Don't you love one-pot meals? I certainly don't mind making a mess in the kitchen, but when it's time to clean up and I see a multitude of pots, pans, bowls, measure cups ... that's when cooking isn't quite as much fun.This is truly a one-pot meal, and you don't need much else - a cutting board and a few measuring utensils. And if you're confident in the kitchen, you can certainly eyeball the measurements and adjust to taste.
This uses two different Engage Organics
spice mixes. I'll admit that I used to be a spice mix snob. I refused to buy or use them, reasoning that I have a ridiculously full spice cabinet - so why should I buy a mix when I can just reach in the cabinet and combine individual spices.A while back, I changed my mind. If I need one or two herbs, it's easy enough to measure them out. But many spice mixes combine five or ten or a dozen different herbs or spices. In a teaspoon or two of spice mix, that means there could be tiny pinches of each one. That would be no fun to try to recreate and to measure for a single recipe.
And spice mixes aren't usually more expensive that single spices. So when I find one that I like, I'm perfectly fine with buying and using it.
In this case, Engage Organics sent me several jars of their mixes along with smaller sample packets, I haven't tried all of them yet, but I've tried a few, and so far I've been happy with all of them. In this recipe, I used two different spice mixes the Tuscany Mix which has Italian flavors, and lemon pepper.
One-Pot Chicken and Artichokes
2 tablespoons olive oil4 chicken thighs
2 teaspoons Engage Organics Tuscany Mix
1 teaspoon Engage Organics Lemon Pepper
1 onion, peeled, halved, and sliced into half moons
1/2 cup white wine (or white cooking wine)
1 12-ounce package frozen artichoke hearts
Salt, to taste
1 10-ounce package frozen tri-color bell pepper strips
Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan and add the chicken thighs, skin side down. Cook until the skin is nicely browned, then flip them over.
Add the spices, onion, wine, and frozen artichokes. Add salt to taste - the Engage Organics spices are salt-free, but if you're using another brand, it might already have salt. The wine also makes a difference. Cooking wine is salty, but if you're using regular wine, you're not adding salt.
Give the ingredients a little stir. You won't have a lot of liquid in the pan, but that's fine.
Cover the pan and cook on low, keeping the liquid lightly simmering, for 45 minutes, checking the level of the liquid occasionally. You don't want it soupy, but you don't want the pan to dry out, either.
After 45 minutes, check the doneness of the chicken - it should be cooked through, but longer cooking will make it even more tender. Taste for seasoning and add salt, if needed, and add water if it seems to be in danger of drying out.
Add the frozen bell pepper strips, cover the pan, and continue cooking on low until the chicken and peppers are cooked to your liking - figure on another 15 minutes.
If you've got an attractive pot, you can serve this family-style, right in the pot. Serve hot.
I received spices from Engage Organics at no cost to me.
