One-Pot Chicken and Stuffing Is Basically an Early Thanksgiving Dinner
Just reading the word “stuffing” is enough to make me crave Thanksgiving dinner. Stuffing is — I think — the best part of a traditional Thanksgiving dinner spread, with the possible exception of macaroni and cheese, but it seems like I never see it at all during the rest of the year. It’s time to rectify that situation with this easy one-pot take on the holiday classic that lets you make holiday-worthy stuffing in a single pan with juicy chicken thighs, which are easier to cook and almost always preferable to turkey anyway (sorry).
Start with some day-old Italian bread, torn into pieces. Stale bread is always better for stuffing. The author says to bake all the pieces in the oven at around 250° for an hour to make sure they’re extra dried-out, which will help them soak up all the savory, chicken-y flavors once they’re in the pan.
Cook seasoned chicken thighs skin-side-down in olive oil in an oven-proof pan until the skin turns crispy and golden. Take them out and use the leftover olive oil and rendered chicken fat to sauté diced onions and a substantial portion of sliced celery. All good stuffing has a lot of celery.
Once the celery and onions start to brown, stir in chopped fresh parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme. (Fortunately, the combination should be easy to remember.) Add the dried bread and drizzle everything with chicken stock.
Nestle the chicken thighs into the bread, and add some sliced Granny Smith apples. Bake the whole thing until the chicken is cooked through, which should take about 40 minutes. It’s like Thanksgiving dinner, but so much easier. And the leftovers should be just as good. But if you don’t have any leftovers, don’t worry. This recipe is easy enough that you could just make it again if you don’t have enough for next-day sandwiches.
Get the Recipe: One Pot Chicken and Stuffing from The Modern Proper
More Delicious Chicken Thigh Recipes on Kitchn
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