This recipe for chicken thighs braised with artichoke hearts and green olives, adapted from “30-Minute Meal Prep” by Robin Miller, is a prime example of the latter.
Get the recipe: White Wine-Braised Chicken and Artichokes
Miller’s book is all about healthy recipes that are designed to be transformed into a new meal later in the week, so this one starts with dredging eight chicken thighs in seasoned flour, then cooking them in a skillet until golden brown on both sides. To cut down on the fat, Miller recommends bone-in chicken thighs with the skin removed. (The skin can be fried, if you wish, and served atop the finished dish — though, of course, that negates the nutritional benefits of removing it.) Alternatively, leave the skin on if the fat savings is not important to you or use boneless, skinless thighs to save on the prep. If you go with boneless, note that the chicken will cook slightly quicker.
White wine is used to deglaze the pan — though chicken stock makes a fine nonalcoholic substitute — before the addition of quartered artichoke hearts (use already quartered artichokes to save on prep) and pimento-stuffed green olives. (I made this recipe recently for a friend who, unbeknownst to me, isn’t the biggest fan of olives, but even he enjoyed them for the briny bite they added to this dish.) After a short while on the stove, the flour from the chicken helps to thicken the liquid ever so slightly, turning it into a sauce begging to be sopped up with crusty bread, white rice or the grain of your choosing.
Unless you’re planning to feed a crowd, there will be plenty for leftovers that can be heated up again for another meal later in the week. Or you can transform the leftover thighs into an entirely new dish.
In fact, meal prep is built into the design of Miller’s book. “In each chapter you’ll find a ‘Round One’ recipe and a ‘Round Two’ recipe,” Miller wrote. “Working with leftovers is an integral part of my planning-ahead strategy, and this scheme not only takes the stress out of meal planning, but it also streamlines the cooking process for 50 percent of the recipes in this book.” Miller suggests using the leftover braised chicken thighs in her recipe for tamale pie, or they could be used in curries, quesadillas or casseroles, just to name a few.
While recipes are primarily prescriptive, you can easily turn this one into a blueprint for a braised chicken dish of your own. Switch up the cut of chicken; use your own favorite blend of spices to season the flour; deglaze with just about any liquid (stock, alcohol and/or juice) you wish; and add whatever canned, preserved, fresh or frozen produce you can think of. The possibilities are endless!
The braised chicken dish of your dreams might be out there, waiting for you to discover it — or perhaps it’s already right in front of you with Miller’s version as is.
Get the recipe: White Wine-Braised Chicken and Artichokes
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