Basque Chicken Stew

This is the Spanish (Basque) one-pot-meal equivalent to Hunter's Chicken Stew (Pollo Cattictore or Coq au vin).

Yield:
Serves 4 to 6
Category:
Chicken & Other Birds
Cuisine:
Spanish

INGREDIENTS:

  • 6 boneless chicken thighs or equivalent breast pieces
  • 1 red and 1 yellow bell peppers cut into 1/4 inch strips
  • 2 medium onions, thinly sliced
  • 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved if large
  • 1 14 oz. can of peeled whole tomatoes
  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 4 oz (150 g) dry chorizo sausage, cut into 1/4 inch (.5 cm) slices
  • 2 oz (60 g) sun-dried tomatoes in oil
  • 5 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons sweet paprika or Espelette pepper
  • 1/2 cup chicken stock
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 1 peeled orange, cut into quartered slices
  • 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon herbes de Provence
  • 2 oz (50 g) pitted black or green olives
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Start by seasoning the chicken pieces well with salt and pepper.
  2. Then, slice the bell peppers in half and remove the seeds and pith, then slice each half into 1/4 inch strips. Likewise, peel the onion and slice thinly. The sun-dried tomatoes should be drained, and then cut into ½ inch (1 cm) pieces. Peel and thinly slice the garlic
  3. In a large Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat. Sauté the onions for 2 minutes so they get a little colour. Lower the heat to medium and add the sliced peppers and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and stir in 1 teaspoon salt, the cherry tomatoes, and the can of whole tomatoes, breaking up the whole tomatoes a bit.
  4. Heat the butter with a splash of olive oil in a large frying pan over high heat. Once the butter is bubbling, add the pieces of chicken and sear on each side for about 3-4 minutes to get a golden-brown color. Lower the heat to medium, sprinkle with a dash of salt and the paprika (or piment d’Espelette) and pour in the white wine. Let simmer for about 3 minutes so some of the wine evaporates. Nestle the chicken over the vegetables in the Dutch oven. Pour the wine and pan juices from the frying pan over the chicken.
  5. Add the chicken stock, chorizo, and the sun-dried tomatoes and toss these around for a minute or two until the chorizo has taken on some colour. Continue to cook the stew for about 15 minutes. Check that the chicken is cooked through before serving.
  6. Serve with crusty bread, rice or roasted potatoes.

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