29 September 2008

Braised Chicken with Figs and Bay




It's fresh fig time, folks. Hit up that grocery or market and pick up a carton or two!





I love fresh figs; they remind me of grapes with lots of teeny strawberry seeds in them. I found this recipe after searching for something to use up the extra figs in our fridge before they went bad. Soooo good. And pretty healthy. I love this recipe because it's good for you, flavorful, and doesn't take a lot of cooking skills. Give it a shot if you have the time, because while an easy dish to pull off: the presentation is pretty stellar - you can definitely impress if you have a dinner party.



Braised Chicken with Figs and Bay

(adapted from Cooking Light, August 2000)




Ingredients:


6 chicken thighs
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
8 bay leaves
2 tsp. olive oil
1/4 c. water
1/2 c. sliced shallots
1/3 c. dry red wine
3 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tsp. honey
16 fresh figs, each cut in half lengthwise

Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Place 1 bay leaf on each chicken thigh. Heat oil in a heavy 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat.



Place chicken, bay leaf sides down, in pan. Cook 5 minutes or until browned. Turn chicken over; cook 3 minutes. Add water; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Remove chicken from pan. Add shallots; cook 2 minutes. Add chicken, wine, vinegar, and honey to pan; bring to a boil. Cook 1 minute. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes or until chicken is done.



Add figs; cover and simmer 5 minutes or until figs are tender.



Serve over rice or couscous.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

YUM! I LOVE figs. This looks amazing!

Snooky doodle said...

wow this recipe is great . I ve never tried figs in savoury dishes :-)

Maggie said...

This looks great...figs and vinegar are a great combo, though I've never cooked them with meat. Yum!

loukoum°°° said...

I like this recipe!
I'll try to do that as soon as I can!
thanks!

Madeline said...

You're right, this would be a great dish to serve for guests. The flavors of figs, honey and red wine sound like a perfect combination. I also like that it calls for chicken thighs over breasts. I'm always looking for new leg recipes.