Braised Chicken With Spicy Greens Recipes

BRAISED CHICKEN THIGHS WITH GREENS AND OLIVES

Steps:

• Season chicken thighs well with salt and pepper. In a large heavy-bottomed skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken thighs, skin-side down, and cook undisturbed until nicely browned, about 5 to 6 minutes. Flip and brown the other side, about 4 to 5 minutes more. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
• Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the pan and return to medium-low heat. Add red onion, and cook until it begins to soften, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add garlic and red-pepper flakes, if using, and cook for 30 seconds more.
• Add chopped greens to the pan and stir, tossing to coat in the residual chicken fat. It may seem like a lot of greens, but they will cook down. Add the chicken thighs and any juices that have accumulated back to the pan and lay them on top of the greens. Pour in enough of the chicken stock to come up to the chicken about halfway. Bring the chicken to a gentle simmer. Partly cover and allow the chicken to finish cooking through, about 20 minutes more.
• Stir in olives and raisins and cook uncovered until they are warmed through, and the raisins are nicely plumped, about 1 minute more. Garnish with parsley, if using, and serve. Season with flaky salt, if desired.

SPICY BRAISED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat a 7 1/4-quart Dutch oven on medium-high heat, then melt butter and add oil. Season chicken generously with salt and pepper and sear until golden on both sides, about 8 minutes. Remove from pot and set aside. Add carrots, onion, celery, and apple, the whole habanero, garlic, bay leaves, and thyme. Season with salt and pepper and saute until they start to soften, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add wine and let reduce by half, scraping up any brown bits remaining on the bottom of the pot. Nestle chicken into pot and add enough broth to almost cover the chicken, about 1 1/2 cups and the gravy sauce. Cover and simmer for 1 hour 45 minutes or until chicken falls off the bone. In the last half hour, remove the lid and let liquid reduce.
• To make the gravy: In a medium saucepan, melt butter with oil over medium high-heat. Add giblets and brown on all sides, about 6 minutes. Add onion and continue cooking another 5 minutes, until onions start to soften. Add flour and stir, cooking another 3 to 5 minutes. Whisk in the stock. Bring to a simmer and strain. Discard giblets and put gravy back in the pot. Season with salt and pepper. Keep warm on the stove and add to braised chicken once it's cooked.
• Serve Braised Chicken over Coconut Rice n' Peas
• Heat olive oil in a medium pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and salt and saute, until onion becomes translucent and tender, about 5 minutes. Add rice and saute another 2 minutes to toast rice. Add coconut milk and fill saucepan with enough water to cover the rice by 1/2-inch or measure by placing your thumb tip on the rice and filling the pot with water until the water reaches the middle of your thumbnail. Bring rice to a simmer, cover and cook until rice is tender and liquid has evaporated, about 15 to 17 minutes.
• Remove from heat and let rice stand another 5 minutes, covered. Fluff rice with fork and then fold in pigeon peas. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
• Yield: 4 to 6 servings

SPICY BRAISED COLLARD GREENS

Steps:

• In a large Dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until just crisp, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate. Pour off all but 3 tablespoons of the bacon drippings and lower the heat to medium. Add the onions and cook until tender and translucent, 3 to 5 minutes.
• While the bacon and onions are cooking, prepare the greens. To remove the thick, woody stems that run down the center of the leaves, hold the base of the collard stem in one hand. Wrap your other hand around the bottom of the stem, directly under the leaf (like you are holding a baseball bat). In one firm motion, quickly slide your hand up the stem, removing the leaf in one swift movement. To chop the leaves, stack a few on top of each other and roll up like a cigar. Slice the roll into 1-inch pieces, rotate, and give another good chop. Continue until all the greens are chopped.
• Increase the heat of the Dutch oven to medium-high. Add a few large handfuls of greens at a time - stirring constantly to allow each batch to wilt for a few moments - until you can fit all of the greens into the pot. Continue to saute the greens for 3 to 5 minutes, until bright green and wilted. Season with a very generous pinch of kosher salt and a few big grinds of freshly ground black pepper. Add the chicken stock, vinegar, sugar, and red pepper flakes to the greens and stir until combined. Bring to a boil, then immediately reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 45 minutes.
• Add the cooked bacon to the greens and simmer an additional 15 minutes. Taste for seasoning (don't be afraid to be generous with the salt). Serve with hot pepper vinegar on the side.

QUICK-BRAISED CHICKEN WITH GREENS

Steps:

• In a large pot over medium-high, heat the oil. Add the onion, season with salt and cook, stirring just a few times, until translucent and browned, 6 to 9 minutes. Add the peppers, tomato paste, brown sugar and cumin, and cook, stirring constantly, until the paste is a shade darker and starts to stick to the bottom of the pot, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add the broth, chicken, greens and pickled-pepper brine. Season with salt and stir to combine. Cover the pot, keep on medium-high and bring to a simmer. Uncover, reduce heat to low, and cook uncovered until the chicken is cooked through and the greens are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Using two forks, shred the chicken right in the pot into pieces, then stir to combine. Taste and adjust with salt, sugar (if it's too tangy or spicy) and brine (if it's too sweet or flat). Eat with starch of choice.

SPICY BRAISED CHICKEN WITH MUSHROOMS AND STAR ANISE

Steps:

• Heat peanut oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add chicken; sauté until brown, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer to bowl. Add mushrooms, 1 1/2 cups green onions, garlic and ginger to pot. Sauté until mushrooms are tender, about 5 minutes. Return chicken to pot. Add chicken broth, hoisin sauce and star anise. Bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 20 minutes.
• Remove chicken from pot; cool slightly. Remove skin and bones from chicken and discard. Cut meat crosswise into 1/2-inch-wide strips.
• Meanwhile, boil mixture in pot until reduced to 2 1/2 cups, about 20 minutes. Stir in cabbage and chili sauce. Boil until cabbage is tender, about 4 minutes. Return chicken to pot; simmer until heated through, about 2 minutes. Transfer to bowl. Discard star anise. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup green onions.

VINEGAR BRAISED CHICKEN WITH GREENS

Steps:

• Using paper towels, pat the chicken pieces dry; season liberally with salt and pepper.
• In a Dutch oven, brown chicken in oil over medium high heat, about 5 minutes per side; transfer to a platter.
• Reduce heat to medium and cook onions and garlic, scraping up any browned bits, 3 to 5 minutes; add in bay leaf and thyme.
• Deglaze pot with vinegar and simmer until reduced by half, about 5 minutes.
• Pour in chicken stock and bring to a boil; add greens, stirring until wilted, about 30 seconds.
• Return chicken pieces, skin side up, and any accumulated juices, to pot until cooked through, about 10-12 minutes (occasionally baste with juices).
• Transfer chicken to a serving platter and bring saue to another boil; reduce heat to medium low and stir in creme fraiche.
• Cook, while stirring until sauce thickens slightly, about 3 minutes.
• Spoon sauce and greens over chicken; serve with additional creme fraiche, if desired.