Braised Chicken

Braised Chicken-1-15Recently I posted a picture of myself taking this delicious chicken dinner out of the oven on Instagram and Facebook. I had so many people ask for the recipe, that I knew that I had to make it again and share it with all of you. Sergi didn’t mind eating it again so soon – this is one of his favorites.

This recipe is so easy, it’s not even really a recipe, so I didn’t even think to share it before. I make it so often for our family, it literally takes minutes to prepare and the results are incredibly tender, juicy and flavorful chicken. I can’t keep all this goodness to myself:). Here’s some other reasons why I love this dish:

  • You can do the prep work up to a day in advance or simply mix it all together right before putting it in the oven.
  • It doesn’t need any baby sitting. Put it in the oven and forget about it.
  • The “recipe” is versatile. Use whatever spices or herbs that you have on hand.
  • The oven temperature doesn’t have to be specific. If you’re making something else, you can easily bake the chicken at the same time, anywhere from 300-450 degrees Fahrenheit. Which means you can make baked potatoes, scalloped potatoes, roasted vegetables, rice, etc. at the exact same time.
  • Affordable and a pantry staple. Chicken is cheaper than most proteins, and is also easy to have it on hand in your freezer.

This is a perfect dinner when you’re extremely busy and don’t want to spend too much time in the kitchen or when you’re craving some homey and comforting food. 

Ingredients:

6-8 chicken drumsticks

1 onion, sliced

1 garlic head, cloves peeled and smashed

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1-2 Tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 – 1 teaspoon paprika

1-2 teaspoons chicken seasoning

salt, ground black pepper, to taste

1-2 sprigs fresh thyme (or rosemary)

Instructions: Braised Chicken-1-10Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl, cover and refrigerate while it’s marinating.

Seasoning the chicken is totally up to you. Instead of lemon juice, you can use lime juice, orange juice, apple cider vinegar, red wine vinegar, etc. Instead of the olive oil, use mayonnaise or yogurt. Use any combination of spices that you like – I like this combination of salt, pepper, paprika, orange peel and a chicken spice blend, which includes garlic, onion, sea salt, sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, marjoram, black pepper, fennel, coriander and bay leaf.Braised Chicken-1-11

Braised Chicken-1-12You can do this up to 24 hours in advance. If you don’t have time to marinate, that’s ok too, just proceed with the rest of the recipe, but you will get the best results if you do give the chicken some time for all the flavors to infuse into the chicken.

Preheat the oven to 350-400 degrees. It doesn’t have to be exact. You can cook it along with something else. Place the chicken with the onions, garlic and herbs into an 8×8 inch rimmed baking dish, or any other rimmed baking dish that will fit the chicken.

Braised Chicken-1-13Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil or a cover and bake for about 45 minutes. Uncover and cook for another 45 minutes until the chicken is tender and the golden. The longer you cook it, the more tender it will become. You can broil it at the very end if you want the skin to be more golden.Braised Chicken-1-14

Braised Chicken-1-15You can use any deep, rimmed baking dish for this chicken, as long as it will fit in one layer. Here’s the picture I posted on Instagram and Facebook, where I used my red clay baking dish, which has a cover too.

Braised Chicken-1-19

 34 weeks pregnant at the time of this picture, we checked off one more thing of the list of baby preparations – finding a pediatrician. After a long day of not feeling well and then having a meeting with the pediatrician, it was nice to come home to have dinner already waiting, and I didn’t spend more than 10 minutes on it.

Braised Chicken-1-17

Braised Chicken
 
Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Entree
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 6-8 chicken drumsticks
  • 1 onion, sliced
  • 1 garlic head, cloves peeled and smashed
  • 1 Tablespoon olive oil
  • 1-2 Tablespoons lemon juice
  • ½ - 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1-2 teaspoons chicken seasoning
  • salt, pepper
  • 1-2 sprigs fresh thyme (or rosemary)
Instructions
  1. Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl, cover and refrigerate while it's marinating. You can do this up to 24 hours in advance. If you don't have time to marinate, that's ok too, just proceed with the rest of the recipe, but you will get the best results if you do give the chicken some time for all the flavors to infuse into the chicken.
  2. Preheat the oven to 350-400 degrees. It doesn't have to be exact. You can cook it along with something else.
  3. Place the chicken with the onions, garlic and herbs into an 8x8 inch rimmed baking dish, or any other rimmed baking dish that will fit the chicken. Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil or a cover and bake for about 45 minutes.
  4. Uncover and cook for another 45 minutes until the chicken is tender and the golden. The longer you cook it, the more tender it will become. You can broil it at the very end if you want the skin to be more golden.

38 Comments

  • Tatyana

    Ah, childhood memories… Mom frequently made this dish. While supermarket chicken can’t compare to fresh homegrown chicken, I can’t wait to try. Thank you for sharing!

  • Mila

    This is such an under-appreciated method of cooking chicken, it seems. So easy and delicious. Such a great tip to marinade with spices ahead of time, I will try that! I find that 45 minutes total is usually enough time for drumsticks in my oven, unless it’s baked at lower temperature. 90 minutes at 400 would have a different result than, say, 90 minutes at 300?

    • Julia

      I made this chicken recipe last night for dinner. Baked 90 minutes @ 375 degrees (45min covered, 45 uncovered). The chicken was delicious and very tender, my entire family loved it! I broiled for 2-3min at the end, but even without it, it was already brown and crispy…just wanted an extra kick 😉 Thanks, Olga!

