| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 2 hr 5 min |
| Prep: | 40 min |
| Inactive: | 10 min |
| Cook: | 1 hr 15 min |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons ancho chili powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 2 teaspoons ground fennel
- 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon ground chili de arbol
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup finely diced Spanish onion
- 2 cups long-grain rice
- 1 (13-14 ounce) can unsweetened coconut milk
- 1 cup water
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 4 green onions, thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons canola oil
- 6 slices bacon, diced
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 8 bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed
- 1 medium Spanish onion, halved and thinly sliced
- 1 large bell pepper, halved, seeded and thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1/2 serrano chile, finely diced
- 2 heaping teaspoons Mesa curry mix, recipe above
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 2 cups homemade chicken stock
- 1 (28-ounce) can plum tomatoes, drained well and coarsely chopped
- Scant 1/4 cup currants or raisins
- 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
- Honey
- 1/3 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, plus more for garnish
- Slivered almonds, lightly toasted and chopped
- Coconut Rice with Green Onions, recipe above
Instructions
- For the coconut rice with green onions:
- Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over high heat. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 2 minutes. Add the rice and stir to coat the grains in the butter. Add the coconut milk, water, salt and pepper and bring to a boil, stir once, cover the pot, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until tender, about 16 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and let the rice sit, covered for 5 minutes. Remove the lid, fluff with a fork and fold in the green onion. Let sit 5 minutes before serving.
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
- Heat the oil in a large, high sided saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook until golden brown and crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate lined with paper towels. Add the butter and 1 tablespoon of canola to the rendered bacon fat in the pan and heat until it begins to shimmer.
- Put the flour in a shallow bowl and season liberally with salt and pepper. Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper, dredge in the flour and tap off any excess. Sear the chicken on both sides until golden brown. Remove to plate.
- Add the onion and bell pepper to the pan, season with salt and pepper and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and the serrano and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the curry powder and cook for 1 minute. Add the wine and cook until reduced by 3/4. Add the chicken stock, bring to a simmer and reduce slightly. Stir in the tomatoes, currants or raisins, thyme, 2 teaspoons of honey and season with a little salt and pepper and bring to a simmer. Nestle the chicken thighs into the pan, cover with a tight fitting lid and bake in the oven for 35 minutes. Remove the lid after 35 minutes and continue to bake an additional 15 minutes.
- Remove the chicken to a platter and tent slightly to keep warm. Put the pan and sauce back on the burner over high heat and bring to a boil. Let the sauce reduce slightly, then season with salt, pepper, and honey, to taste. Stir in the parsley. Spoon the sauce over the chicken and top with the bacon, almonds and more parsley. Serve with Coconut Rice with Green Onions.
- Combine all the spices in a small bowl.
Reviews
I could not believe how good this was. The sauce is perfection. Also, this is the best technique for braising chicken I have found, and I will use it in the future with other kinds of sauces. The only thing I did differently was I did not add the canola oil because it seemed like the dish would be overly greasy with it in addition to the butter and bacon fat, and it came out great without it.
I tried this recipe on a fluke and my family loved it. I rarely (liike never follow a recipe exactly and not to be out of form, I didn’t add the coconut. and like so many the others I found the lack of curry powder in the “mesa grill curry powder” disturbing so I added some. I now make up my own bottle of Mesa Grill Curry Mix and keep it on hand. We like spicy so this dish was perfect. Bobby is the bomb. If this recipe was the loser in the throw down I’d love to taste the winner. Cuz this is FABULOUS No where near as complicated as it looks.
Made this dish after watching Bobby do a “Throwdown Challenge”, so I thought I make my sister and cousin my tasters. We love it!!!!! Now since my family has decided to rotate family dinner. I will be making this one again for the whole family. This recipe is sooo good.
I have been making curried dishes for many years and this recipe of chef Flay’s is really superb. The amount of information is a little daunting but the result is beautiful and delicious. I did use some grated fresh ginger and red pepper flakes instead of the cerrano pepper which I did not have.
This is a great recipe, a big hit with the entire family. I make the rice by itself to accompany other dishes because it is so delicious!
We loved the range of spices and the wonderful final blend. The rice was the best I have had in ages. Finally, I had lots of fun making this truly delicious dish!
a new favorite
Maybe it was the type of rice I used (parboiled, e.g., Uncle Ben’s), but I needed around 2-2 1/2 C. water for the 2 C. rice and about 50 min. cooking time, although I would think that, if anything, parboiled rice would need less liquid & time than regular rice. I’m surprised no one else noticed these things. Was it just me? All in all, loved the rice the way I prepared it, which included halving the number of scallions.
Other than that, it was delicious. My Country Captain was a little soupy, but maybe that’s because I used vegetable stock instead of chicken stock.
Bobby was right. If someone doesn’t like curry, they will love this dish. My husband would not eat anything ‘curried,’ however, he really enjoyed this recipe. I did not make my own curry, like Bobby did, and just used red curry from the spice rack. Really no need to use the coconut milk with the rice either, because the sauce over the chicken is so delicious, that you don’t taste the coconut, unless you eat the rice separately. This truely is a keeper. The first time I made it, I served it to company (always a risk), but they loved it, too! (And they know their food!)
This recipe is a little involved but worth every minute. It is absolutely fantastic. The flavors explode in your mouth and make your tummy smile.