Serves4
- Active Time:40 min
- Start to Finish:1 1/2 hr
STEFANO FAITA, MEZZA LUNA COOKING SCHOOL, MONTREAL
April 2009
-
1
lb
tomatoes
-
1
teaspoon
whole chicken (about 3 1/2 lb), cut into 8 pieces
-
1
medium onion, finely chopped
-
1
garlic clove, minced
-
1/2
stick unsalted butter
-
3/4
cup
tawny Port
-
4
Turkish bay leaves or 2 California
-
4
sage leaves, chopped
-
6
basil leaves, chopped
-
3
bell peppers (1 each of red, yellow, and green), cut into 1/4-inch strips
-
1/2
cup
sliced pitted green olives
-
1
tablespoon
drained capers
-
Cut a shallow X in bottom of each tomato. Blanch in a saucepan of boiling water 30 seconds, then transfer to an ice bath. Peel and seed tomatoes, then dice.
-
Pat chicken dry and season with 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper.
-
Cook onion and garlic in butter in a wide 6-quart heavy pot over medium heat, stirring, until softened and beginning to turn golden, about 5 minutes.
-
Push onion to sides of pot, then increase heat to medium-high and brown half of chicken, skin side down first, stirring onion occasionally so it continues to color but doesn’t burn, turning chicken once, 6 to 8 minutes total. Transfer chicken to a plate and brown remaining chicken in same manner, cooking onions until deep golden-brown. Add chicken to plate.
-
Add Port to pot and bring to a boil, stirring and scraping up brown bits. Add bay leaves, sage, and basil, then return chicken to pot, arranging it snugly in 1 layer. Scatter tomatoes and peppers, then olives and capers, over chicken and season with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper.
-
Reduce heat to medium-low and braise chicken on top of stove, covered, until cooked through, 40 to 50 minutes. (If sauce is very thin, transfer chicken to a platter and keep warm, loosely covered with foil, then boil sauce over high heat to thicken slightly, 3 to 5 minutes.) Serve chicken with sauce.
