Photo: Spicy Braised Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 8 pieces chicken (2 breasts cut in half, 2 thighs, 2 legs), skin removed
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 carrots, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 onion, cut into chunks
- 2 celery stalks, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled and cut into 8 wedges
- 1 habanero chile
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed
- 2 dry bay leaves
- 12 sprigs fresh thyme, tied into a bundle
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
- 1 tablespoon concentrated gravy sauce (recommended: Gravy Master)
For the Brown Gravy:
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Chicken giblets
- 1/2 cup diced onion
- 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cups chicken stock
- Coconut Rice n' Peas, recipe follows
Directions
Preheat a 7 1/4-quart Dutch oven on medium-high heat, then melt butter and add oil. Season chicken generously with salt and pepper and sear until golden on both sides, about 8 minutes. Remove from pot and set aside. Add carrots, onion, celery, and apple, the whole habanero, garlic, bay leaves, and thyme. Season with salt and pepper and saute until they start to soften, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add wine and let reduce by half, scraping up any brown bits remaining on the bottom of the pot. Nestle chicken into pot and add enough broth to almost cover the chicken, about 1 1/2 cups and the gravy sauce. Cover and simmer for 1 hour 45 minutes or until chicken falls off the bone. In the last half hour, remove the lid and let liquid reduce.
To make the gravy: In a medium saucepan, melt butter with oil over medium high-heat. Add giblets and brown on all sides, about 6 minutes. Add onion and continue cooking another 5 minutes, until onions start to soften. Add flour and stir, cooking another 3 to 5 minutes. Whisk in the stock. Bring to a simmer and strain. Discard giblets and put gravy back in the pot. Season with salt and pepper. Keep warm on the stove and add to braised chicken once it's cooked.
Serve Braised Chicken over Coconut Rice n' Peas
Coconut Rice n' Peas:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups long-grain rice
- 1/2 cup coconut milk
- 1 (12-ounce) can pigeon peas, drained and rinsed
- Freshly ground black pepper
Heat olive oil in a medium pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and salt and saute, until onion becomes translucent and tender, about 5 minutes. Add rice and saute another 2 minutes to toast rice. Add coconut milk and fill saucepan with enough water to cover the rice by 1/2-inch or measure by placing your thumb tip on the rice and filling the pot with water until the water reaches the middle of your thumbnail. Bring rice to a simmer, cover and cook until rice is tender and liquid has evaporated, about 15 to 17 minutes.
Remove from heat and let rice stand another 5 minutes, covered. Fluff rice with fork and then fold in pigeon peas. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
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By roanes_5563660
Winter Park, FL
on January 24, 2013
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My husband is from Barbados, so this needed to be very good for me to avoid getting the side-eye from him...and he loved it! I followed the directions with three exceptions. One, I did not cut up an entire chicken but rather used two whole breasts cut in half and four thighs...all on the bone with the skin taken off. Two, I did not have (and I don't like giblets so those didn't go into the gravy. Third, I supplemented extra flavor in the gravy by adding hot madras curry powder. The result was delicious! The chicken fell apart to the touch, so although you had to pick out some small bones, it worked for this rustic dish. The only criticism I have is my coconut rice required much more liquid than noted. I've used much better coconut rice recipes...substitute your own but don't make plain rice! The subtle coconut flavor and creamy mouthfeel are perfect with this spicy dish. And don't wimp on the habanero. Just one will give you a nice balance of heat and sweet. Highly recommend!
By Eateatgurl
Sonoma, CA
on April 05, 2012
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This dish is super delicious!!! I don't care where exactly it originated but my husband and I love it! The first time I made it, I listened to some reviews, unfortunately, that it was not spicy enough, so I put 3 habaneros with all the seeds in. It was delicious but we burned our mouths. The next time I made it, I used red pepper flakes instead and it came out great as expected. I also used red wine because I ran out of white and the result was the same. I really couldn't tell the difference. The total cook time for me in the oven was only an hour and the chicken pieces were already tender. So that's 40 mins covered and 20 mins with the lid off.
For the gravy, I never used giblets since my husband and I have an aversion to innards. I used chicken soup base and added sauteed veggies (bell peppers, carrots, celery & onions since the veggies in the stew have pretty much turned into mush. I will definitely make this in a family gathering and wow everybody!
By NewlyDomisticated
on February 29, 2012
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The dish was very flavorful. Husband really enjoyed it. And said rice was perfect. I followed all the directions exactly, except I did not add pigeon peas to rice. Will make again!!!
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