Chicken thighs with romesco sauce
Golden chicken and crispy potatoes over a swoosh of smoky Spanish romesco made from roasted peppers and almonds.
- 50 min total
- 35 min hands-on
- A little more hands-on
- Serves 4
- About $3.23 a serving
- 560 calories
- Good the next day
- Gluten-free
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 1½ lb baby potatoes, halved
- 1 cup roasted red peppers, drained
- ⅓ cup almonds
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1½ lb boneless chicken thighs, about 6 thighs
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped (optional)
From your pantry
- ⅓ cup olive oil, divided
- 2 tsp salt, divided
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1½ tsp smoked paprika, divided
- ½ tsp black pepper
Each serving has about 560 calories, 40 g protein, 34 g carbs and 30 g fat, and costs about $3.23 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No baby potatoes? Red potatoes or Yukon Gold potatoes work.
- No boneless chicken thighs? Chicken breasts or chicken tenderloins work.
- No fresh parsley? Cilantro works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
the oven to 425°F. the potatoes with 1 tablespoon of oil and ½ teaspoon of salt on a , turn them cut side down, and 30 to 35 minutes, until .
Preheat. Preheating means turning the oven on before you start, so it’s fully hot when the food goes in. Food that starts in a cold oven cooks unevenly and doesn’t brown the same.
How you’ll know: The oven beeps or its light clicks off, usually 10 to 15 minutes after you turn it on.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Sheet pan. A sheet pan is a flat metal baking tray with a low rim all the way around. The rim catches juices, and the wide surface lets food spread out and brown.
How you’ll know: Everything fits in one layer with a little space between the pieces.
Roast. Roasting means cooking in a hot oven, around 400°F to 450°F, usually spread out on a sheet pan. The dry heat browns the outside and brings out sweetness, especially in vegetables.
How you’ll know: The edges are browned and a little crisp, and a fork slides easily into the thickest piece.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Timer: 32 min 30 sec
Blend the roasted peppers, almonds, garlic, vinegar, tomato paste, ½ teaspoon of smoked paprika, 3 tablespoons of oil and ½ teaspoon of salt until nearly smooth.
Dolly’s tip: A little texture from the almonds is exactly right. Taste it and add a splash more vinegar if you like it tangier.the chicken dry and it with the remaining smoked paprika and salt and the pepper.
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.
Season. Seasoning means adding salt, pepper or spices to bring out a food’s flavor. A little at a few stages tastes better than a lot all at the end.
How you’ll know: When you taste it, it tastes bright and like itself, not flat and not salty.
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 last tablespoon of oil in a large over medium-high until it . Cook the chicken 5 to 6 minutes, until deep underneath.
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.
Shimmering oil. Oil shimmers when it’s hot enough to cook: its surface looks rippled and wavy, like heat over a road. That’s your cue to add the food, just before the oil would start to smoke.
How you’ll know: The oil looks wavy and runs thin like water when you tilt the pan, with no smoke yet.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Medium-high heatTimer: 5 min 30 sec
Flip and cook 5 to 6 minutes more, until the thickest thigh reads 165°F.
Medium-high heatTimer: 5 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.
Let the chicken 5 minutes on a board, then it.
Rest. Resting means letting cooked meat sit for a few minutes before you cut it. It keeps cooking gently, and more of the juice stays in the meat instead of running onto the board.
How you’ll know: Loosely covered with foil, it stays hot, and very little juice runs out when you slice it.
Slice. Slicing means cutting food into flat pieces of about the same thickness. Even slices cook evenly, so none are raw while others burn.
How you’ll know: Lay a few side by side: they’re close to the same thickness from one end to the other.
Timer: 5 min
Swoosh the romesco across the plates, then top with the potatoes and chicken and scatter the parsley over.
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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