Chicken Thighs With Tomato Orzo Olives And Feta Recipes

CHICKEN THIGHS WITH TOMATO, ORZO, OLIVES, AND FETA RECIPE

Steps:

• First, toast the orzo. It's a bit of a pain, but it really improves the flavor. Heat a large skillet or a Dutch oven if you're so inclined (I find a reason to use my Staub cocotte for everything) over medium-high heat. Toast the orzo until it is lightly browned, but before it gets too fragrant. Spoon the orzo into a bowl and set aside. Next up is the chicken. Pat the thighs dry and season with oregano, paprika, salt, and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in the skillet or Dutch oven on medium-high heat until it is nice and hot and beginning to smoke. Brown the chicken for roughly three minutes on each side, then remove it and set it aside. Turn the heat down a notch and add in the other tablespoon of oil and the minced garlic. Cook for 30 seconds, until fragrant, but be careful not to burn it. Then pour in the broth and throw in the tomatoes and orzo. Give the mixture a good stir and bring it to a boil. Finally, add the chicken back in, cover the skillet/Dutch oven, and let it sit on medium-low heat until the orzo is tender and the chicken is cooked through. This will take 15 minutes or so. Be sure to check on the dish from time to time as you don't want the orzo to become mushy and overcooked. When ready, turn off the heat and add in the capers, Kalamata olives, feta, and basil. Top it all off with a drizzle of nice finishing oil, give it another good stir or two and you're ready to serve!

ROASTED CHICKEN THIGHS WITH TOMATOES, OLIVES, AND FETA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine chicken, oil, tomatoes, olives, shallots, and thyme in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper and toss. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet and spread chicken mixture, skin side up, in a single layer. Roast until a thermometer inserted into thickest parts of the thighs (do not touch bones) reaches 165 degrees, 35 to 40 minutes.
• Transfer chicken to a platter and loosely cover with foil. Return vegetables to oven and roast until golden brown in places, about 10 minutes more. Transfer vegetables and accumulated juices to platter with chicken, and season with salt and pepper. Garnish with mint and feta.

CHICKEN THIGHS WITH TOMATOES AND FETA

Steps:

• Pat chicken thighs dry with paper towels; season all over with salt. Arrange skin side down in a cold large cast-iron skillet. Set over medium heat and cook chicken, undisturbed, rotating pan as needed for even browning, until skin is very deep golden brown and crisp and chicken releases easily from pan, 13-16 minutes. Using tongs, transfer chicken to a plate, arranging skin side up.
• Combine tomatoes, harissa paste, vinegar, 1 oregano sprig, and ½ tsp. salt in same skillet. Increase heat to medium-high and cook, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes burst and their juices start to thicken, 8-10 minutes.
• Nestle chicken thighs into tomatoes, skin side up. Reduce heat to medium-low, bring to a simmer, and cook until chicken is just cooked through and flesh is no longer pink (an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part near the bone will register 165°F), and tomato sauce is thickened so that a wooden spoon dragged through it leaves a trail, 6-8 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit 5 minutes.
• Break feta into large pieces; scatter over chicken. Some pieces will stay intact while others will soften into the sauce a little-and that's exactly what you want. Pick leaves off remaining 2 oregano sprigs and scatter on top.
• Serve with bread for sopping up any extra tomato sauce.

CHICKEN WITH OLIVES AND FETA CHEESE

Steps:

• Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and sauté until brown, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to plate. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons drippings from skillet.
• Add onion to drippings in skillet. Sauté over medium heat 3 minutes. Add garlic and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add tomatoes with juices, olives, wine and oregano. Return chicken and any accumulated juices to sauce; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until chicken is tender and cooked through, about 25 minutes.
• Transfer chicken and sauce to platter. Sprinkle with feta cheese and serve.

SKILLET CHICKEN WITH ORZO, DILL AND FETA

Steps:

• Cut one of the lemons into wedges and set aside. Juice the remaining lemon and combine with 3 tablespoons olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper, in a large resealable plastic bag or in a bowl, along with the chicken pieces. Seal and shake the bag (or stir in the bowl) to coat. Set aside for 30 minutes, or refrigerate up to overnight.
• Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Remove the chicken from the marinade, letting the excess drip off, and cook until lightly golden all over, turning when the chicken releases easily from the pan, about 12 minutes total. Transfer chicken to a plate and set aside.
• Add the onion to the pan and stir to coat with the remaining fat. Decrease heat to medium and cook until soft, about 4 minutes. Stir in the orzo and the broth or water. Cook until the liquid is partly absorbed, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Top with the chicken legs and cover with a lid or foil. Continue cooking until the orzo is tender, most of the liquid is absorbed, and the chicken is cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes more, depending on the size of your drumsticks or thighs. Remove from the heat and scatter the cucumber, feta and dill over the top. Serve from the skillet with lemon wedges and olives.