Wine Braised Chicken
Ingredients:
- 4 slices bacon
- 1 large onion, thinly sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1 28-ounce can whole tomatoes, with juice, coarsely chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 10 bone-in chicken thighs (about 3 3/4 pounds), skin removed, trimmed
- 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
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Preparation:
Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp (about 4 minutes). Transfer to paper towels to drain. Crumble when cool.
Drain off all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the pan. Add onion and cook over medium heat, stirring, until softened (3 to 6 minutes). Add garlic, thyme, fennel seeds, pepper and bay leaf and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add wine, bring to a boil and boil for 2 minutes, scraping up any browned bits. Add tomatoes and their juice and salt; stir well.
Place chicken thighs in a 4-quart (or larger) slow cooker. Sprinkle the bacon over the chicken. Pour the tomato mixture over the chicken. Cover and cook until the chicken is very tender (about 3 hours on High or 6 hours on Low). Remove the bay leaf. Serve sprinkled with parsley.
Variation: Turn 2 cups each of leftover chicken and sauce into Braised Chicken Gumbo. Heat 1 tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add 1 diced medium red or green bell pepper and 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour and cook, stirring, until the pepper is beginning to soften and the flour is golden brown (about 2 minutes). Add 2 cups of shredded chicken, 2 cups of sauce, 2 cups of reduced-sodium chicken broth, 1 cup of sliced okra (fresh, frozen or thawed), 3/4 cup of instant brown rice and 1/8-1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the flavors meld and the okra is tender (about 10 minutes).
