Wednesday 23 June 2010

Mediterranean Chicken Bake

Perhaps I should be renaming this blog the Chickenrecipes blog. Yes we sure do eat a lot of chicken and I sure do like to share the love of chicken. I've never been a big red meat eater nor an adventurous home cooke when it comes to red meat. I can cook a million ways with mince, a good lamb roast and steak exactly the way my husband likes it but it is clear I find myself attracted to that white meat goodness of a chicky. So yes, here is yet another. I seriously thought I had posted this before. Perhaps I have and not linked to it. It wouldn't surprise me given the way my brain functions now that I am approaching the big 40. This one is something we all love love love during the winter months and is equally as nice in the summertime with a good salad.

What do I need to go shopping for?

Olive oil
6 chicken drumsticks
6 thighs (both with skin on)
1 kg baby potatoes cut in half (any good baking potato will do though just need to chop up in quarters)
2-3 ripe tomatoes diced up - or a tin of diced tomatoes works equally as well
Kalamata olives - 1/2 cup to as many as you love to squeeze in if you're like me and LOVE olives.
1/2 cup dry white wine (woohoo wine with dinner tonight)
2 - 3 cloves of garlic sliced up
2 sprigs of rosemary - removed from the stem - no need to chop up.
Freshly ground s&p

How do I make this dish of yumminesss?

Preheat your oven to 200oC
In a heavy based saucepan heat up some oil and brown the chicken all over. You'll need to do it in batches as we don't want to crowd up the pan. Remove from pan and set aside covered with foil - I pop mine straight into the large oven oblong roasting dish I have.
Do the same with the potatoes..get them nice and browned.
Add them to the roasting tray as well.
Top the chicken and potato with the tomatoes, olives and rosemary, pour the wine over the top, season with salt and pepper and bang it in the oven for 45 minutes or so.
Serve with greens and enjoy!