Chicken with Olives

Copyright LtDansKitchen's Blog 2018

What do you do with extra olives? We had a wine and cheese event recently and people were not too crazy on the cured olives unlike me so we had about half of what was served packed and distributed to those who wanted to avail of it. I took all of it home. 

Now, I have two choices, make Pasta Puttanesca or Chicken with Olives. I opted for the latter. I have made this dish before using Lidia Bastianich's recipe but for some reason, I did not find it quite as tasty as some of her other dishes. This time however, it came out quite good although I added a few minor changes to the recipe. 

First things first, start with a plump chicken. I had a scrawny one when I made this dish but somehow, it worked out quite well. Anyway, you can make this dish quite easily since most of the ingredients are basics in any kitchen cupboard. Well, my cupboard anyway. So here goes. 

Chicken with Olives

Chicken pieces - 2 thighs and two breasts with the wings still attached
6 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 cup shallot, chopped roughly
1/2 cup cured olives, green and black
1/4 cup raisins (optional)
Chicken broth
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper
2-3 dry bay leaves
Parsley (to garnish)

1. In a large pan over medium high heat, add about 4-5 tablespoons of olive oil. 

2. Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper and pan sear both sides until
    browned. Set them aside. 

3. In the same pan, saute the garlic with the shallots until softened. Add the bay 
    leaves. 

4. Return the chicken to the pan and add the olives. Pour about 1 cup of chicken
    broth and cover the pan. Once boiling, decrease the heat to low to simmer. 

5. After 10 minutes, add the raisins if using and check for flavor. Add a small 
    amount of broth if needed. Simmer for another 5 minutes. 

6. To serve, drizzle with a little bit of olive oil and top with chopped parsley.