Sure October is about being thankful for everything you have... but that's not as exciting it also being the spookiest month of the year. It’s the time when ghouls and goblins walk the streets, ghosts become important members of society, and vampires prey on anything with blood. The only way to combat your chances of becoming a Halloween statistic (AKA: avoid becoming a vampire, werewolf, or someone’s ghoul-friend) is to consume copious amounts of garlic.
Skillet Garlic Chicken and Potatoes - Serves 4 People
INGREDIENTS:
- Olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 leek (white and light green part only)
- 6 cloves of garlic
- 8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 4-6 medium potatoes, cooked (see tip, below)
- Fresh chopped parsley or dill, to finish
- Salt and pepper
SPECIAL EQUIPMENT: Large cast iron pan (like this paella pan!)
INSTRUCTIONS:
STEP 1: Assemble your ingredients and preheat the grill to medium.
STEP 2: Slice your leek vertically, and then give it a good rinse; slice it again a couple more times vertically, and then chop it up into itty bitty tiny bits.
STEP 3: Grate, or smash and mince your garlic. Inhale its bewitching aroma.
STEP 4: Cut the potatoes into 1-inch cubes; they don’t have to be perfect but try to keep ‘em the same(ish) size.
STEP 5: Now that your pan is preheated, add the butter and a good glug of olive oil. Yes, this is an actual amount. A glug. You’ll know it when you see it, okay?
STEP 6: Add the leek, and cook it for about three minutes, stirring often. You want it to soften up a bit and brown a smidge, but not burn.
STEP 7: Next, add the garlic and mix it into the leek; spread the leek and garlic mixture around evenly.
STEP 8: Place the chicken over the leek and garlic, and then fill in the empty space with the potatoes. Aw, look how cozy they are!
STEP 9: Drizzle everything with a bit more olive oil (more than a smidge, less than a glug), and season generously with salt and pepper.
STEP 10: Close the lid and cook for 5 minutes, undisturbed. Flip the chicken, move the potatoes around, close the lid, and continue to cook.
STEP 11: Repeat the previous step three more times for a total cooking time of 20 minutes. The chicken should be nice and brown, and the potatoes will have crisp, garlicky edges.
STEP 12: Remove the pan from heat (very carefully! It’s HOT!), sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley or dill, and serve immediately. Enjoy!
TIP: leftover boiled or baked potatoes work great for this recipe, but if you don’t have any pre-cooked, scrub raw potatoes, pierce a few times with a fork, and microwave on high for 5-7 minutes. Let them rest until cool enough to handle and proceed with recipe.