I'm Thinkin' Chicken

As far as I can tell, you can't have too many chicken recipes to choose from, especially when they're easy and tasty.  A good roasted chicken goes with just about any side dish which makes it a great choice when you don't feel like getting super creative.  Last night I made Roasted Chicken Thighs with Lemon and Oregano from bonappetit.com.  I'm a sucker for anything that entails lemon and oregano so it's no wonder this recipe caught my eye!  Even though I was challenged for decent lighting, I think my pictures will show that mine came out just as (OK, almost as) pretty as their picture.  And I don't have a single food stylist on hand.  I'm sure if you decide to try this recipe, yours will look just as good too.

This recipe calls for four large or eight small chicken thighs.  You want the skin on but the bones out if possible.  I had bones in mine so I had to cook them longer than the recipe advised.  The thighs are seasoned with salt and pepper.

Place them skin side down in a large skillet coated with a tiny bit of oil and cook over medium heat until cooked half way through.  Keep an eye on the grease, you'll need to pour the excess off a few times while it's cooking.  I like this pan for that reason.  That little lip on the sides kept me from making a big mess.

While those are cooking, thinly slice a half of a lemon and cut the other half into wedges.

This is a good time to get some rice (or whatever side you're having) started.  I was planning on brown rice with this dinner but we didn't have quite enough so I made long grain white rice instead.  This is my cute little rice cooker.  I love this thing.  I know, you can cook perfectly good rice in a pot on the stove but this one cooks for the perfect amount of time and then switches to warm.

Once those thighs are cooked halfway through, they go into a 425 degree oven with the lemon slices.  I guess I didn't take any pictures of that.  Once I put that in the oven I cleaned up some Brussels sprouts.  You know I love me some Brussels sprouts.  I made a pound of them last night but I think going forward we need to make 2 lbs or close to it.  Everyone in this house is way into them now.  These are tossed with a small amount of olive oil and salt and pepper.  When the chicken comes out of the oven, pop these in for about 12 min, flipping halfway through.

While you're waiting for the chicken to finish, prep the sauce so you're all ready to go.  Open a bottle of dry white wine...

mince a shallot, and some garlic.  The recipe called for 1/2 clove of garlic.  As if.  I used a whole large one.  You will also need a couple of sprigs of fresh oregano.  There is also some low sodium chicken broth in the sauce.

You cannot miss with this combo of ingredients.

When the chicken comes out of the oven, remove the thighs to a plate so you can work on the sauce.  Look how perfectly brown and crispy that skin is.

To make the sauce, you add the shallot, garlic and oregano to the pan and cook for about a minute before adding the wine.

Let the wine reduce by half, then add the broth and cook until slightly thickened.  Add salt and pepper to taste and squeeze the remaining lemon in there.  I am telling you, this smells fantastic!

When your sauce is ready, place the thighs back in the pan to get get them rewarmed.  And that's it.

Click here for the recipe and enjoy a lovely home cooked meal this week.