Poulet Basquaise

This is a lovely spicy chicken dish which reflects the Basque cooking style.  It tastes is full of the Pyrenees sun shine.

Preparation Time: 15 Mins

Cooking Time: 1¾ Hrs

Total Time: 2 Hrs

Ingredients

For 6 servings…

2 tbs               Olive oil    

2                    Onions  - sliced thinly

2 cloves            Garlic  - crushed      

2                    Peppers  - red - cut into strips   

1 tsp               Chilli  - Espelette - ground       

1                    Chicken     

230 gms           Chorizo  - sliced across          

1 sprig             Parsley      

1 sprig             Marjoram  

1 sprig             Thyme      

4                    Tomatoes  - chopped roughly   

40 cl                Stock  - chicken        

                     Pepper  - freshly ground, black 

                     Salt          

To serve

                     Rice  - plain boiled    

Method

Heat the oil in a flameproof casserole and soften the onion, garlic and red pepper over a gentle heat.  Stir in the Espelette chilli  and cook for one minute more.  Remove vegetables from the pot and keep them warm.

Turn up the heat and put the chicken into the casserole with the chorizo sausage and brown all over.

Return vegetables to the pot.  Add the herbs and tomatoes and pour over stock.  Season with salt and pepper.  Cover with a lid and simmer gently for 1 hour 20 minutes

Serve with plain boiled rice.

Variations

The Espelette chilli can be replaced with ½ tsp Cayenne.

For an even more authentic flavour, the chorizo can be replaced with loukenkas – a spicy Basquais pork

sausage.

Wine recommendations

A red or a white wine.

Conventional

     Irouleguy

Interesting

     Béarn

     Côtes de Gascogne

     Jurançon

     Txakoli