natural and organic offerings, we felt it was important to offer our customers a 100% natural, antibiotic free chicken option that we are proud to put our name behind,” said Stew Leonard, Jr.

Naked Chicken costs $1.00 more per pound on average than conventional chicken. Stew Leonard’s will have special introductory pricing, along with the $1.00 off coupons, during the promotional period. Nine different varieties will be offered initially, including: whole chickens, roasters, boneless breasts, drumsticks, wings, legs, thighs, whole breast and split breast.

Following is one of the recipes that has been adapted from Stew Leonard’s Winning Recipes Cookbook which will be featured in the in store Naked Chicken sampling event:

Stew's Naked Chicken Piccata
Ingredients:
4 boneless chicken breasts, sectioned into equal-sized medallions
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ cup white wine, such as French white Burgundy
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon fresh flat leafed parsley, chopped


Method
Heat the butter and olive oil in a sauté pan over medium-high heat.
Sauté the chicken breasts for about 1 to 2 minutes on each side.
Remove and reserve to a platter; cover with tinfoil to keep warm.
Deglaze the pan with the wine and lemon juice, loosening all of the
browned bits stuck to the pan. Bring to a boil. Season with salt
and pepper to taste, add the parsley.
Plate the chicken breast with sauce and serve immediately.
Light candles, cue music and…..Enjoy!

Stew Leonard’s, a family-owned and operated fresh food store founded in 1969, has three stores in Norwalk and Danbury, Conn. and Yonkers, N.Y., with a fourth store planned to open in early 2007 in Newington, Connecticut. The company was named among FORTUNE magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work for in America” for the past five consecutive years. For more information, visit Stew Leonard’s website at www.stewleonards.com.

Stew Leonard's. - 100 Westport Ave - Norwalk, CT 06851 - http://www.stewleonards.com/