← Nouns Cooking · Spanish

Ingredients

• 1.2 kg bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 8)
• salt and black pepper
• 4 tbsp Olive oil
• 12 cloves garlic (about 1 head), half left whole and lightly crushed, half sliced
• 1 small dried chilli (optional)
• 2 Bay leaves
• 2 sprigs Thyme (optional)
• 150 ml dry white wine or fino sherry
• 150 ml chicken stock
• 1 handful Parsley, chopped

Method

1. Pat the chicken dry and season well. Warm the oil in a large, deep frying pan over medium heat, add the whole garlic cloves and cook for 2–3 min until golden, then lift them out and set aside.
2. Turn the heat up to medium-high and fry the chicken skin-side down for 8–10 min, until the skin is deep golden and crisp. Turn and brown the other side for 3 min.
3. Pour off all but 3 tbsp of fat. Lower the heat and add the sliced garlic, chilli, bay and thyme and stir for 1 minute, until the garlic is pale gold; take care not to burn it or it turns bitter.
4. Pour in the wine and let it bubble for 2 min, scraping the pan. Add the stock and the fried garlic cloves and bring to a simmer.
5. Cover and cook gently for 20 min, then uncover and simmer for 5–8 min until the sauce has reduced and the chicken reaches 75°C (165°F) by the bone. Scatter with parsley and serve with crusty bread, chips or rice.

Tips

• Squash the soft whole garlic cloves into the sauce or onto bread: they turn sweet and mellow.
• In Spain the chicken is often chopped into small bony pieces so more of it gets crisp; ask your butcher to do this.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Spain on a Fork The Mediterranean Dish