Braised Chicken Thighs With Greens and Olives

Name: Braised Chicken Thighs With Greens and Olives
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 1 1/2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs; Kosher salt and black pepper; 2 tablespoons grapeseed or canola oil; 1/2 red onion or 2 to 3 medium shallots, thinly sliced (about 1 cup); 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced; Pinch of red-pepper flakes (optional); 1 to 2 bunches sturdy greens, such as dandelion, escarole, Swiss chard or kale, roughly chopped (about 8 cups); 1 1/2 cups chicken stock, plus more as needed; 1/3 cup green olives, pitted and roughly chopped; 2 tablespoons raisins; 2 tablespoons finely chopped Italian parsley (optional); Flaky salt, for serving (optional)

By Colu Henry

Total Time: 40 minutes
Rating: 4(1,045)
Notes: Read community notes

In this quick and comforting one-pot, stove-top meal, chicken thighs are browned, then simmered with sturdy greens. When they're in season, pleasantly bitter dandelion greens are lovely here. But any structured greens with a tendency to wilt when cooked, like escarole, kale and even Swiss chard, will work here, so feel free to use whatever you have on hand. Olives and raisins, tossed in at the very end, add some salty and sweet notes. Round out the meal with a loaf of crusty bread — it's perfect to sop up this brothy braise.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

1½pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
Kosher salt and black pepper
2tablespoons grapeseed or canola oil
½red onion or 2 to 3 medium shallots, thinly sliced (about 1 cup)
2garlic cloves, thinly sliced
Pinch of red-pepper flakes (optional)
1 to 2bunches sturdy greens, such as dandelion, escarole, Swiss chard or kale, roughly chopped (about 8 cups)
1½cups chicken stock, plus more as needed
⅓cup green olives, pitted and roughly chopped
2tablespoons raisins
2tablespoons finely chopped Italian parsley (optional)
Flaky salt, for serving (optional)

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
Season chicken thighs well with salt and pepper. In a large heavy-bottomed skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken thighs, skin-side down, and cook undisturbed until nicely browned, about 5 to 6 minutes. Flip and brown the other side, about 4 to 5 minutes more. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
Step 2
Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the pan and return to medium-low heat. Add red onion, and cook until it begins to soften, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add garlic and red-pepper flakes, if using, and cook for 30 seconds more.
Step 3
Add chopped greens to the pan and stir, tossing to coat in the residual chicken fat. It may seem like a lot of greens, but they will cook down. Add the chicken thighs and any juices that have accumulated back to the pan and lay them on top of the greens. Pour in enough of the chicken stock to come up to the chicken about halfway. Bring the chicken to a gentle simmer. Partly cover and allow the chicken to finish cooking through, about 20 minutes more.
Step 4
Stir in olives and raisins and cook uncovered until they are warmed through, and the raisins are nicely plumped, about 1 minute more. Garnish with parsley, if using, and serve. Season with flaky salt, if desired.

Ratings

4 out of 5

1,045 user ratings

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Cooking Notes

Karen5 years ago

To me, skin-on is for the benefit of the browned bits. Therefore I skin the chicken after browning and before simmering, avoiding the rubbery piles of fatty chicken skin but getting the flavor benefits.

Chris6 years ago

This was very good. Next time I will make the following adjustments: cover the plan completely (recipe says partially), cook the thighs 30 minutes, and add the greens about 5-10 minutes from the end.

A distant observer6 years ago

Saved this recipe and made it on a whim after getting home late Sunday from a weekend trip. It was unbelievably good. Used shallots (doubled the recommended amount) and kale. 20 minutes is maybe a little short for getting the thighs cooked through, but it was incredibly flavorful. Definite keeper that I will make again and again.

candie alice5 years ago

I loved this recipe. The grown ups at my house also enjoyed it. And, not only healthy it is diet worthy. I used boneless thighs, a combo of kale and a small amount of mustard greens, castelvetrano olives (these are the only olives I like). I also served roasted broccoli and cauliflower as the side. No one trusted the raisins, but we all ate them.

Heidi Smith5 years ago

Easy to assemble. I made it with a combination of chard and kale and use a dry white wine instead of broth. My husband and I loved it - I'll make it again. It is a neat dish to make ahead - double the ingredients for company.

Andrea4 years ago

I had just purchased a pound of swordfish when I saw this recipe. I cut it into 3 serving pieces, dredged in flour and seared in olive oil no more than 2 minutes per side. Followed the rest of the recipe, using Tuscan kale and half the broth, and added the fish back to the pan for the last 10 minutes of cooking time. The swordfish stood up well to the flavors in the dish. A big hit at the dinner table.

Tabitha4 years ago

This was incredibly delicious. I followed another reviewer's note and removed the chicken skin before braising. (Saved it though; chopped it up, and added to bowls when serving - so crunchy and salty!) I also doubled the red onion and added some roasted sweet potato at the end. Next time I'd double or triple the golden raisins and go heavier on the broth. Served with fresh baked rosemary bread.

Renee5 years ago

Made with skinless boneless thighs to cut down a bit on the fat content and to speed up cooking time. No need to add any extra oil, the thighs rendered plenty of fat. Also didn't needeto pour off fat as suggested in Step 2. I also didn't have a cover for my pan (mid move) and the chicken still cooked through to 165 degrees in the 20 mins. Meal was delicious! You can also easily double the amount of chicken and greens (kale for us removed from the stem).

