Caramelized Chipotle Chicken

We've been hovering in the negative digits since the end of last month (as a noteworthy aside, -48 is the lowest wind chill factor I've seen so far), so as one might imagine, "hearty-satisfying-warm" is the name of the game when you find yourself in Minnesota. In January.

Guinness stew, shrimp creole, chicken & dumplings, short ribs paired with a gnocchi & Gorgonzola Dolce gratin, and margaritas (because a girl can dream...) have all made an appearance in the New Year. Even better? These wonderful humans bravely made an appearance earlier this month, too. :)

Leenie, my favorite middle sister, noshing at Tilia in St. Paul.
Also known as the (super sweet, slightly crunchy) Hudson Valley vegetable gal.

Ry, flexing his gnocchi muscles on New Years Eve.

Kelli!! We met on a flight over the Atlantic, both Rome-bound. The rest is history. :)

Authentic Minnesota hockey. Speaking of (when in) Rome... Go Ice Hawks!

Also, there was shopping. Tis the season.
(Mall of America's got nothin' on Houston's Galleria, for whatever it's worth).

Best of all, there was a lot of very good food.

Where was I? Ah. This particular chicken dish brings the heat. Which, conveniently, is what we've been desperate for since... October, I suppose. It paired beautifully with cauliflower & cheddar galettes. I think you'll enjoy.

CARAMELIZED CHIPOTLE CHICKEN
Serves 4

Ingredients:

3 TBS. EVOO
6 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 c. ketchup
1 (heaping) TBS. Dijon mustard
1 TBS. packed (dark, if you have it) brown sugar
1/8 - 1/4 c. chopped canned chipotle chiles in adobo, depending on how much heat you can handle
1 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 TBS. cider vinegar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cumin
3 1/2 lbs. chicken, cut into 8 pieces (NOTE: I can almost always find a whole chicken already butchered at the grocery. They'll sometimes have an extra leg and/or thigh included -- there's enough marinade here to go around, so go for what's easiest for you).

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 450, with rack in the middle.

Heat the oil in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Cook garlic, stirring constantly, until golden. Transfer sliced garlic with a slotted spoon to a small plate.

Reduce heat to medium and cook the onions in the remaining oil, stirring occasionally until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Don't worry about any brown bits on the bottom of the pan -- that's flavor!

Add the garlic and remaining ingredients to the skillet, except the chicken, plus 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper. Simmer, stirring occasionally (be watchful -- no burning, please), until sauce has thickened -- 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat.

Put chicken pieces in a large bowl. Add half the sauce and coat pieces thoroughly. Place coated chicken skin-side up on an 17-by-11 inch heavy 4-sided sheet pan and bake for 25 minutes.

Remove from the oven and coat the pieces with the remaining sauce, then continue roasting until the chicken is cooked through (registers 165 on a digital read thermometer), another 15 to 25 minutes.

This chicken would be rockin' with grilled corn, rice and guac in the summer, but was terrific with Cauliflower and Cheddar Galettes (next post, I promise).


Recipe by Paul Grimes; Published in Gourmet Magazine, 2009.