This is a super yummy, easy, healthy, one-pot wonder. I first made this because I had chicken in my fridge and an eggplant I needed to use up. Everything else is stuff you would normally find in your pantry. This is also one of those meals you can toss in whatever veggie or herb you have on hand and if you don’t like eggplant, leave it out! The sauce is really tasty as well so make sure to serve it over some cous cous or rice (or pasta!).
Things you’ll need:
- 1 lb skin-on, bone-in chicken things (or breasts)
- 1/4 cup olive oil, divided
- 1 large onion, halved and sliced into thin half-moons
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 large eggplant, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 2 tsps chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 tsp crushed red pepper
- 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes (with juice)
- 1 T capers, drained
- 1 T fresh lemon juice (from 1/2 lemon)
- Salt + pepper
What to do:
- Pat chicken thighs dry and season both sides with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a heavy dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat. Place chicken thighs skin side down in an even layer (may need to do in two batches if you run out of room). Cook chicken until skin is brown and crispy, about 5 minutes. Flip and cook on other side for another 2 minutes. Remove chicken from dutch oven and reserve on a plate.
- Turn heat down to medium and add onions to the dutch oven. You may need to add a little oil if the pot looks dry so that the onions don’t stick and burn. Scrape bottom of dutch oven with a wooden spoon to get all the yummy chicken bits. Cook onions for 5 minutes or until translucent. Add garlic and cook an additional minute. Add the remaining 2-3 tablespoons olive oil and eggplant. Cook for 5 minutes or until eggplant is soft and brown. Add rosemary and crushed red pepper and cook for another minute.
- Add tomatoes with their juice and the capers to the vegetable mixture and stir to combine. Bring to a boil then turn heat down to low. Return chicken to the pot, skin side up, and cook for 10 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Check for seasonings and add salt and pepper to taste and finish with the lemon juice.
Of all the wonderful recipes I cooked last year and neglected to share, this one stuck with me the most. I first put this recipe together last fall after I received a bunch of collard greens in a produce delivery box. The only time I had ever had a collard was in the south and they had been slow cooked to the point that they hardly resembled the beautiful bright green HUGE leaves that they once were. My raw vegan friend had been using collards to make veggie wraps and that seemed like an interesting – albeit bland – route to go. I decided I would take a stab at using the collards as some sort of wrap but I would definitely be cooking them and definitely be incorporating meat some way. After clicking around through a handful of recipes I landed on enchiladas and I was happily surprised with the end result. I just moved into a new, awesome apartment with my boyfriend and I knew I wanted to recreate this dish ASAP and this time I remembered to take pictures. I love making my own sauce but that’s totally not necessary for this recipe (bottled enchilada sauce works fine, maybe even better).
yum in the city 