Chicken with Chickpeas & Chorizo

A Nutritious One-Pot Meal

Jan 17, 2008 Elizabeth Gregory

This is easy to prepare, and the quantities can be altered to feed as many people as you need to.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 large chicken legs (or 8 smaller pieces, such as thighs), skin removed
A six inch piece of chorizo sausage
1 large onion
1 head of fennel
1 x 400g tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 small glass dry white wine (optional)
salt & pepper

Method:

Heat the oil in a large casserole dish or oven-proof frying pan with a lid. Chop the onion and add to the pan, and fry gently for a couple of minutes until starting to soften.
Remove any tough outer leaves from the fennel and finely slice. Add to the pan with the onion and continue to fry on a gentle heat.
Add the chicken to the pan - move the onion and fennel to one side so that the meat can begin to brown. You don't have to remove the skin from the chicken, but if you do so before adding to the pan this will greatly reduce the calorie and fat content of the finished dish.
Remove any skin from the chorizo and chop into small pieces. Add to the pan and stir everything around so that the chorizo starts to release its oil. Add the balsamic vinegar to the pan and stir once more to ensure that all the ingredients receive some of its flavour.
Once the chicken has browned on both sides, turn up the heat and add the glass of white wine (you could use water if you don't wish to use alcohol). Once most of the wine has evaporated, add the tin of drained and rinsed chick peas and the tin of tomatoes, plus a little more water if the dish looks a little dry. Stir everything around so that the chicken is mostly submerged, and add some black pepper and salt to taste. Bring everything up to a simmer, then put the lid on and transfer to a medium hot oven - around 190 centrigrade.
Cook for 45 minutes with the lid on, and then remove the lid and return to the oven for a further 15 minutes. Test the chicken to make sure it is cooked - the juices will run clear and the meat may even be starting to fall off the bone. If the chicken pieces are particularly large and seem to require further cooking time, return to the oven and re-test the meat every five minutes or so.
Serve with crusty bread and green salad.

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Chicken with Chickpeas and Chorizo