Chicken with 20 Cloves of Garlic

A reader on my Chez Bonne Femme facebook page write and said that she couldn’t find my recipe for Chicken with 20 Cloves of Garlic.

Well, there’s a good reason for that. My Chez Bonne Femme blog has disappeared! Gone! Vanished! I’m working on getting it back up, but meanwhile, I’ll post a few recipes on this side blog, especially if/when people request them.

So, here it is: Chicken with 20 Cloves of Garlic. It’s from my Braiser Cookbook, a great little e-book with 22 recipes created just for the braiser. You can find it on Amazon.

Based on a famous James Beard Recipe, this recipe for Chicken with 20 Cloves of Garlic is perfectly sized for a 3 1/2- to 4-quart braising pan.

Chicken with 20 Clove of Garlic for Your Braiser

Nearly every cookbook author who loves French food has a recipe for the famous “Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic,” a recipe first introduced to Americans by chef and cookbook author James Beard. This is our take.

But why 20 instead of 40? Don’t worry—we’re not stinting on the garlic! Many recipes call for two cut-up chickens. We call on one chicken so that the recipe will fit nicely into a 3 1/2-quart braiser—that’s why you only need half the amount of garlic found in traditional recipes.

And don’t shy away from all that garlic! As the garlic braises, it becomes mellow, sweet, aromatic—and soft. In fact, the soft pulp not only intensifies the flavor of the finished sauce, it helps thicken it, too. Even if you’re skeptical, please give it a go—everyone should enjoy this recipe at least once in their lives.

1 3 ½ to 4 pound chicken, cut up (or use 2 ½ to 3 pounds meaty chicken pieces)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 head garlic, cloves separated and peeled (about 20 cloves)
2 teaspoons dried herbes de Provence, crushed
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon fresh snipped parsley
1 tablespoon freshly grated lemon peel.

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat the butter and olive oil in a 3 ½-quart braiser over medium-high heat; add the chicken and cook, turning often, about 10 to 15 minutes or until brown on all sides. Transfer chicken to a plate and drain off all but 1 tablespoon fat from pan.

2. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the garlic cloves and cook, stirring, until they’re starting to color (but not brown), about 2 minutes. Add the herbes de Provence, white wine and chicken broth to the pan; bring to a boiling, scraping up the browned bits in the bottom of the pan.

3. Return chicken to braiser, skin side up. Cover the braiser, slide it into the oven, and bake for 20 minutes. Baste the chicken with the pan juices. Bake, uncovered until the chicken is tender and no longer pink (170°F for breasts, 180°F for thighs and drumsticks), 20 to 30 minutes more.

4. Remove the chicken to a platter; cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. Set the braiser over medium-high heat. If it looks like there’s less than ½ cup pan juices in the pan, add enough additional wine to equal about ½ cup. Bring the pan juices to a boil while using a fork to mash the garlic cloves, whisking the pulp into the liquid as you work. Add the lemon juice. Whisk in the butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, until incorporated.

5. Divide chicken among four serving plates and top each serving with some of the sauce. Sprinkle the parsley and lemon peel over all.