Chicken with orange and olive sauce

Recipe : Chicken with orange and black olives

Adapted from Real Fast Food by Nigel Slater

2 tbsp olive oil

2 oz butter

2 chicken legs

1 cup chicken stock

1 tsp dried thyme or rosemary

a handful of sliced black olives

1 orange, cut into thin slices

1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped finely

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil and half the butter in a large frying pan over medium heat and fry the chicken on both sides until really browned. (I had an idea to press down on the chicken with a heavy object, like in the chicken under a brick recipe, in the hope that the chicken would really caramelise and crisp, but the darn chicken kept slipping about and so I abandoned the idea)

Add the chicken stock, thyme or rosemary, olives and orange slices and cover the pan. (I used two pieces of foil for this as my frying pan has no lid). Reduce the heat to low and simmer the chicken for about 20 minutes. 

Nigel suggests checking the chicken is cooked after this time and removing to a plate to rest. I wanted a crispy skin and no uncooked chicken risks so I adapted by laying the chicken on a baking dish and placing in the oven with the potatoes for a further 20 minutes at 375oF. 

Whether you set the cooked chicken aside or place in the oven, you can now finish your sauce.

Add the parsley and stir well. Taste the sauce and season carefully, then turn the heat back up to medium to high and let the sauce bubble softly until it has thickened slightly and reduced. Add the remaining butter and stir well to melt. Your finished sauce should be glossy and very aromatic. Keep warm on a very low heat until the chicken is ready. Pour the sauce over the chicken legs, (I removed most of the orange slices before serving) and eat with some baby roast potatoes or another type of carb such as rice or noodles.