Braised chicken thighs with "pizza" spices

August 16, 2010

Braised chicken thighs with “pizza spices”,
Cuisine a Latina, by Michelle Bernstein & Andrew Friedman, pg 180

½ cup plus 3T olive oil
8 chicken thighs
kosher salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 medium Spanish onion, diced
2 red bell peppers, cored, seeded and diced
1 shallot, minced
½ cup dry white wine
1 cup tomato sauce
3 large garlic cloves, minced
2 T chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 ½ tsp dried oregano
1 ½ tsp crushed red peppers flakes
4 jarred peperoncini, drained and chopped

Heat the oven to 350°.

In a very large skillet or Dutch oven over medium high heat, heat 1 cup of olive oil. Season the flour with salt, dredge the chicken pieces in the flour. Shake off any excess. Working in batches, brown the chicken in the hot oil, skin side down, turning once and cook in until golden brown, about 5 minutes per side. Drain on paper toweling.

Pour out the oil and gently wipe the pan. Add 3 T oil to the pan and heat over medium. Add the onions, bell peppers, and shallot. Cook until softened but not browned, about 3 minutes. Add the wine and bring to a simmer and cook until reduced by half, about 4 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and cook, for about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, parley, oregano and pepper flakes. Cook for about 5 minutes.

Return the chicken to the pot, skin side up and spoon the sauce over it. Add the peperoncini and season with salt and pepper. Cover the pot, transfer it to the oven and braise until the chicken is cooked through, 35-40 minutes.

How I did it: I used two legs and thighs, Mexican oregano, one green bell pepper and one red bell pepper. I coarsely chopped the vegetables instead of dicing them because I like them better that way. I used tapioca starch for the dredging and it was very good. I didn’t have tomato sauce, so I used 2 T tomato paste diluted with water.

I really liked this. It was very good and pretty easy to make.

I served it with Mexican Rice:

1 cup long grain white rice, soaked and rinsed
1 ½ tsp whole coriander seeds
1 ½ tsp whole cumin seeds
salt and pepper
3-5 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion diced
1 T olive oil
1 T tomato paste

Toast the cumin and coriander in a dry skillet until fragrant and slightly brown. Grind in a spice mill or coffee grinder.

Heat the oil in a pan, add the onion and garlic. Cook for a couple of minutes until soft, add the spices and stir well. Add the rice and stir to cover with the oil. Stir in the tomato sauce and add 2 cups of water.

Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and cover. Cook until the water is absorbed. Season with salt and pepper.

You can add chopped tomatoes, corn, carrots, peas to this, if desired.