Barbacco's Chicken

Since dating Buzza, my diet went from mainly rice based dishes to a healthy amount of pasta based dishes. We're always searching for that restaurant that has authentic Italian cuisine. You know, a place that doesn't serve spaghetti with meatballs and pronounces bruschetta as 'brusketta,' NOT 'brusshetta.'

Our favorite restaurant in the city is La Ciccia, but Barbacco is probably my second favorite, for its comforting Emilia-Romagna dishes. The ascolana and squid is a must! I must confess that I prefer it to its more expensive sister, Perbacco. I'm a simple girl.

I haven't had this dish at Barbacco, but it's next on my list, especially after testing out this recipe. I made this for a celebratory dinner after we moved into a new house.

Barbacco's Chicken Thighs, recipe from SFGate

I cut the original recipe in half but forgot to cut the lemon in half. The directions below is halved and serves 2 fatties.

• 10 garlic cloves, peeled and slightly crushed
• 1/4 cup of EVOO
• 4 large chicken thighs, bone in and skin on (yum)
• Salt & pepper to taste
• 1/2 yellow onion, diced
• 2 quarters of a lemon
• 1 rosemary sprig
• 2 cups low-salt chicken broth, reduced to 1 cups
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup Castelvetrano olives, pits removed and halved
• 1/4 cup toasted almonds, preferably Marcona, but I just use regular almonds because Marcona almonds are too expensive
• 1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon EVOO for searing, although I prefer to use a rice bran oil for anything requiring high heat. It gets hotter, has no distinct flavor and doesn't degrade like EVOO does in heat.

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Place garlic cloves and 1/4 cup of EVOO in small saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until soft. 15-20 minutes.
3. Remove cloves and set aside, reserving the oil.
4. Season chicken thighs with salt & pepper.
5. Preheat skillet large enough to hold all 4 chicken thighs over medium heat, with 1 tablespoon of oil.
6. Place chicken, skin side down and cook until skin is golden brown and slightly crispy. 5-6 minutes.
7. Turn chicken and cook for another 2 minutes.
8. Move chicken to a deep baking dish, reserving the fat and drippings in the pan. Make sure chicken is in a single layer, set aside.
9. Add onions, lemon and rosemary into skillet with chicken drippings. Brown gently over medium low heat. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up the browned bits from the pan. Cook until golden brown, 12-15 minutes.
10. Add chicken broth, wine and bring to a simmer. Pour mixture into dish, over chicken thighs, covering the chicken only until it hits the skin line. You want to leave the skin dry, so it has a chance to get crispy in the oven.
11. Braise for 40 minutes or until juice run clear when poked with a knife.
12. Remove chicken to another dish and keep warm.
13. Strain braising liquid and reduce to half.
14. Add the reserved garlic, olives and almonds to braising liquid.
15. Season with salt and pepper.
16. Whisk in butter and spoon over chicken.

Tender meat and crispy skin.