Recipe: Drunken Chicken with Olives and Polenta

Recipe

Drunken Chicken with Olives and Polenta

Serves 6

I have enjoyed several versions of this fragrant Mexican stew and particularly like this one, developed specifically to go with polenta.

3 tablespoons olive oil
8 chicken thighs (see Note below)
2 yellow onions, peeled and cut in 1/4-inch rounds
6 garlic cloves, sliced thin
3 or 4 serrano or jalapeño peppers, sliced in small rounds
1 teaspoon toasted cumin seed
1- 1/2 inch stick of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon whole black pepper corns
6 allspice berries
3/4 cup medium dry sherry
4 ounces salt-cured black olives
kosher salt
Soft Polenta, seasoned with olives and herbs (see Note below)
2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro

Place the olive oil in a heavy, oven-proof skillet large enough to hold the chicken in a single layer, and set it over medium heat. Brown the chicken on both sides and transfer it to a plate. Add the onions and sauté for 10 minutes. Add the garlic and peppers and sauté for an additional 2 minutes. Add the spices, sherry, and olives and season with kosher salt. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and place in a 325 degree F oven for 45 minutes, until the chicken is very tender. Remove from the oven and serve with Chile and Cilantro polenta or olive polenta.

Note: I prefer both the flavor and texture of chicken thighs, and use them wherever I can. However, any part of the chicken—legs, breast, or even a whole chicken cut into pieces—can be used in this recipe.

Note: Toss together 3/4 cup pitted sliced olives (for best results use a combination of Nicoise, Picholine, and Kalamata olives), 1 teaspoon minced fresh basil, and 1 teaspoon minced fresh oregano. Add to the polenta with the pepper, butter, and cheese.

From:
Polenta
by Michele Anna Jordan
Broadway Books
$19.95; 1997
ISBN 0-553-06732-X
Copyright © 1997 Michele Anna Jordan.
Reprinted by permission.