Chicken Braised With Potatoes and Pine Nuts
- Total Time
- 1¾ hours
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:4 to 6 servings
- 3tablespoons olive oil
- 6bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- Salt and pepper
- 2white or yellow onions, sliced
- 2celery stalks, chopped
- 8garlic cloves, smashed, peeled and left whole
- ⅔cup dry white wine
- 3tablespoons sherry vinegar, plus more if needed
- 3tablespoons pine nuts
- 4dried bay leaves
- 4whole cloves (or a pinch of ground cinnamon)
- Pinch of saffron (optional)
- 1pound baby potatoes, washed and halved
- 3ounces kale, stemmed, leaves thinly sliced
- 2tablespoons unsalted butter
- ¼cup chopped Italian parsley, plus more for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
667 calories; 46 grams fat; 12 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 20 grams monounsaturated fat; 9 grams polyunsaturated fat; 23 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 3 grams sugars; 36 grams protein; 919 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
In a Dutch oven large enough to hold the chicken in one layer, heat the olive oil over high until shimmering. Season chicken pieces on the skin side with salt and pepper, then lay them in the pan, skin-side down. Adjust the heat so they sizzle but do not pop or scorch. Cook until skin is deeply browned and comes away easily from the pan, about 10 minutes. Remove and set aside.
- Step 2
Add onions, celery and garlic to the fat in the pot, season with salt and cook, stirring until softened, about 5 minutes, scraping up the browned bits at the bottom of the pan. Deglaze with the wine and vinegar. Stir in ½ cup water, pine nuts, bay leaves, cloves and saffron (if using). Return the chicken pieces to the pan, and nestle them into the liquid, skin-side up.
- Step 3
Cover tightly and let cook undisturbed over the lowest possible heat until cooked through, about 45 minutes.
- Step 4
Add the potatoes, then add more water until the liquid barely covers the potatoes. If in doubt, use less; you can always add more. Cover again and cook another 20 minutes.
- Step 5
When ready to serve, gently reheat. Taste the cooking liquid and season with salt, pepper and a drop more vinegar if needed. Stir in the kale and simmer, uncovered, until completely cooked through, about 5 minutes. Stir in butter and parsley and serve, sprinkling each serving with more parsley.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Gary
Delicious! I used low sodium chicken broth instead of water in steps 2 and 4. To keep the chicken skin crispy, I used a large cast iron skillet for all the cooking, added 3/4 cup of broth instead of 1/2 cup water in step 2, made sure that the skin was above the liquid, and cooked the chicken in a 325 oven, UNCOVERED in step 3. After this, I removed the chicken, added the potatoes and more broth, then laid the chicken atop the potatoes, and put it back in the oven, again uncovered, for step 4.
mjan
In lieu of pine nuts, pumpkin or sunflower seeds also work (for those with tree nut allergies or a more limited budget)
Nina
The recipe seems odd to me - you go to all the trouble of browning it and then submerge that lovely crisp skin in the liquid. Doesn’t it get soggy?
J.
This was excellent. Followed advice here: added the potatoes in step 3, check. I got tender potatoes and not-overdone chicken. Also, pulled off the chicken skin and crisped it in a pan to serve. Overall this recipe seems pretty adaptable. Added carrots to the aromatics; they were tasty. I Step-3-cooked it in a 325° oven for an hour instead of on the stove top, perfect. I used lacinato kale but any sturdy green would be equally good. Most important: The Teens Ate It. Will make again.
fay wouk
whenever i see a recipe calling for kale, i substitute swiss chard. i don't see why you couldn't in this one.
Lynne
Just made this. I didn’t see any reason to cook the thighs and then add potatoes later. Too much time. Put in the potatoes at step three. Then used spinach. Husband liked it. It was an easy weekday meal.
Judi
You could try chard, collards, or spinach as a substitute.
Ron
This dish features a unique combo of flavors... loved the vinegar, cloves, and saffron. I removed the chicken before adding the potatoes and stirred the whole thing, then rested the chicken on top. It worked nicely. Delish!
Emma
I like this recipe a lot. Like the others, I put the potatoes in at step 3. I also used chicken broth instead of water and cut down majorly on the oil. I also did not add any butter to the recipe at the end (I really do not think it needs it.) I also used swiss chard instead of kale - it's what I could find. Overall, good recipe - super warm and lovely to eat on a cool day.
