[From Carla’s Chapter 8: S Is for Sunday Soup, Stew & Sauce]
This isn’t a true confit because the chicken isn’t fully submerged in fat, but there’s a very generous amount to caramelize the tomatoes and chickpeas and create a concentrated pan sauce while the chicken slow-roasts up top.
From the Market
Chicken leg quarters, Thyme
Spin It
Use 2 butterflied chickens or 4 half chickens; cook time may be 30 minutes longer
Replace thyme with 2 rosemary sprigs, or season the tomatoes and chickpeas with 2 teaspoons dried oregano
At Home
Paprika, Dried oregano, Salt and pepper, Canned tomatoes, Canned chickpeas, Bay leaves, Chiles de árbol, Olive oil, Garlic, Red onion, Sherry vinegar
Spin It
In summer, substitute 20 plum tomatoes, quartered, for the canned tomatoes
Omit the bay leaves if you don’t have them
Use Thai chiles or 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes instead of the chiles de árbol
Sheet Pan Chicken with Tomatoes and Chickpeas
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons paprika
- 1 tablespoons dried oregano
- 8 chicken leg quarters (thigh and drumstick; about 6 pounds total)
- 2 tablespoons kosher salt, plus more as needed
- 2 (28-ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes
- 2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas
- 6 springs thyme
- 4 bay leaves
- 3 chiles de árbol
- Freshly ground pepper
- 1 1/4 cups extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 1 large red onion
- 12 cloves garlic, unpeeled
- Sherry vinegar, for serving
Instructions
- Stir together paprika and oregano. Arrange chicken on a large rimmed baking sheet and season with 2 tablespoons salt, then the spice mixture (use all of it). Set aside at room temperature (or refrigerate chicken, uncovered, overnight).
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Drain tomatoes and tear them into 4 or 6 strips each, transferring to another large rimmed baking sheet as you go. Drain and rinse chickpeas; add to baking sheet. Add the thyme, bay leaves, and chiles, scattering them about. Season with salt and pepper, then pour over ½ cup oil and stir to coat. Bake until tomatoes are shrunken and look a bit dried out, and chickpeas are starting to turn golden brown, 1 hour, stirring once halfway through (this cooks off some moisture in the tomatoes so they’ll get nice and jammy by the end).
- Meanwhile, peel the onion and cut into ¼-inch wedges. Lightly crush the garlic cloves. Add the onion and garlic to tomato-chickpea mixture. Nestle in chicken, skin side up, then pour over the remaining ¾ cup oil. Bake until the skin is browned and the meat is tender enough to shred with a fork, 1½ hours. If chicken isn’t done, bake for 15 minutes more, then check again. Go longer if needed.
- Transfer chicken to a large platter. Pluck out bay leaves and thyme sprigs. Using a slotted spoon, spoon tomatoes and chickpeas around chicken. Pour cooking liquid from baking sheet into a glass measuring cup; let settle for a few minutes. Pour most of the oil that rises to the top of the liquid into a clean jar or bowl, then spoon remaining chicken-y juices over the platter. (Cover and refrigerate the extra confit oil; use it the next time you make beans, soup, or roast vegetables.) Season the chicken with a few dashes of vinegar before serving.
Notes
Reprinted from That Sounds So Good by Carla Lalli Music. Copyright © 2021 by Carla Lalli Music. Photographs copyright © 2021 by Andrea Gentl and Martin Hyers. Published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of Random House, a division of Penguin Random House LLC.