Something tells me that you organized cooks out there are in the midst of planning your Easter and Passover menus. Am I right? My mom had me on the phone the other day trying to get side dish suggestions for her traditional Easter leg of lamb. After I spoke with her, I took a call from my mother-in-law to go over her Passover menu. This year we’ll be staying in California for the holidays and I’m on dessert duty. I’ll be making lots of coconut macaroons, my traditional lemon ice torte and a raw cashew cheesecake that I’m obsessed with. But if I were hosting Easter or Passover at my home (not that there’s anything wrong with lamb and brisket), I would make this Baked Chicken with Artichokes and Capers.
Normally, I don’t post a recipe until after I have finished teaching it, but I am just so excited about this chicken I can’t wait another day. It might be my favorite chicken recipe to date, which says a lot since I prepare chicken quite often. This dish has it all — great flavor, ease of preparation, healthfulness and seasonality. But really chicken isn’t even the star of this show. I actually came up with this recipe to work around one of my favorite springtime vegetables, artichokes.
I am going to cheat a little here. There are times when DIY is the way to go, as in chicken stock. And there are times when there is not enough patience in the world that could get me through trimming the number of artichokes it would take to fill this saute pan. (Although I am the same person that trimmed 10 pounds of Brussels sprout leaves for Christmas Eve dinner.) What’s different about this situation is that Trader Joe’s has come to my rescue with frozen artichoke hearts, an absolute gift and an affordable one, too. Not only do I always have a bag in my freezer at all times, but the other ingredients here are pantry staples, too — capers, white wine, bay leaves, mustard, which are all delicious with artichokes.
You may have followed similar recipes for chicken and dredged the chicken in flour first before browning it. The flour does help to the thicken the sauce a bit, but we can avoid the dredging altogether by adding the mustard to the sauce, which gives great flavor, as well as some body. Be sure to read my latest post on the secret to great-tasting chicken and you can decide if you want to salt the pieces or soak them in a wet brine. Both ways are very easy and definitely worth doing. Please note in that post that kosher chicken should not be salted or brined since it has already gone through a salting process. To make this recipe with boneless, skinless pieces, check out my recipe for Lemon-Thyme Chicken and follow those steps.
For a winner spring holiday lunch or dinner, pair this chicken with this asparagus salad or minted sugar snap peas, and some roasted new potatoes. I have a seriously fabulous vegan and gluten-free coconut tart coming your way soon!
Baked Chicken with Artichokes and Capers
Ingredients
- Brine:, do not brine kosher chicken
- 1 cup hot water
- ¼ cup kosher salt
- 1 cup ice water
- 3 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken pieces
- 2 Tablespoons unrefined olive oil or coconut oil
- 1 medium onion, diced or sliced (as you prefer)
- 3 cloves garlic cloves, sliced
- a big pinch of sea salt, or more if using unsalted stock
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1/3 cup dry white wine
- 2 bay leaves, don’t worry if you don’t have them
- 12 ounce bag frozen artichoke hearts or packed in water
- 2 Tablespoons capers
- 2 Tablespoons whole grain or stone ground mustard
- ¾ cup chicken stock, preferably homemade
- Chopped fresh parsley for garnish, optional
Instructions
- In a large bowl, dissolve salt in hot water. Add ice water and check to make sure brine is cool. Add chicken to brine and allow to soak for 45 minutes, and up to an hour and a half. OR sprinkle ½ Tablespoon of kosher salt on the chicken when you get home from the market. Rewrap it and refrigerate it until ready to cook. (Do not brine kosher chicken.)
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Remove chicken from brine and pat dry with paper towels.
- In an ovenproof skillet or braising pan, over medium heat, add the oil. Brown chicken on both sides. Transfer to a plate and reserve.
- Add onions to skillet and cook until tender, about 8 minutes. Add garlic, salt and pepper and sauté another minute or two. Carefully add wine to pan, and deglaze by scraping any brown bits on the bottom.
- Add chicken, bay leaves, artichoke hearts, capers, mustard and stock to pan and bring to a boil. Place in oven for 30-35 minutes, until chicken is cooked through, basting after 15 minutes. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley, if available.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
Can you sub chicken broth for chicken stock?
Yes!
Hi, Pamela, could you please add the stove top instructions for this recipe? I somehow can’t find the video.
Hi Kathleen! The video is in my IGTV on my instagram page. 🙂
Found it, thanks! Making tonight! 🙂
Hi Pamela,
Would you suggest covering the pan while the chicken cooks?
I’m at that step now and not sure …
Thank you!
No covering! Just keep in mind, a recipe would instruct you to cover a pan if covering is necessary. 🙂
Pamela,
I have made so many (and loved so many) of your recipes but this might be my favorite!! It was so amazing. We made it for my parents and it was a big hit all around. I already can’t wait to make it again. Different than anything in our repertoire but such a great combination of flavors. Thank you so much!!
Wow, so excited to hear this! Thank you, Jenny!
I think I should have browned the chicken a little bit more but other than that, I loved this really easy and delicious chicken. I love the flavor of capers. I used your recipe and made cauliflower rice with it. Yummy!
Mmmm, good call serving this with cauli-rice!
Can this be frozen for later use?
Although I haven’t tried freezing it, I’m sure it would hold up fairly well. I wouldn’t freeze it if the chicken was previously frozen and defrosted.
Brined my kosher chicken for an hour. Then read the comments to see if anyone had any suggestions before I cooked the rest of the dish and saw the guidance that kosher chicken is already brined. Pamela mentioned this was a good point to add to the original recipe but never did it. Wish I knew. Yielded an extremely salty dish that we couldn’t really remedy since the chicken was inedible. Disappointed.
I am so sorry. I understand your disappointment. Kosher chicken should never be salted or brined since it has already been through a salting process. Unfortunately, I changed plug-ins for the recipes on the site and many of the “notes” at the bottom of the recipes were dropped. I will add this one now.
I am in the process of buying new pots, pans, etc. What type of skillet/pan (brand, material, etc.) do you like to brown chicken? I do not have a good one that browns well….
BTW – This is a great dinner! Just made it tonight. Have not made it for a couple of months.
I use only stainless steel, enameled cast iron and cast iron. The brands I like are All-Clad (stainless steel), Staub and Le Creuset (enameled cast iron) and Lodge (cast iron.) Keep in mind, browning chicken is not just about the material of the pan. The pan and oil must be hot and, most importantly, the chicken must be DRY before you put it into the pan. 🙂