Braised Chicken w/ Mushroom and Almond

Surfing through the web and i found this one recipe , we like chicken , i think it’s the one type of meat that i cook the most . And to me , anything braised is worth to try . This one in particular looks interesting to me , since i hardly used any type of nuts in cooking , now if it’s baking , it’s a different story . I also happened to have all kinds of variety of mushrooms on hand , so no reason not to try it . It is quite easy , i don’t think it’s time consuming at all . In fact i braised the chicken when suddenly my neighbour called and see if i wanted to go for a walk . So finished braising the chicken for about 20 minutes for all 8 pieces and i left for a walk . But i would suggest you do the prep right before started cooking , it will make the job a lot easier and quicker .

Ingredients : 

8 pieces of chicken thighs , dark meat always have better flavor than white meat , plus dark meat is your choice of meat for any braising recipes .

salt and pepper

2 onions , sliced thinly

4 cloves of garlic , minced

2 pounds of mixed mushrooms , i used shiitake , cremini , white and oyster mushrooms

6 slices of pancetta , or bacon if you don’t have pancetta .

2 cups of white wine

bundle of thymes

4 bay leaves

about 4-6 cups of chicken broth

1/2 cup of almond meal mixed with little olive oil

1. In a heavy pot , heat up olive oil , then brown the chicken ( salt and pepper it ) , on all side , about 5 minutes on high heat on each side . Remove and set aside . Discard the fat , and add little olive oil .

2. Cook pancetta or bacon until crispy then add the onion , cook about 7 minutes until it started to caramelized . Add crushed red pepper and garlic , saute for 1-2 minutes . Then add mushrooms , cook until juices comes out and then add white wine , scrap off every little bits on the bottom of the pan , the wine should evaporate , until it’s half , then add your chicken in , along with bay leaves and thyme .

3. Add about 4 to 6 cups of chicken broth , just make sure the broth almost cover the chicken thighs . Bring to boil , then simmer for 35 minutes .

4. Once the chicken is done , take it out from pot . add the almond meal mixed with olive oil into the broth and whisk well . It should somehow thicken the broth a little bit , if you want it thicker like a gravy like consistency , add cornstarch as a thickener agent .

5. Serve with green beans or salad of your choice .