Culinary Guides

Bone-in chicken thighs get a good rub of Cajun spice, a hard sear, and then a slow bake with sweet Cubanelle peppers, onion, and baby potatoes soaking up the pan juices. It is a one skillet dinner with a lot of flavor for very little work, good on a weeknight or for company.

Ingredients

• 4 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin-on
• Olive oil
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 2 to 3 tablespoons Cajun seasoning (or a good chili pepper blend)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 Cubanelle peppers, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 12 to 16 small baby potatoes
• Juice from half a lemon
• Chopped parsley, for serving

Directions

1. Mix the garlic powder, Cajun seasoning, salt, and pepper. Pat the thighs dry and rub the spice blend on and under the skin, then let them sit at room temperature about 20 minutes.
2. Heat the oven to 325F.
3. Heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a cast iron skillet over medium heat and sear the thighs about 5 minutes a side until golden. Remove to a plate.
4. In the same skillet, cook the onion and Cubanelle peppers about 5 minutes until they soften, then add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
5. Pour in the white wine to deglaze, scraping up the browned bits, and let it reduce until nearly evaporated. Add the chicken broth, bring to a boil, then take off the heat.
6. Nestle the seared thighs and baby potatoes into the skillet and transfer to the oven. Bake 20 to 30 minutes, until the chicken reaches 165F and the potatoes are tender.
7. Squeeze the lemon over the top, scatter with parsley, and serve.

Add carrots or zucchini to the skillet for more vegetables, and dial the Cajun seasoning up or down to taste. Leftovers keep for up to 3 days and reheat gently in the oven.

Grower's tip: Cubanelle peppers are sweet, thin walled frying peppers that ripen from pale green to red and cook down soft and silky, exactly what you want simmering under chicken like this. They are prolific and easy, so a couple of plants keep the skillet stocked all season.

The vegetables here are worth growing. Raise a couple of Cubanelle peppers for frying, keep some onions in the ground, and grow a little parsley for the finish.