Chicken Thighs Braised in White Wine & Pancetta Green Beans

Martha Stewart is kinda one of my idols. Despite her shortcomings (*ahem* jail time), she has some pretty darn good recipes. One of her recipes that I just tried out was this chicken dish. Of course, me being myself, I modified it, but it still turned out great! I just like to complicate things in the kitchen.

Martha's recipe had the base ingredients covered but I wanted more! I added extra veggies such as carrots, celery and onion. I love extra sauce on EVERYTHING (I mean who doesn't?) so I left most of the ingredients the same except cut the amount of chicken in half. It tasted like a cross between a spring coq au vin and a deconstructed chicken soup. Whatever you want to call it, I couldn't get enough! I hope you decide to make it for dinner one night.

Ingredients:
4 bone-in skinless chicken thighs
Salt / Freshly ground pepper

3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, diced
3 carrots, sliced
2 stalks of celery, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 tsp fresh thyme
1 lemon, cut into 8 thin slices, plus fresh
lemon juice
2 tbsp cold butter
3 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
Cooked rice, for serving (optional, but necessary in my opinion)

Directions:
1. In a 12-inch skillet with a tight-fitting lid, arrange thighs, bone side up; season with salt and pepper. Cook until slightly browned, about 5-7 minutes. Put chicken aside on a small plate. Add onion, carrots, celery and garlic to the hot pan (add more oil if necessary). Saute vegetables for about 10 minutes until softened. Add chicken thighs back into pan along with the wine and fresh thyme. Bring to a boil; reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook, 30 minutes.

2. Turn chicken bone side down. Place a lemon slice on each piece; cover and continue simmering until tender and cooked through, about 15 minutes. Add a few more splashes of wine if you'd like (personal touch HAHA). Add butter, parsley and lemon juice (to taste but I added the juice of one whole lemon); stir until butter has softened and sauce is smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Serve chicken with sauce and, if desired, rice. Serves 2 with leftovers.

My leftovers consisted of vegetables and rice only -  which was so good the next day for lunch! I am a rice fanatic just like my mother. (Love you mama!) Because the lemon and wine flavors had the chance to soak into the rice overnight, it actually tasted better... For those of you who do not like chicken thighs (aka dark meat), you can certainly try this out with white meat chicken breasts. I happen to really like the flavor that the chicken thighs have, especially with the bone in. If you try it differently, please let me know the outcome - I love hearing cooking stories - good or bad!

When I made this dinner, I also made a lovely side dish of Pancetta Green Beans from my go-to girl Dorie Greenspan. This recipe came from her cookbook, Around My French Table, which I've made my case in previous posts on why to buy it. (i.e. Salted Butter Break-Ups, Savory Cheese and Chive Bread and Banana Bundt Cake) In staying true to my "French Friday's with Dorie" cooking club, I will not be posting that recipe but you can e-mail if you are interested in replicating it. Of course I own the book - that and 100+ others (womp womp).

Dorie Greenspan wrote, “This simple dish is made special with the addition of a little sauteed pancetta.  It adds a speck of saltiness, another texture, and elements of elegance and surprise.” I could not have said it better. Tutti Mangia!