Braised Chicken Thighs With Tomatillos
Published October 30, 2018
Michael Graydon & Nikole Herriott for The New York Times. Prop Stylist: Kalen Kaminski.
- Total Time
- 1 hour
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 ½ to 2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs or legs
Kosher salt and black pepper
2 garlic cloves, smashed
1 red or yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 pound tomatillos, husks removed, chopped
1 jalapeño, thinly sliced, seeds removed if you like
4 cups chicken stock
1 (15-ounce) can hominy, chickpeas or other beans, rinsed and drained (or use 2 cups cooked rice)
4 radishes, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, plus 1 lime, halved, for serving
1 ½ cups cilantro, tender leaves and stems
Corn tortillas, for serving
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
41 grams carbs; 202 milligrams cholesterol; 712 calories; 18 grams monosaturated fat; 9 grams polyunsaturated fat; 10 grams saturated fat; 42 grams fat; 7 grams fiber; 1722 milligrams sodium; 43 grams protein; 12 grams sugar
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.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot.
- Step 2
Season chicken with salt and pepper. Add to pot, skin side down and cook, without disturbing, until skin has rendered most of the fat and is a nice golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. (You want it to be very deeply golden brown so that it stays nice and brown as it braises.)
- Step 3
Using tongs, flip the chicken and continue to cook until nicely browned on the other side, another 5 or so minutes.
- Step 4
Transfer chicken to a plate or cutting board, leaving all the fat and golden bits behind. Add smashed garlic and half of the sliced onion. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened and translucent, 5 to 7 minutes. Add tomatillos and half of the jalapeño and season with salt and pepper. Add chicken stock and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium and add chicken back in, skin side up (they will not submerge all the way; that’s fine). Simmer, uncovered, until tomatillos have completely broken down and the sauce has thickened, 25 to 30 minutes.
- Step 5
Add hominy and continue to cook until flavors have melded and the sauce has thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon (it should be looser than tomato sauce, thicker than soup), another 15 to 20 minutes.
- Step 6
Meanwhile, combine radish, remaining onion, remaining jalapeño and 2 tablespoons lime juice. Season with salt and pepper and toss to combine.
- Step 7
Serve each piece of chicken with sauce spooned around. Top with radish mixture, some cilantro and tortillas alongside for sopping up all the goods.
Private Notes
Comments
Simple and scrumptious. I didn't have to sub anything thanks to the fresh tomatillos from the local produce stand. I know it's supposed to serve four, but these two hungry guys in their 60's ate the whole thing.
Could canned tomatillos be used where fresh not available? Would it change the taste substantially?
Yes! Plus if anyone wants fresh jalapeno mild not hot look for straight stems. Not curled. From across the TJ border in San Diego. Way I was taught about flavor not heat.
I’ve made this a few times and love it! Thai time I made it with a whole spatchcock chicken and did a combination of stove top and oven. I seared the chicken in my cast iron brasar skin side down until the skin was light brown and about 1-2 T of fat rendered. Flipped and let it sear for a few minutes. Then followed the recipe, but only added 1 cup chicken stock. I put the whole chicken on the tomatillos and put in the oven at 400 convection (I’d do 425 regular) for about 20 min (used a probe thermometer to pull at 157 F). This produced a gorgeous deep golden brown bird with crispy skin! While the chicken rested I added the hominy in and cooked on medium on the stove for about 15-20 min. I kept it more of a side of stewed hominy and tomatillos but if you want it more brothly then I would add more stock now. We parted the chicken and then served the parts on the side but if you want more soup I would shred it. My favorite way I’ve done this so far!
Even better than expected! -Used meat of half a rotiserrie to skip to step 4, but added whole carcass, extra skin and bag juices to increase umami in addition to broth (tip: use BBB and an electric kettle to quick boil the water for broth). -Added 8oz cremini with the hominy. Also added 2c frozen grean beans (chopped small) right after fishing out the bones and skin 10 min into step 5. -Kept crucial toppings separate; more so to delegate work than to let ppl interact w food and top as they please, but they are none the wiser.
We love this recipe at my house. Kids 4 & 6 both like it. I increase the broth to 6 Cups and we use a 25 oz can of hominy because we are hominy freaks!