Spanish Chicken

I love Spanish food, particularly tucking into traditional tapas dishes, so you can get a taste of everything without getting too full. Tapas can take up a little bit of time and is great for dinner parties but to get the all the flavours of Spain in one pot, this casserole hits the spot for me. A simple, hearty dish, that can be prepared within half an hour and then be left in the oven for a couple of hours whilst you put your feet up or, more likely, get on with the housework. I love this dish because most of the ingredients can be found in your fridge or store cupboard and it is a great way of using up bits and bobs. For me, chicken thighs are much tastier ( and a lot cheaper ) but you can substitute with chicken breast if that is your preference but you will need to reduce the cooking time. I usually serve this dish with plain boiled basmati rice but it also goes well with potatoes.

Ingredients

Serves 4

800g chicken thighs, with skin left on

2 tbs olive Oil for frying

1 small chorizo sausages (approx 120g), sliced

1 large red pepper

1 large yellow pepper

1 red chilli, de-seeded

2-3 cloves of garlic

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tin of tomatoes

1.5 tbs smoked paprika

1 Medium onion

1.5 pints chicken stock

2 bay leaves

75g green olives

125ml white wine

25ml sherry vinegar

Handful of fresh parsley to serve

Method

1. Heat the oil in a casserole dish and fry the chicken until golden brown
2. Add in the chorizo and cook until browned
3. Add in peppers, onion and chilli and cook until softened
4. Add in garlic, paprika and oregano and stir
5. Now add in the wine, sherry vinegar, tomatoes and chicken stock, stir and simmer until hot
6. Place lid on dish and cook in a pre-heated oven at 180 degrees ( gas mark 4) for one hour
7. Remove dish from oven, add in the olives and return to oven for a further half hour. If the sauce looks as if it is drying up add in a cup of water also.
8. Add chopped parsley and serve

If you are in Liverpool and fancy some great Spanish food then check out http://www.lunya.co.uk/index.php or http://www.tapastapas.co.uk/