Crispy Chicken Thighs With Peppers, Capers and Olives
- Total Time
- 1 hour, plus marinating
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:6 servings
- 6large bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 2 pounds)
- Kosher salt (Diamond Crystal) and black pepper
- 2garlic cloves, grated or minced
- 2large sprigs rosemary, very roughly chopped
- Pinch of red-pepper flakes
- Grated zest and juice of 1 small lemon (about 1 teaspoon zest and about 3 tablespoons juice)
- 4tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2medium red onions, sliced in ¼-inch half-moons (about 3 cups)
- 6bell peppers, in assorted colors, if possible, sliced ⅜-inch lengthwise (about 8 cups)
- Kosher salt (Diamond Crystal) and black pepper
- 3garlic cloves, grated or minced
- Pinch of red-pepper flakes
- ½cup green olives (like Castelvetrano)
- ½cup black olives (like Niçoise)
- 2tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1tablespoon capers, roughly chopped
- Pinch of dried oregano
For the Chicken
For the Peppers
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
443 calories; 34 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 19 grams monounsaturated fat; 6 grams polyunsaturated fat; 16 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams dietary fiber; 7 grams sugars; 20 grams protein; 849 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Start the chicken: Pat chicken dry and place in a large bowl. Season well with salt and pepper. Add garlic, rosemary, red-pepper flakes, lemon zest and juice. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and toss the thighs to coat, using hands to smear the mixture evenly over the chicken. Let marinate for 1 hour at room temperature, or, if time permits, overnight in the refrigerator.
- Step 2
Make the peppers: Put 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large, wide skillet with a lid over medium-high heat. When oil begins to look wavy, add onions and stir to coat. When the onions begin to soften (don’t let them brown), add peppers and stir to combine. Season well with salt and pepper, and add garlic and red-pepper flakes. Stir to incorporate and reduce heat to medium. Cover, leaving the lid ajar.
- Step 3
Cook mixture for about 15 minutes, stirring frequently, until completely soft. Add olives, vinegar and capers, and cook for a few minutes more, just to meld the flavors. Taste and adjust seasoning. Sprinkle with oregano. Set aside. Serve warm or at room temperature.
- Step 4
Cook the chicken: Place a large cast iron or heavy-bottomed skillet over high heat. Add remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil. When oil is wavy, add chicken thighs, skin-side down. Shake the pan to make sure the chicken isn’t sticking.
- Step 5
Lower the heat to medium. Place a piece of parchment or aluminum foil on top of chicken and set another skillet on top. Add some weight — a brick or canned goods, for example — to the top skillet. Set heat to low and cook for 20 minutes, checking occasionally to be sure chicken isn’t sticking, until the skin side is beautifully browned.
- Step 6
Turn thighs over and cook for 10 minutes more, until thighs are cooked through. (To test, pierce the chicken with a paring knife. The juices should run clear.) If you wish, turn the thighs skin-side down again and let crisp for a few more minutes.
- Step 7
Serve 1 thigh and a large spoonful of stewed peppers to each guest. Leftover peppers, if any remain, will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Charlie
Note that he lowers the heat to medium immediately after putting the thighs in the pan and then to low once the weight is added. Thirty minutes on low for 5 oz thighs will not result in "dry and stringy".
S
I used all these ingredients but threw them on a sheet pan for an easier weeknight dinner. Let's blame Melissa Clark? I basted the chicken a few times with its own juices. It was delicious! I will try the weighted pan method another time and see what the difference is.
Michael
Most chicken sold at retail has about 5% retained water from the chilling process after slaughter. This is probably what is causing the excess liquid. Bell & Evans sells air-chilled chicken that is not submerged in water after slaughter. These chickens are available at Whole Foods and elsewhere.
lemon
20 minutes on low, 10 on medium. Marinated, skin-down. Nothing's turning out dry. Check your temperatures.
Charles
Rethink the overnight marinade for this and most other dishes. After an hour or so, the chicken will have absorbed pretty much all the flavor that it's going to, but an acidic marinade like this will be cooking the meat until you take it out - think ceviche. This results in a mushy texture, way beyond any level of tender you'd ever want.
Susan
Don't throw away that glorious, golden fat (aka Schmaltz)! When cool, pour into a jar and use to make fabulous roasted potatoes, carrots, and anything else where you'd like to make more delicious.
