There’s hardly any dish more comforting than braised, then roasted chicken thighs with the tartness of lemon and the earthiness of ground oregano.
Chicken thighs make the most succulent partner for these flavors and can be done with skin-on, bone-in or skinless/boneless varieties.
I find bone-in thighs kind of annoying to navigate on the plate having to cut around such tight corners of bone and skin. In addition, the boneless and skinless thighs make for more even cooking with a few less fatty calories.
This main course makes for a great pairing with a refreshing orzo pasta salad that makes the whole meal feel like cool summer dining on the Mediterranean coast.
Ingredients
4-6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
glug of olive oil
1t dried oregano
2 lemons, cut into thin strips (with a dash of its juice)
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/2t red pepper flakes
1/4C dry white wine
1/2C chicken broth
garlic salt and pepper
Action
Season chicken thighs with garlic salt and pepper on both sides and set in the fridge for a good hour. Bring out to get to room temp 45 minutes before ready to cook.
Combine oregano, garlic and red pepper in a small dish.
Combine wine and chicken broth into a measuring cup.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Heat oil over medium heat in a cast iron (oven safe) skillet. Drop in thighs (if using skin-on start with skin side down).
Cook until lightly browned about 8-10 minutes. Roughly 4 minutes per side.
Place thinly sliced lemon rounds on top of each thigh and the rest in the bottom of the pan.
Roast in oven for about 6 minutes. (Careful when removing from oven as the pan’s handle will be hot.)
Transfer thighs to a dish and place in the microwave to keep warm.
Return the skillet with lemon back to a medium heat burner. (Again, be careful of touching the hot skillet.) Add oregano mixture and stir for 1 minute.
Add wine and broth mixture. Cook over medium-low until the liquid starts to reduce, about 3 minutes. Add chicken back to the pan to reheat for a couple minutes.
Plate next to the orzo pasta salad or perhaps some angel hair pasta. Drizzle with lemon juice and more pepper. If you have parsley, add some chopped version of that on top.
And enjoy!