Jeanette5 years ago

This was fabulous. Doubled the amount of garlic and added some extra shallots as well. Omitted the raisins and added extra olives. Stunning amounts of flavour and a bit elegant for how easy it was to throw together!

easy and delcious weeknight dish5 years ago

Made this with skinless boneless thighs and it was still delicious (if not as pretty as the pictures!). Used curly kale. Came together quickly and wasn’t super hands on which I appreciated. Served with crusty bread and it was perfection!

Elizabeth5 years ago

This was very good and fast. I made it with drumsticks, which we prefer to thighs, so that required more like 30 minutes of cooking. Also cooked uncovered for a little while at the end to concentrate the flavors in the sauce a bit more. Really, really good.

Janilouise4 years ago

Loved this recipe, next time I will add the greens later in the braise as suggested in a previous note. My chard ended up a little soupy.

Happygardener5 years ago

There are many fabulous chicken thigh recipes on the NYT Cooking website. This, unfortunately, is not one of them. I feel it lacks direction and turned out rather bland. I will stick with the delicious roasted thighs with lemon, thyme and rosemary from this site.

elaine3 years ago

Delicious! I deglazed pan with white wine before adding stock. Then finished in the oven at 375 for 25 minutes. Really developed flavors!

Barbara Ann1 year ago

This packed a Punch ! I had rosemary already chopped so added this to the sauté stage. Really blended well with olives. The Raisins simply disappear. But clearly essential. Amazing recipe - will add to my all time favourites!

Epope6 months ago

Made this with leg quarters, lacinato kale and Moroccan beldi olives because I did not have green olives. The olives are overpowering the other flavors…I’m not sure green would be less overpowering. Not adding this to my repertoire, alas.

Green Queen10 months ago

Perfect weekday meal. Cheap healthy ingredients you mostly already have, easy prep work, done soon. Only change I made was simmer it lid-off in the oven the keep the chicken crispy.

judys1 year ago

We really liked this. Made exactly by recipe, except used turnip greens from our garden, and my golden raisins weren’t golden anymore. I used homemade chicken broth. Served with grilled halloumi and fig salad with fennel and arugula, and good sourdough bread to sop up the broth. Delicious!

Michael1 year ago

this was very tasty but agree with a lot of the others here. Needs more onions and more greens. I also took off the chicken skin before the braise and had it as a crunchy topping. Served with some buttery rice and it was a hit.

PC1 year ago

I added extra garlic, red pepper, olives and raisins. But still a bit bland. Will try again with more spices. Also I prefer boneless skinless thighs.

Eloise1 year ago

This was pretty good, though soupy. Next time I might take the chicken out when done and then cook the liquid down a bit. I used capers and prunes instead of olives and raisins, and it worked fine.

MDR1 year ago

This was delicious and a great way to get some spring bitters into our diet! I added a handful of dill at the end and omitted the raisins (we just… couldn’t do it). The broth greens and olives were even more tasty and well balanced the next day - I may prep it the night before I’m planning to eat it next time

yvette1 year ago

Easy and very fast. Used boneless/skinless thighs. Subbed dried apricots for raisins, and added a bit of sherry vinegar. Good - served in bowls with French bread.

Lara Witter1 year ago

Delicious!! One of our go-to weekly recipes! The biggest variable for us is amount of greens (really enjoy the chard...though have also added kale to get more greens) and the amount of chicken stock. Really depends if you are serving it on a carb/rice (more stock) or on its own (less stock). I will also try with white wine in the mix with chicken stock per another users feedback

Marti_dc1 year ago

I love greens + green olives. Thought this would be great. It's good, but I have other dishes that I would favor over this. Couldn't find raisins at the last second, so I used dates, which I prefer. I would say "next time, I will look harder for the raisins," but to be honest, I doubt I will make it a second time. Good, but not outstanding. I prefer my chicken a bit crispy (I think "with gin" sounds like a better fit) and greens in the "Lemony Turkey with White Beans & Greens Soup."

Donna D.1 year ago

I made this last night and it was very good with kale from the garden. I think adding your favorite vegetables would also be good - carrots, zucchini, mushrooms. I'll make it again for sure.

Ellen1 year ago

The flavors are really good! The soggy skins after covering with fluid during the main cook were not so good. Another review suggested removing the skin after browning to get the flavor and avoid the rubber in the final product, so I will try that if I do this recipe again. Everyone loved the flavors and ate it all, but I’m not so in love that I’ll make it again.

Janice1 year ago

I've made this twice, once with boneless/skinless thighs and once with skin-on/bone-in thighs. It was better with the skin-on/bone-in thighs. Like others have said, on my second time making the recipe it was better with twice as much more onions, garlic, olives. I added some mushrooms with the onions and definitely cooked them longer than 2 minutes to soften them. Used chicken bone broth rather than chicken stock and cooked the thighs/greens more like 30 minutes to get the thighs cooked.

Barbara Ann1 year ago

Melody1 year ago

I added some white wine as suggested- about 1/2 cup , but also chicken broth. Kale and some castelvetrano olives were used as they were what we had on hand. I also added the kale later after 15 minutes of braising the chicken. I would use the same type of green and olive as we enjoyed this recipe thoroughly.

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