Mariko
This recipe for the chicken reminds me so much of what we ate when visiting my husband's family in Calabria. Really delicious. I did find the weight released more liquid than expected but just drained it off for optimal sear. Not dry at all.
Jill W.
Followed the recipe and it came out perfect. Served with herbed polenta.
Bob
You can air dry the chicken in the fridge. Put the pieces on a plate, no covering, for several hours.
Drgonzo777
why must it be a gas oven, Diane?
Laura G.
Crisp-skinned, compressed deliciousness! For those finding too much liquid/soggy skin, 4 recommendations: Dry chicken thoroughly; trim excess fat/skin (i.e dangling over sides); use parchment not foil; make sure top skillet is less wide than cooking skillet--leave room for circulation. "Liquid" released should be mostly fat, in which chicken will happily brown. I love pan-roasted chicken thighs, but this gives a different texture. If you use *either* capers *or* olives, will still be good.
Valerie
Hmmmm. Shame on me for not reading it through before I bought the ingredients and started. Not a favorite at all. Chicken burned. But was sort of raw. The pepper mixture was dry. I added stock. Messed around with chicken temp again but not a favorite. I cook a lot and this was a let down even though it looked good from the ingredients. Doubt I'll make it again.
Yale
To me this needed a shade more flavor. That’s probably me, but what we did was add some white wine and home made chicken stock when we added the olives and capers. And then boiled that down. Ummm
Bob
We cooked this last night with 8 thighs (3 lbs.), otherwise followed the recipe. I air-dried the thighs in the fridge, and let them marinate at room temperature for about 2 hours. Wow! It was delicious.
Nancy Holland
This was delicious, but you absolutely have to remove the excess liquid from the cast iron frypan when you start cooking the chicken thighs or they won’t develop the nice, crisp, brown skin. (I used a turkey baster to remove the excess liquid and this worked very well). The chicken ended up nice and crispy and beautifully browned. I served with potatoes roasted in duck fat. Delicious! Definitely make this again. BTW, I used a large, flat rock on top of my six chicken thighs - perfect!
Beth
This was a big hit at my house. A weekend meal to be sure. Made it as written. I have an induction range. So I was afraid about burning the skin in the big 20 minutes under a weight. But yay. It turned out great.
KBall
This turned out perfectly. Cooked the chicken exactly as directed. Next time I’ll try the peppers, but this was great with salad, too. I think this will be a new go-to.
irene
What do you do with that yummy marinade? I put it in the skillet with the chicken, then poured it over couscous. Yum! I liked it more than the peppers, tho they were good.
Liam
The peppers and onions turned out nice but the chicken turned out stringy despite cooking on low as instructed.
Amy Dixon
As others suggest, air dry the chicken in the refrigerator. I mixed the marinade ingredients in a shallow, glass pan and placed the chicken in the pan, skin-side up; no tossing as I wanted to preserve the dry chicken skin. I roasted the chicken in a cast iron pan, with the marinade poured around it, at 400 degrees using the oven's convection roast feature. The chicken came out crispy and flavorful in about 25 minutes (165+ degrees). Made the veggies as per recipe; yummy!
Bbrill
Didn't have capers so used banana peppers. Excellent. Cooked everything as outlined. Delicious!
Jill Evans-Kavaldjian
We loved this dish! Weigh those thighs down! It really helps brown the chicken. Scrumptious.
es
The peppers were great on the chicken but the chicken wasn't as crispy as I expected. We cooked it on a gas grill. However, it was very juicy and tasty. I would try it again on the stove top in the winter. Maybe run the thighs under the broiler.
Kathleen
This is fabulous!
caper liver
I was excited about the potential for a tangy veggie and chicken combo, but this was a pretty mediocre outcome for the effort required If I were to try again, I’d: Chop the olives to disperse the flavor more Add more capers, maybe double The weighted chicken is a neat trick but it’s much easier to get a crispy chicken in the oven imo
judys
This is really good. My husband loves peppers and grows too many in our garden than we (2 of us) can use. This year we have bell peppers and peperocini, which have a bite but aren’t too hot. I used a combo of these and he loved it! The chicken was perfect, nice and crispy. I trimmed the excess skin and used a little less oil, otherwise followed recipe. Will make again when we have too many peppers. Would never have thought to use as a side vegetable!
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