I have a new obsession. Fennel! FENNEL! Where have you been all my life? I mean, literally it’s been in front of my face forEVER, but why have I only started cooking with it now?
Let’s discuss. Raw fennel very much has a black licorice smell and taste. No thank you! ? Sorry if you’re a black licorice lover, I just cannot even. BUT, when you cook fennel it turns into this golden deliciousness that I just can’t get enough of! I wanna roast it, braise it, sauté it, grill it, and pretty much eat it with every single meal.
Can’t stop won’t stop. I’m also obsessed with it in this chicken dish. Hello favorite new chicken dish ? Oh how I’ve needed you.
It all starts with bone in (yes, bone in) skin on chicken breasts. This is where all the flava-flave is. It gets seared on the stove top and finished in the oven with juicy stewed tomatoes, garbanzo beans and fennel, duh!
I dare you to make this and not absolutely LOVE it.
I double dare you.
Chicken w/ Fennel, Garbanzo Beans & Tomatoes
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
With bone-in chicken breasts, juicy stewed tomatoes, garbanzo beans and fennel, this will be everyone's favorite chicken dish.
Ingredients
- 3 bone-in, skin on chicken breasts
- salt
- pepper
- all-purpose flour (for dredging chicken, about 1 cup)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, large dice
- 1 fennel bulb, large dice
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- ⅓ cup dry white wine (or chicken stock)
- ¼ cup chicken stock
- 1 15 ounce can stewed tomatoes
- 1 can garbanzo beans (rinsed and drained)
- 1 tablespoon capers
- 4–5 lemon slices
- basil for garnish
Instructions
- Unwrap chicken and sprinkle with a little salt on both sides. Wrap back up and place in the fridge until ready to use. You can do this up to 2 days in advance. You can skip this step if you don’t have time but it makes a difference in taste if you have the time to do it!
- When ready to cook, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Unwrap chicken and sprinkle with pepper on both sides. Add the flour to a bowl and lightly dredge chicken in the flour, tapping off any excess.
- Heat a large oven safe skillet with sides over medium/high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the chicken, skin side down. Cook for 4-5 minutes until skin begins to brown and flips easily without sticking. Cook for 4-5 minutes on the other side. You do not want to cook the chicken through at this point. Remove from pan and set aside.
- To the same pan add the onion, fennel, ¾ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper and let cook for 5-7 minutes until veggies begin to soften.
- Add the garlic and cook for 30-60 seconds. Add the white wine and chicken stock and cook for 2-3 minutes over medium heat scraping up any brown bits. Pour in the tomatoes and stir.
- Add the seared chicken back into the pan then pour in the garbanzo beans and capers. Nestle in the lemon slices and turn off the heat.
- Place the entire pan into the oven and cook for 40-45 minutes until chicken is cooked through. Remove and let rest for 10 minutes.
- Remove chicken breasts from the bone, cut into thick slices and place sliced chicken back into the pan. Sprinkle with fresh torn basil and serve! I love to serve this over quinoa or rice!
Notes
This recipe is inspired by Pamela Salzman
Comments
Awua
The recipe ingredients are fine, but the process is nuts. Why fire up the oven, a completely unnecessary and energy-wasting step? Just leave the pan on the stove at a temp around medium (depending on the stove). IT WILL STILL HEAT THROUGH PROPERLY, in the same amount of time, and with as little need to keep an eye on it as it would in the oven.
Really.
Sheesh.
I simmer all kinds of meals like this on the stove, not checking them anymore than I would if it were in the oven, and they turn out fine. It’s called Braising 101, which is all that this dish is doing. No need to break backs dealing with putting things in and out of an oven, never mind doing it more than once. That’s just silly.
★★★
Marilyn
I can’t wait to make this! Love fennel, love chick peas!
Thank you!
Maggie
When you place the chicken into the oven, do you cover the pan or leave it open?
Life is but a Dish
I leave it open!
Awua
This recipe is essentially a BRAISE of chicken and chickpeas, and braising relies on moist heat over a long period of time to produce the best results. Leaving the lid off defeats the whole purpose of that.
So unless you’re cooking this in a reasonably deep dutch oven that can allow the meat to submerge–and STAY SUBMERGED, keep the lid ON, in the oven or on the stove. Keeping the lid off will make the liquid evaporate faster, which will cut down on tenderizing the meat–the whole point of having all that highly acidic liquid in this recipe. Worse, any part of the chicken above the liquid’s surface exposed to dry heat will DRY OUT THAT PART OF THE MEAT. So you’ve basically eradicated any tenderizing benefit from the wine and tomatoes. Even with the skin on, the meat underneath will start drying out if it doesn’t have moist heat to keep it tender.
Put the lid on and keep it on.
Becca @ Crumbs and Chaos
I’m absolutely drooling over this one pot meal!!
Megan @ MegUnprocessed
Looks wonderfully flavorful!
Lane & Holly @ With Two Spoons
I have a new obsession with garbanzo beans! This looks perfect!
Jennifer @ Show Me the Yummy
Gorgeous photos, LOVE all the flavors!
Jenni
What a great looking meal! Definitely adding this to my meal plan soon!
Rebecca {foodie with family}
This looks like an exceptionally delicious use for fennel. I love it combined with tomato and on this chicken it looks heavenly!
Sabine
Great chicken dishes are always welcome, anytime, and this one looks absolutely wonderful! I also share your love for fennel, but much to my dislike I´m the only one “fennelo-phile” in my family . Must make another try to convince them…
Life is but a Dish
I think this dish might help change their minds!