I have to confess that I never had chicken thighs until this year. They scared me a little bit! I can roast a chicken, make baked wings to die for, simmer a killer stock, and even do a crazy chicken liver appetizer (thanks, mom!) but, for some reason, I was wary of cooking chicken thighs. Strange shape, some dark meat… what to do, what to do?
This afternoon, faced with my weekly Monday dilemma – eat or take a shower before work – I realized I had nothing ready for dinner. Mondays are nutty around here. Every day is a little bit nutty but I have this nagging feeling that if I don’t start the week off with a good meal for my family, in spite of the chaos, the rest of the week heads downhill…
We buy our meat from local farmers – the chicken breasts are hot commodities – they go fast! The thighs are generally a little bit more available… hence their forlorn presence in my freezer. And so, looking in my freezer and seeing a nice package of chicken thighs staring back at me, I knew I had to bite the bullet and figure out something to do. In my kitchen, when in doubt … slow cooker.
I cannot say enough good things about these thighs. Set it and forget it. The bottoms were caramelized, the tops had a lovely glaze. The dark meat kept the chicken nice and moist and the meat just fell off the bone. Even the skin was lovely. I kept telling my husband, “Tell me again how amazing these are!” The prep time was about 2 minutes and then I did not touch them for four hours. I need to get my hands on more chicken thighs now… I am no longer afraid!
Ingredients:
4 – 6 chicken thighs (one per person)
5 or 6 cloves garlic, sliced
2 tablespoons onion, chopped
1 or 2 teaspoons of your favorite seasoning mix
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
Sea salt
Directions:
1. Spray the inside of your slow cooker with non-stick spray.
2. Slice cloves of garlic and chop about 2 tablespoons of onion. Spread around the bottom of the slow cooker.
3. Place chicken thighs on top of the onion and garlic. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle generously with your favorite seasoning mix and sea salt.
4. Cover and cook on high for four hours. Don’t touch anything until they are done!
Serve and enjoy! We served our chicken thighs with roasted potatoes and a big plate of sliced heirloom tomatoes. Simple. Amazing. No leftovers!
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| Our last heirlooms of the season … |
