So Many Dishes

As a musician, there have been special moments when a performance ends on a high. Something about how you and your fellow musicians gelled, a particular connection with or reaction from the audience, a difficult piece that had given you fits in rehearsal suddenly feels—and sounds—effortless. There’s a moment, as the performance ends, when you just wish that what you’re feeling at that instant never stops. It’s truly a kind of magic.

I had the culinary equivalent of that high last evening. I’m sure it’s happened before, but it’s been a long time. I’d tried a new recipe, and, while I thought it would be good, the results were so delicious, and the dish came together with less effort than I’d expected, that I think I spent the rest of the evening with a huge grin on my face.

What dish brought about this reaction? It was chicken with artichokes and white wine, from Tuesday Night Mediterranean, one of the Milk Street cookbooks. Chicken and artichokes is one of those iconic combinations. I’ve made a simple chicken and artichoke recipe for years, seasoned primarily with garlic and bay leaves, that was one of our kids’ favorite meals as they grew up. They usually implored me to add more artichokes. (Ken and I raised them right!) Another of my favorite recipes is a pasta dish that includes both chicken and artichokes. And there’s a baked chicken breast and artichoke recipe that I want to try that actually looks like a riff on piccata. The variations seem to be endless. This one looked like an appropriate Sunday dinner, but one that wouldn’t be too labor-intensive.

I did have some challenges, though. You start by browning the chicken pieces on the stovetop, then bake them at high heat while making the sauce. The recipe calls for bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, but I would much rather eat white meat. So I substituted a bone-in chicken breast for two of the thighs, and hacked it in half. Both the thighs and breast pieces needed more time than the 15 to minutes that the recipe indicated. I used my instant read thermometer to check internal temperature; the thighs ended up taking 25 minutes, the breast pieces, 30.

Also, because I had all the vegetables chopped and double checked my mise en place, the sauce was done well before the chicken. This turned out not to be an issue. I simply turned off the heat and covered the pan. When the chicken thighs were ready to come out of the oven, I put them in the pan with the sauce and returned the heat to low. The breast pieces were cooked through, but Ken and I were still sipping a before-dinner glass of wine, I add those to the sauce, too. That worked perfectly.

The cookbook calls for serving the chicken with crusty bread, and I think that’s probably the ideal accompaniment. But we had half a bag of potatoes that we needed to use, so I made what is known in our family as Czech potatoes. There is nothing particularly Czech about boiling cut potatoes and serving with melted butter, but we had them so often when we lived in Prague, both in restaurants and at home, that that’s what we call them. The next time I make this, I’ll probably increase the quantity of carrots, and maybe add a second can of artichokes. I know that will get a thumb’s up from Ken.

Chicken with Artichokes and White Wine

• 2 1/2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
• Kosher salt and ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 tablespoons butter, divided
• 1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced
• 2 medium carrots, peeled, halved lengthwise, and sliced crosswise 1/4 inch thick
• 4 medium garlic cloves, minced
• 3/4 cup dry white wine
• 1 14- ounce can artichoke hearts, drained and cut into quarters
• 3 strips lemon zest, plus 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth

Heat the oven to 475 degrees. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. In a 12-inch skillet over medium high heat, heat the oil. Add the chicken, skin side down, and cook without disturbing until golden brown on the bottoms, 5 to 8 minutes. Using tongs, transfer the chicken, skin side up, to a rimmed baking sheet and roast until the thickest part of the thighs reaches 175 degrees, 15 to 20 minutes (but see my comments above).

While the chicken roasts, pour off and discard all but 1 tablespoon fat from the skillet. Turn the heat to medium, and melt 2 tablespoons of the butter. Add the onions, carrots, and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper, then cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the wine and cook, scraping up any browned bits, until reduced to approximately 1/2 cup, 2 to 4 minutes.

Stir in the artichokes, lemon zest, and broth. Bring to a simmer and cook, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until the carrots are tender and the liquid is slightly reduced, 4 to 5 minutes.

Remove and discard the lemon zest. Turn off the heat, add the remaining tablespoon of butter, stirring until melted, then add the lemon juice. When chicken is done, remove from the sheet pan with tongs and nestle among the vegetables. (Can be held over low heat until ready to serve). Serves 4.

Happy eating!