Chorizo Spiced Chicken Thighs with Peppers Onions Olives and Mushrooms originally published as Recipe Improv on Food and Fond Memories on July 6, 2011 by sandyaxelrod Leave a Comment(Edit)
Chorizo Spiced Chicken Thighs with Peppers Onions Olives and Mushrooms
The Start of Something Wonderful
Adding the sliced pimento stuffed olives to the pan
On the 16th of July Steve and I are hosting a little soiree for my fellow Board of Directors of the Wellington Art Society. I am the Recording Secretary. Our organization consists of a wonderfully diverse group of artists and in many cases their spouses or significant others who raise funds for scholarships given to outstanding high school seniors who have been accepted to college for art. This year we gave out four scholarships to four unbelievably talented students. As a member of the Board of Directors I have formed some very close friendships that mean so much to me. I wanted to let everyone know how I feel by celebrating them with a party full of good food, good friends, artwork and thirst quenching libations. Although my traditional artistic endeavors include jewelry, food photography and painting I consider my cooking to be my true artistic calling. As Steve puts it – food is my life. I can spend hours, days, weeks reading about food, talking about food, cooking it, photographing it, and yes, eating it and then writing about it. As a former caterer I know how much of a menu can be prepared in advance so that on the day of the event I can enjoy being a hostess. Yesterday with my shopping list in hand I started the process. By the end of the weekend I plan on having all of my shopping done and some of the food prep. I will even have a schedule written out as to what to prepare each day and I will list all of the necessary serving piece for each dish. I am planning a Southwestern theme menu. Okay, okay, what I really mean is a Bobby Flay menu. Well actually his recipes, my menu. Some recipes I have prepared before and some new ones and I will fill you in as I make them. While I was shopping yesterday I realized that I had not planned anything for dinner and started thinking about what to have. I had one of those huge packages of chicken thighs because one of my dishes for the party is Yucatan Chicken Skewers with Peanut Barbecue Sauce but I knew I could spare a little chicken for dinner. I also had a package of Mexican Chorizo and some bell peppers that needed to be cooked. After some deliberation I decided to improvise on Sausage with Peppers and Onions by adding the chicken. I thought the sausage would cook in chunks but when I removed the casings and started to break up the chorizo it broke apart completely which ended up being a good thing. I sauteed the chicken in garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper until it was cooked almost completely and then removed it to cook the sausage, et cetera. Then I added sliced onions, mushrooms, peppers, sliced stuffed green olives, and seasoned with salt and pepper. I cut the cooked chicken thighs into bite sized pieces and added them to my pan with everything else along with about a half a cup of aged Sherry vinegar to deglaze the pan and create some moisture. Of course I tasted along the way but the finished product was such a delicious surprise that I decided the only thing we really needed to complete our one dish meal was a good sour dough loaf and sweet butter. Next time I make this, and there will definitely be a next time, I might add some par cooked red skinned potatoes. Or not.
Chorizo Spiced Chicken Thighs with Peppers Onions Olives and Mushrooms
Chorizo Spiced Chicken Thighs with Peppers Onions Olives and Mushrooms
Chorizo Spiced Chicken Thighs with Peppers Onions Olives and Mushrooms
- Total Time: 0 hours
- Yield: 2 servings 1x
Ingredients
3/4 – 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
3–4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 Mexican Chorizo links (uncooked), casings removed
1 small sweet onion, thinly sliced
6 ounces white mushrooms, sliced
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into 1 inch squares
1/2 orange bell pepper, cut into 1 inch squares
1/2 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1 inch squares
1/4 cup pimento stuffed large green olives, sliced
1/2 cup aged Sherry vinegar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped
Instructions
Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large saute pan and add the garlic. Cook for just a minute until it starts to color. Generously season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper and add to the pan. Cook about 3 minutes per side until almost cooked through. Remove to a plate. Add the chorizo and break up. It will literally crumble into tiny bits. Cook for a minute or two and then add the onion to the pan. When the onion begins to caramelize add the mushrooms. When they are almost cooked thoroughly add the bell peppers. While everything is cooking together cut the chicken into bite sized pieces and add to the pan along with the olives. Deglaze the pan with the sherry vinegar and reduce heat to simmer and cook until the sherry vinegar has reduced. Season to taste with salt and pepper and add the cilantro.
Notes
Serve immediately with a loaf of good sour dough bread. You will want to get every drop of the chorizo sauce with the bread!
Next time I make this, and there will definitely be a next time, I might add some par cooked red skinned potatoes. Or not.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25-30 minutes
- Category: Fowl
- Method: Sautéing
- Cuisine: Southern
