Chicken Creole
New Orleans comfort: chicken simmered in a spicy tomato sauce built on onion, bell pepper and celery, spooned over fluffy white rice.
- 70 min total
- 30 min hands-on
- Follow-a-recipe easy
- Serves 4
- About $2.56 a serving
- 830 calories
- Good the next day
- Gluten-free
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 6 bone-in chicken thighs, skin on
- 2 tsp Cajun seasoning
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- 1 can tomato sauce
- ½ cup chicken broth
- 1 tsp hot sauce
- 1½ cups long-grain white rice
- 2 stalks green onions, sliced (optional)
From your pantry
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp salt, divided
- ½ tsp dried thyme
- 1 bay leave
- 2¼ cups water
Each serving has about 830 calories, 41 g protein, 71 g carbs and 41 g fat, and costs about $2.56 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No bone-in chicken thighs? Chicken drumsticks work.
- No butter? Ghee works.
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No green bell peppers? Red bell peppers or yellow bell peppers work.
- No diced tomatoes? Crushed tomatoes work.
- No tomato sauce? Crushed tomatoes work.
- No chicken broth? Vegetable broth or bone broth works.
- No hot sauce? Sriracha works.
- No long-grain white rice? Jasmine rice or basmati rice works.
- No green onions? Chives work.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
the chicken dry and rub it all over with the Cajun seasoning.
Pat dry. Patting dry means pressing paper towels onto food to soak up the moisture on its surface. Wet food steams instead of browning, so this is how you get a good sear and crisp skin.
How you’ll know: The surface feels tacky, not wet, and the last paper towel comes away barely damp.
Food safety: Wash your hands, the board and the knife with hot soapy water after touching raw meat, and don’t rinse raw chicken in the sink.
Heat the oil in a large deep over medium. the thighs skin side down 8 to 10 minutes and move them to a plate.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Brown. Browning means cooking until the outside turns brown, which is where a lot of savory flavor comes from. Give food room and time without stirring, or it steams and stays gray.
How you’ll know: The food looks brown rather than gray, and the kitchen smells toasty and savory.
Medium heatTimer: 9 min
Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of fat and add the butter. Cook the onion, bell pepper, celery and ½ teaspoon of salt 5 to 6 minutes, until soft.
Medium heatTimer: 5 min 30 sec
Dolly’s tip: Onion, bell pepper and celery chopped about the same size cook evenly. In Louisiana they call this trio the holy trinity.in the garlic, tomato paste and thyme for 1 minute.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
Medium heatTimer: 1 min
Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, broth, bay leaf, hot sauce and remaining ½ teaspoon of salt, , and .
Scrape up the browned bits. It means loosening the brown bits stuck to the pan with a wooden spoon, usually right after adding liquid. Those bits are concentrated flavor, and they melt into the sauce.
How you’ll know: The bottom of the pan looks clean again, and the liquid turns darker and richer.
Simmer. Simmering means keeping a liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles rising gently. It cooks food evenly and lets a sauce thicken without scorching on the bottom.
How you’ll know: Small, lazy bubbles break the surface every second or so, and nothing is churning.
Medium-high heat
Nestle the chicken back in skin side up, cover, turn the heat to low and 25 to 30 minutes, until the thickest thigh reads 165°F.
Simmer. Simmering means keeping a liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles rising gently. It cooks food evenly and lets a sauce thicken without scorching on the bottom.
How you’ll know: Small, lazy bubbles break the surface every second or so, and nothing is churning.
Low heatTimer: 27 min 30 sec
Food safety: Chicken and turkey are done at 165°F in the thickest part. A thermometer is the only sure check. Without one, cut into the thickest piece: it should be white all the way through, with no pink.
Meanwhile, the rice and bring it with the water in a medium over high heat.
Rinse. Rinsing means running cold water over rice or canned beans in a strainer while you swish them around. It washes off loose starch and can liquid, so rice cooks up fluffy and beans taste clean.
How you’ll know: The water running out goes from cloudy to mostly clear; it doesn’t have to be perfect.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
Saucepan. A saucepan is a pot with tall, straight sides and one long handle. It’s for things that need depth, like rice, sauces or a few boiled eggs.
How you’ll know: The food fills it about halfway, leaving room to bubble without spilling over.
High heat
once, cover, turn the heat to low and cook 18 minutes. Take it off the heat and keep the lid on.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
Low heatTimer: 18 min
Fish out the bay leaf and serve the chicken and sauce over the rice with green onions on top.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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