A Georgian chicken stew simmered in a tomato-onion sauce flavored with fresh herbs, garlic, and khmeli-suneli. The dish is generous, tangy, mildly spicy, and perfect with bread or rice.
Ingredients
- 1.2 kg skin-on free-range chicken legs
- 500 g yellow onions
- 700 g ripe tomatoes
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 4 cloves garlic cloves
- 1 piece fresh red chili
- 0.5 bunches fresh cilantro
- 0.5 bunches fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 4 sprigs fresh basil
- 1 tsp khmeli-suneli
- 2 leaves bay leaves
- 2 tbsp sunflower oil
- to taste fine salt
- to taste ground black pepper
Method
- Pat the chicken pieces dry, salt them lightly, then brown them skin-side down in a hot Dutch oven with oil until deeply colored and a roasted aroma emerges.
- Remove the chicken and melt the sliced onions in the pan juices, stirring often, until they become soft, golden, and almost candied.
- Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, until it darkens slightly and loses its raw smell.
- Stir in the crushed tomatoes, bay leaf, pepper, and finely chopped chili, then let the sauce bubble until it becomes juicy and fragrant.
- Return the chicken to the Dutch oven, partially cover, and simmer gently until the meat is tender and pulls easily from the bone.
- Add the crushed garlic and khmeli-suneli, then continue cooking uncovered until the sauce coats the back of a spoon without drying out.
- Taste, adjust the salt and pepper, then remove the bay leaf once the sauce strikes a clear balance between onion sweetness, tomato acidity, and chili heat.
- Off the heat, fold in the chopped cilantro, parsley, and basil, cover briefly to let the herbs infuse without losing their freshness, then serve piping hot.
Nutrition
Per serving
- Energy
- 632.9 kcal
- Protein
- 45.36 g
- Carbohydrate
- 21.87 g
- Fat
- 40.58 g
- Fibre
- 5.6 g
- Calcium
- 26.82 mg
- Iron
- 0.46 mg
- Magnesium
- 11.22 mg
