Mediterranean Chicken
To some of us, January is diet food month, but to me it is comfort food month—when it is cold and dark, there is nothing more satisfying. If you have a comfort food list, you are going to want to include the recipe below. It ticks all the boxes for me: roasted, salty, savory, and easy to make. The Herbs de Provence make the house smell of rosemary and you can add large wedges of potatoes along with the chicken, lemon, and vermouth to make a one-pan dinner. I make it frequently during the winter months, especially when my neighbor gives me a bag of lemons from her tree.
Comfort food can be considered anything from peanut butter and honey on toast, to tomato soup, to chocolate chip cookies. What foods are on your comfort list?
The term comfort food was first coined in a newspaper article about adult obesity in 1966. The West Palm Beach Post stated that when we are stressed, we turn to food associated with the “security of childhood— ‘comfort food.’ ” But comfort food is not necessarily high in calories or sugar. Our brains can be triggered by the smell and texture of food as much as the taste. During the pandemic, comfort food helped get us through the days of uncertainty. Many people baked bread, reporting that it made their houses smell fantastic. Ina Garten, (aka the Barefoot Contessa) even published a book called Comfort Food in 2021.
Usually comfort food is uncomplicated or traditional—sometimes used as a treat or instant gratification; often it’s a dish associated with social gatherings of friends and family. And chicken soup may well be comfort food for so many of us because a nurturing parent brought it to us when we were sick.
Of course, we need food to survive and eating nurtures the body and makes us feel better (the term “hangry” tells us that). Scientists have measured similar levels of improvement in people’s moods no matter what kind of food they eat, but I am going for the comfort: it just tastes better to me.
Serves 5
Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
6 bone-in chicken thighs
6-8 garlic cloves peeled but left whole
5 shallots peeled and cut in quarters
I lemon
4 tablespoons of olive oil
1/3 cup dry vermouth
2 tablespoons of Herbs de Provence
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400°
Cover the bottom of a large baking dish with the olive oil. Combine flour, salt and pepper in a medium size bowl and whisk to combine. Wash and pat the chicken thighs dry. Toss the chicken thighs, one piece at a time, into the bowl covering the entire piece of chicken with the flour mixture. Place the chicken thighs into the baking dish in a single layer, skin side up. Scatter the garlic and shallots around the chicken. Cut the lemon into 8 wedges taking as many of the seeds out as you can, then partially tuck the wedges under the chicken. Scatter the Herbs de Provence over the top of the chicken and then pour the dry vermouth around the edges of the pan. Bake for 1 hour—baste with the pan juices, after 30 minutes— until the skin is golden and crispy.
Adapted from Sam Sifton of The New York Times.