    • olgak7

      Yes, the chicken will be cooked through in 45 minutes, Mila. Cooking dark meat longer will make it more tender, fall off the bone, and juicy, which is what I really love about this recipe.
      Of course, the higher the temperature, the faster it will cook also.
      I like to increase the temperature after I uncover the chicken, so that it gets really golden and the skin crisps up a bit.

  • Valya @ Valya' s Taste of Home

    I make this chicken all the time Olga! Our kids love it so much (and our German Shepherd loves bones too :). You’re right it’s so easy to make. I just never used rosemary in my recipe or thyme. I wander if it gives any different taste to the chicken. I can’t wait to see your baby boy! 🙂

  • Josephine

    Hi Olga, I really enjoy reading your blog as I love seeing people of faith . It is a sign to me, that the world is still ok. God bless you and keep you safe, and make his face shine upon you and your family. May he bless your little one with the wisdom of Daniel, and the courage of Joshua. May your boy grow up to be a “man after God’s own heart” like David. This is true menaing of paradise, to enjoy life in this world keeping God’s commandments, thankful to him everyday. Get reday, your biggest assignment is yet to start, that of ” passing his knowledge on to a generation yet unborn”. All the best!

  • Susanna

    Olga, do you have to use drumsticks only or can you mix in some bone-in breasts? Not everyone in my family likes dark meat. Thanks!

    • olgak7

      I would not recommend using chicken breast, Susanna. They cook much faster and will be very dry. If you want to cook the chicken breasts separately, I would be very careful to check the meat with an instant read thermometer and take it out of the oven as soon as the meat is 165 degrees Fahrenheit.I would use another cooking method for chicken breasts.
      I do cook chicken wings and thighs the same way though. Dark meat will not overcook but will only get more tender and juicy the longer it cooks, so it’s best used for recipes like this one.

  • Anna

    Hi Olga, thanks for the recipe, the chicken came out very tender!!
    Does it matter what kind of baking dish you use? I didn’t have a pyrex glass one, and used a metal one…
    and had only 5 drumsticks, so they weren’t tightly packed, and the onions burned on the buttom ..could it be
    because the dish was too big, or because it wasn’t pyrex? I baked at 375..45 covered, then 45 uncovered.
    Cheers and thanks again!!

    • olgak7

      I usually use glass, ceramic or clay baking dishes for this recipe. I think the metal heats up more and is thinner, so that’s why the onions burned. Also, if the chicken isn’t tightly packed, it will cook faster and not have as much liquid, which is another reason the onions burned. Hope that helps.

  • Corinne

    Olga, this chicken looks and sounds delicious! I like the idea of marinating it before baking. Do you think the recipe would work with skinless chicken – drumsticks, wings, or thighs? I think a lot of people probably like the skin, but I avoid cooking chicken with the skin on it for health reasons and because greasy meat gives me indigestion. I would appreciate your feedback, either way! 🙂

    • olgak7

      Yes, Corinne, skinless chicken will work in this recipe as well, however, I wouldn’t recommend using chicken breasts, they will be too dry and tough. You can use chicken wings, drumsticks and thighs without the skin. You can also cook it with the skin on and then simply remove the skin before eating it.

  • Marina

    Dear Olga, thank you so much for all the wondeful recipes! I can see that you put your heart and soul into each one, and give great attention to every detail. I have made a few of your recipes and they all came out delicious.

    I just finished the prep for your brased chicken, and it took a long time because of the garlic – it tool quite a while to peel and smash the entire head of garlic! In fact, i am making a double quantity of the recipe but i stopped after just one head of garlic because i was tired of the tedious peeling process 🙂

    What’s your method of peeling the entire head of garlic and finishing the whole prep in 10 minutes?

    • olgak7

      Hi Marina,
      Thank you for such a sweet message! It makes my day to read comments like yours.
      I smash the garlic cloves with the back of a large knife and the peel comes right off. I takes me less than a minute to peel the entire head of garlic when I use that method. I hope that helps.

  • anna

    my favorite go-to recipe when im too lazy to cook! so delicious and never gets old! if i wanted to do dumbsticks and potatoes in the same dish next time, would i just mix potatoes in with the rest of the spices?

    • olgak7

      Yes, you can mix the potatoes with the chicken at the same time.
      However, when I make potatoes with chicken, I like to roast them on spread out in one layer on a baking dish.

  • Helen

    this recipe is thumps up! recently i tried all kinds of different recipes from different websites and they were ok not the best so i really had to trust to do chicken thighs ( i had thighs instead of drumsticks :)) using this recipe. I did as you say 45 min under foil and 45 min without foil 375 degrees. wow this is the best recipe so far! Thank you Olga! Your definitely on the list of trusted cooks 😉

    • olgak7

      I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed this meal, Helen. I don’t think I’ve ever made it with chicken thighs before, but it’s good to know that it works just as great. Thank you for taking the time to write.

  • Nina

    Love this simple yet delusions recipe! I tried this recipe (2 times) and its a keeper, thank you Olga! Many Blessings to you and your family! =)

  • ZS

    Thank you so much for such a delicious recipe.
    I tweak your recipe by little bit: instead of chicken drumsticks, I used chicken tights and instead of thyme, I used Ranch. It turned out delicious.

  • Zarina

    Good evening Olga….

    I tried to follow your recipe and it ended up delicious…
    Thank you for delicious recipe…

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Get Weekly Menu Ideas, Recipes, Kitchen Hacks:

Join thousands of others to get my best cooking and meal prep tips plus handpicked seasonal menu ideas in your email.