Rustic Garlic Chicken with Gravy

Ingredients

• 1 Tablespoon cooking oil (for the pan)
• 6 pieces skin-on/bone-in chicken thighs (or any skin-on chicken, such as breasts or drumsticks, about 2 lbs.)
• Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
• 20 cloves garlic ( separated and peeled (2 full heads) or start with pre-peeled garlic cloves)
• 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup dry white wine (any kind, or alternately replace by using more chicken broth instead)
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 1/4 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves (or about 3/4 tsp. dried thyme leaves)
• 1 Tablespoon butter

Instructions

1. 1

   Preheat the oven to 400F. (not fan-assisted)

2. 2

   Heat the oil in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Dry the chicken pieces well by patting them with a paper towel. Sprinkle with a bit of salt and pepper. Add the chicken thighs to the hot skillet, skin side down and cook until well browned underneath. Flip the chicken over and cook on the other side for a couple of minutes. Remove the chicken to a plate. *Chicken thighs can be fatty! If you have a lot of fat in the pan, you can remove and discard some of it, but do leave a bit in the pan to cook the garlic in the next step.

3. 3

   Reduce the heat under the skillet to medium. Add the garlic cloves and cook, stirring regularly, until the garlic is golden, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the garlic and stir until combined. Return the chicken to the pan, COVER, and bake for about 15-20 minutes in the pre-heated 400°F oven (*If your pan or skillet doesn't have a lid, you can tightly cover the top with tin foil instead.) Be sure to cook until the chicken is cooked to 165F internal temperature. *Bone-in chicken breasts will take longer.

4. 4

   Remove the pan from the oven and put it on a burner. *Be careful not to touch the panhandle! It's hot! Remove the chicken pieces from the pan to a clean plate. Heat the skillet over medium-high heat, whisk in the wine and simmer for 1 minute to cook off the alcohol. Whisk in the broth, thyme and a bit more salt and pepper, then reduce heat and simmer, stirring regularly, until the gravy thickens. Turn the heat off and stir in the butter. Taste the sauce and add more salt and pepper, as needed. Add the chicken back to the pot to re-warm with the sauce. Serve spooned over mashed potatoes, rice or pasta.