Garlic Chicken with White Wine Gravy
KICK THAT CHICKEN UP A NOTCH!
I know I’m dating myself here, but… I used to love Emeril Lagasse’s The Essence of Emeril show on Food Network back in the mid 90’s. Whoa… I know… we’re talking about a show back in the nineteen hundreds. Totally vintage! I loved the energy he brings – smashing down the cooking intimidation factor – the idea that cooking can be fun, and all the sound effects he makes, “Bam!”
My lovely friend Nancy and I often talked about him and his creole inspired cuisines. How great it would be to meet Emeril in person! Well, to this day that’s still a dream … but who knows, right? He’s the pool of “incredible food genes” in a human body: he comes from a French-Canadian father and a Portuguese mother! How can he not be a supernatural chef, right? Jealous but yet inspired. Strange 🙂
So when his new book Essential Emeril was released the beginning of this month, obviously I ran to pick one up right after work. Bam! Day one of ownership, I went through the book. Cover to cover. With ridiculously bright blue and pink post-its, I marked every page with meals I’d like to make. Number one on the list: “Chicken with champagne and 40 cloves of garlic.” Swell. Except that I thought I should make it somewhat simpler and more “unassuming.” By that, I meant: not using Emeril’s homemade rich chicken stock recipe AND instead of champagne, I use good Sauvignon Blanc, the one I usually enjoy with my family and friends.
This is honestly not a promotion for Better than Bouillon, but I added a couple of teaspoons of this chicken base to enhance the flavor of the stock. I know, I know — it’s not perfect, but it’ll save you time! And the results… You’ll have full-flavored and impossibly rich gravy!
Guys, you might think that 3 whole heads of garlic would be too much. It’s not, believe me. The slow cooked garlic helps make this dish insatiably creamy. And since it’s cooked over a long period of time – the pungent garlic becomes mellow, nutty and sweet in taste – not to mention the chicken is falling-of-the-bone tender.
Give it a go friend, . . . have an easy-to-prepare, belly-filling, down-home meal. And if you make this for your friends, they WILL feel the love.
Inspired by Emeril Lagasse of Essential Emeril
- 12 large bone-in chicken thighs
- Salt and freshly ground pepper, to season
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 whole heads of garlic, peeled
- 2 lemons, juiced
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons Better than Bouillon Chicken Base
- 10-12 sprigs fresh thyme, bunched by tying them together with a cooking twine
- 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ¼ cup fresh tarragon, chopped, divided
- Preheat oven to 325°F. On a large baking sheet or plate, season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat a large Dutch oven over a medium high heat. When hot (have your palm hovered above the surface of the pot, if you feel the heat radiance, it's ready) add the oil.
- Sear the chicken skin side down until golden brown, approximately 5 minutes. Work in batches, make sure not to over crowd the pot. Flip the chicken and briefly brown, then transfer to a plate. Set aside.
- Reduce the heat to medium low, add the garlic into the pot and cook until golden. Be careful not to burn. Add the lemon juice, wine, stock and bouillon. Whisk the liquid mixture, to make sure that the bouillon is completely dissolved. Add the thyme bouquet in.
- Scoop some of the garlic out with a basting spoon. Place the chicken back into the pot, nestling the pieces down into the liquid. Put the garlic back on top of the chicken. Bring the liquid to a gentle boil, cover the pot and stick it in the oven. Cook for about 1 hour-15 minutes to 1 hour and 30 minutes, until the chicken is falling-off-the-bone tender.
- Place the chicken on a platter and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. Scoop out the thyme bouquet and discard. Meanwhile in a small mixing bowl, whisk flour and butter together to form a paste. Slowly pour in about ½ cup of the hot liquid from the pot until the paste becomes smooth. And then add the mixture back the into the Dutch oven. Mix in 2 tablespoons of the tarragon with a whisk. Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes or until the gravy has thickened.
- Season with salt and pepper. Serve the chicken with the gravy spooned over the top and sprinkled with the remaining tarragon.
