French Chicken Basquaise with Peppers
Chicken Basquaise
Chicken thighs are braised until tender with sweet peppers, tomatoes, onion, garlic, white wine, and herbs in this French Basque-style one-pan dinner.
Chicken Basquaise, or poulet basquaise, comes from the French Basque country, where peppers, tomatoes, garlic, and onions are cooked into a generous piperade-style sauce. The dish is rustic, bright, and deeply savory without needing heavy cream or complicated technique.
Bone-in chicken thighs work especially well because they stay juicy during the braise and lend body to the tomato-pepper sauce. Browning the chicken first is worth the extra few minutes: the rendered fat seasons the vegetables and gives the finished pan sauce a rounder flavor.
Use a mix of red, yellow, or orange bell peppers for sweetness and color. A pinch of smoked paprika is not traditional everywhere, but it echoes the warm pepper flavor and fits naturally with the tomato, thyme, bay leaf, and white wine.
Serve the chicken with crusty bread, rice, buttered noodles, or boiled potatoes so none of the sauce is left behind. The dish also reheats well, making it a practical make-ahead dinner for a relaxed weekend meal.
Nutrition (per serving)
Directions
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1
Pat the chicken thighs dry, then season them all over with the kosher salt and black pepper.
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2
Heat the olive oil in a wide Dutch oven or deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken skin side down and brown for 5 to 7 minutes, then turn and brown the other side for 3 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate.
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3
Reduce the heat to medium. Add the onion and both bell peppers to the same pan and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring often, until softened and lightly browned at the edges.
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4
Stir in the garlic and smoked paprika and cook for 30 seconds, just until fragrant.
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5
Pour in the white wine and scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Simmer for 2 minutes, until the wine is slightly reduced.
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6
Stir in the crushed tomatoes, chicken broth, thyme, and bay leaf. Bring the sauce to a gentle simmer and taste for seasoning.
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7
Nestle the chicken thighs into the sauce, skin side up. Cover partially and simmer over medium-low heat for 35 to 40 minutes, until the chicken is tender and reaches 175°F near the bone.
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8
Discard the bay leaf. Spoon the sauce over the chicken, sprinkle with parsley, and serve hot with bread, rice, noodles, or potatoes.
Ingredients
- Bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs:2 1/2 lb
- Kosher salt:1 1/2 tsp
- Black pepper:1/2 tsp
- Olive oil:2 tbsp
- Yellow onion, thinly sliced:1 large
- Red bell pepper, thinly sliced:1 large
- Yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced:1 large
- Garlic cloves, minced:4 cloves
- Smoked paprika:1 tsp
- Dry white wine:1/2 cup
- Crushed tomatoes:14 oz
- Chicken broth:1/2 cup
- Fresh thyme leaves:1 tsp
- Bay leaf:1 leaf
- Flat-leaf parsley, chopped:2 tbsp
Tips & Notes
- If the sauce thickens too much before the chicken is tender, add a splash of broth and continue simmering gently.
- For a milder flavor, use sweet paprika instead of smoked paprika.
- The sauce can be made a day ahead; reheat it gently with the browned chicken until the meat is fully cooked.
