Description
The most cozy and satisfying winter dinner with sweet onions, tender chicken pieces, and buttery mashed potatoes.
Ingredients
Scale
For the Chicken
- 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
- Kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 large onions, thinly sliced
- 6 sprigs fresh thyme
- 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 2 cups chicken broth
- Kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper, to taste
- 1/2 cup grated gruyere cheese
- Good toasted bread
- Herby mashed potatoes, below
Herby Mashed Potatoes (make these while the onions are cooking down)
- 2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes
- Kosher salt
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
- 3/4 cup half and half (or whole milk if you prefer)
- Salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Season chicken pieces generously with salt and pepper on both sides.
- Set a large dutch oven (or any heavy bottom oven-proof lid and pan set you have) over medium heat. Add olive oil and tilt to coat. Add the chicken thighs in batches, cooking until golden brown on both sides, about 4 minutes per side. The chicken won’t be entirely cooked through and that’s fine! Place on a plate and set aside.
- Add butter to the same dutch oven. Add onions along with a hefty pinch of salt. Reduce heat to medium-low and begin to toss the onions around the pan and they cook down. Add the thyme. Cover the pan and allow onions to reduce for 30 minutes, removing the lid to stir every 10 minutes or so.
- We want the onions to be browned and caramelized without burning so reduce heat if necessary. Cover and cook for another 20 minutes until deeply caramel.
- Remove the lid and remove the thyme. Stir in the balsamic.
- Place a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Sprinkle flour over the onion mixture and top with chicken broth. Increase heat to medium and bring to a simmer just to thicken the sauce. Nestle the chicken thighs inside the onion broth.
- Bake, uncovered, for 20-25 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Remove from the oven and set the oven to broil. Top chicken with cheese and broil for 3-4 minutes until melty and bubbling.
- Top dish with flaky salt and more fresh cracked pepper. Serve with toasty buttered bread and mashed potatoes.
- To make the potatoes, add potato chunks to a medium pot and cover with cool water so they’re submerged by an inch. Season with a few generous pinches of salt. Bring to a simmer and cook until potatoes are tender, about 15-20 minutes. Drain into a colander.
- In the same medium saucepan, melt butter. Add fresh herbs and stir until just fragrant. Add half and half and stir until warm.
- Add the potatoes chunks to the dairy mixture and mash to your liking. Add salt and pepper to taste. They’re delicious at this point. Serve with the chicken.
Keywords: one-pot, dinner, valentine's day, chicken, onion