I haven’t done a recipe post in a while and seeing as this is the 2^nd time I am making this particular dish, it felt like a good time to share it with all of you.  I guess you can say I live the quintessential downtown life – I work, I socialize and probably spend a lot of my hard-earned money at restaurants and bars.  But every now and then there is nothing better than a home cooked meal especially if it’s a) a good one and b) easy to make on those busy weeknights. I also just got back from a 10 day Europe excursion so a good home cooked meal is exactly what I needed tonight.

It’s actually baking in the oven as we speak and filling my condo with the scent of garlic, lemon and oregano.  Like most recipes I found this one on Pinterest and lucky for me it did not turn out to be a fail.  It’s quick and best of all you probably have all the ingredients in your fridge.  Also, if you think that the chicken is the star of this recipe you are wrong, it’s the RICE.  Wait till you taste this rice.  Life changing.

What you need:

Chicken and Marinade

• 4-5 chicken thighs, skin on, bone in
• 1 – 2 lemons, use the zest + 4 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 tsp salt

Rice

• 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil, separated
• 1 small onion, finely diced
• 1 cup / 180g long grain rice (Note 6 for other rice)
• 1 1/2 cups / 375 ml chicken broth / stock
• 3/4 cup / 185ml water
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• 3/4 tsp salt
• Black pepper
• Parsley (optional)

Instructions

Pre-Prep

Combine the Chicken and Marinade ingredients in a ziplock bag and set aside for at least overnight.  1^st time I marinated for a few hours and 2^nd time overnight.  Overnight was SO much better.

To Cook

1. Preheat oven to 180C/350F
2. Remove chicken from marinade, but reserve the Marinade
3. Heat 1/2 tbsp olive oil in a deep, heavy based skillet over medium high heat. I used a large nonstick pan but I’ve wondered if a cast iron would get the chicken crispier
4. Place the chicken in the skillet, skin side down, and cook until golden brown, then turn and cook the other side until golden brown. Remove the chicken and set aside
5. Pour off fat and wipe the pan clean and return to the stove
6. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in the skillet over medium high heat. Add the onion and sauté for a few minutes until translucent. Then add the remaining Rice ingredients and reserved Marinade. This is the part that freaked me out because you will use the marinade the dish.  Believe me, it’s the secret ingredient
7. Let the liquid come to a simmer and let it simmer for 30 seconds. Place the chicken on top then place a lid on the skillet. Bake in the oven for 35 minutes. Then remove the lid and bake for a further 10 minutes, or until all the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender (so 45 minutes in total)
8. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving, garnished with parsley or oregano and fresh lemon zest, if desired
9. Garnish with fresh parsley (option)

 

Voila! You are done.  Not only do you have a lot of food for 1-2 people but you probably have enough for lunch the next day.  The original recipe from Pinterest tagged this a Greek recipe and I can see why, it uses all the classic Greek ingredients.  So serve this up with a little Greek salad, maybe some potatoes and tzatziki and OPA!

Would love to hear from you if you decide to try this one out!

Bon Apetit!