Susie
This was terrific! I followed the recipe as written, except for substituting baby spinach for the kale, and eliminating the butter at the end (sauce was already rich and thick). I used a wide, large, round dutch oven which allowed for the browned skin to mostly remain above the liquid. In Step 4, I added enough water to allow the potatoes to cook, but not cover them. At the end, I continued cooking uncovered for an additional 10-15 minutes to thicken the sauce and soften the potatoes. Yum!!
DeeDee
BAC. I’m not a fan of kale, either. I might try arugula or spinach. I’m leaning towards the arugula. I think it has sturdier leaves, more like the kale.
Carrie
This was a little frustrating. It tasted great, but with the lid covered, the amount of wine and water - half cup and then to cover the potatoes - it was like whole chicken and potato chunks sitting in soup. This made the pine nuts just floating there pretty pointless. Really they should have you take the lid off at step 3 to cook down the liquid. Also, I agree with others, there is no need to it the potatoes in separately at step 4. The taste was great, but sooo much thin liquid.
Christina S
This does not work for all the reasons mentioned already. Wasted expensive ingredients such as saffron, pine nuts, and white wine on a dish that was way too acidic, had undercooked potatoes and overcooked chicken with soggy skin.
Dan
Excellent! Took the chicken out in Step 4 and turned up the heat, as I couldn't picture the potatoes cooking in 20 mins at low temp, Used chicken broth instead of water - not sure how much, eyeballed it. The pine nuts seemed to dissolve into the dish by the end. The cloves and large no. of bay leaves were brilliant, would not have thought to do that. Added fresh corn off the cob with about 3 mins left in cooking. (It's August, trying to use it almost daily!)
JB
the potatoes are nowhere near cooked, even after double the time recommended.
Krush
This was so delicious and we could not stop soaking up the broth with a baguette. I did swap out the pine nuts for sunflower seeds, spinach for kale, and I threw in a cinnamon stick (but I don't think it added much). I did not have saffron. Finished in a 350 oven for an hour and a half at step 3, adding in the potatoes and some carrot chunks final 40 minutes. Everyone loved this! Unusual combination of spices and flavors.
Larry
WAY too much lquid. The Skins got soaked. The potatoes took 3x the time suggested. It seems like no one tried this first.
RWM
This was kind of bland and agree that the potatoes need to go in much sooner; they were undercooked when made as written.
Mary Lou
This was the perfect meal, on a very cold Sunday evening. I didn't have much celery so added 1 parsnip and 1 carrot, very good. I had no saffron, I would like to try with that, but used a variety of otters spices, and it was delicious. It's easy to make and the house smells so good, while it simmers.
Rose
big hit! soggy skin bc I browned it and then put in fridge, don't do that and make sure it's crispy!
Eric Moore
Followed all the steps to the letter except that I left out the kale (did not substitute). I used cinnamon in lieu of clove (as per the recipe) and it came out very nicely. Flavors were very nice and my dinner guests loved it.
Boring, and intensive
I don’t understand how there can be this many ingredients, and it can taste this bland and boring. Will not be making again.
Laura
Chicken was cooked through after 20-25 minutes, 45 minutes would have way overcooked it. I removed the chicken & added potatoes after 25 minutes. Placed the chicken back on top and then continued to cook as directed from the “add potatoes” step.
KateR
A winning dish! Made a few small adjustments -- added anchoives with the onions and celery, omitted the cloves/cinnamon, added olives, and used spinach for my kale adverse family. The sauce was gorgeous and was happily soaked up with some fresh bread. This is a wonderfully adaptable recipe! Will be making it on the regular.
JC Hegvik
Used skinless thighs and some white meat tenderloins. Cloves AND cinnamon. Skipped the pine nuts. Delicious!
ray
Next time roast the pine nuts and add towards the end. chicken stock not water was good idea spinach also good idea carrots with potatoes good idea need to make it a little thicker of a sauce maybe add peas good for a cold night
Bob
Mushy pine nuts inspire despair. “Mush on mush” captures it exactly.
Joe
This tasted nice, but felt too thin. Loved the heavy use of bay and cloves; may try again but would definitely add potatoes/chicken at same time, and not cook covered.
Suzanne
I always follow recipe as written to begin with and then adjust. I used a lidded sauté pan, which made adjusting the amount of liquid to avoid covering the crispy skin easier. The chicken, braising liquid and greens (I like spinach) are fantastic. My issue is the potatoes. I found braised potatoes bland and difficult to time their cooking. My solution was to roast them. I thought the crispy potatoes worked well with the crispy skinned chicken.
colleen
Wonder if I did something wrong- after I added the potatoes and water it took FOREVER for it to cook down. Must’ve slipped up on something
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