2 takes on crockpot chicken: French and African

This is the time of year where on weekends I want something stashed in the crockpot by noon so by suppertime when I'm too tired of baking cookies to want to cook something, dinner is already made.

Here are two takes on slow-cooked chicken, one with French influences, the other allegedly African. I expected to like the French dish more, but it turned out the other way around.

African marinated chicken in onion sauce
Adapted from "Ready and Waiting" by Rick Rodgers

Ingredients
5 good-sized onions, thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, minced
¼ cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cut-up chicken, about 3½ pounds
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon white wine

Method
Combine onions, garlic, lemon juice, salt and cayenne in a very large nonreactive bowl. Add chicken and toss to coat. Cover and marinate overnight in the refrigerator, turning occasionally.

Remove chicken from marinade and pat dry. Pour marinade and onions into a large slow cooker.
Brown chicken, skin-side down, in hot oil. You’ll probably need to do this in two batches in a large skillet. Transfer chicken to slow cooker, putting dark meat toward the bottom. Deglaze the skillet with the white wine and pour over the chicken. Cover and cook 5 to 6 hours on low until tender.

Remove chicken to an oven-safe baking dish and put in a warm oven to keep warm and help crisp  up the skin. Meanwhile, transfer remaining onions and liquid to a large saucepan and cook over high heat until liquid is greatly reduced and forms a sauce. Serve with hot rice.

The recipe as written says it serves 4, but I’d say it’s closer to 6. Lots of leftovers.

Rating: Nice. Browning the chicken first really helps this dish, and the onions and chicken are both falling apart tender. There’s a nice, but not overwhelming amount of heat. The recipe as originally written called for ¼ teaspoon of cayenne, but urged you add as much cayenne as one wanted since the dish would be spicy. It wasn’t overly spicy with just 1 teaspoon of cayenne, just a soft heat, so I’d add more if you want actual fire.

French basil chicken

Adapted from “The Healthy Slow Cooker” by Judith Finlayson

Ingredients

12 chicken thighs (bone-in)

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 onions, finely chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon herbes de Provence

½ teaspoon sea salt

½ teaspoon cracked pepper

½ cup dry white wine

1 cup chicken stock

1 can (14-ounce) diced tomatoes

1 can (14-ounce) artichoke hearts, drained and quartered

2 cups diced red pepper

½ cup chopped fresh basil leaves

Method

Arrange chicken in the bottom of a large slow cooker.

In a large saute pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and cook until softened, stirring occasionally. Add garlic, herbes de Provence, salt and pepper and cook for 1 minute, stirring to incorporate. Add wine and cook for 1 more minute. Add stock and tomatoes, including juice. Bring to a boil and stir in artichoke hearts. Pour mixture over chicken. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours. Stir in bell pepper and most of basil and cook for another 30 minutes. Serve topped with remaining basil for garnish.

Rating: A tad bland, despite the ingredient list. Needs more garlic, for starters. Maybe some sliced fennel bulb in with the onions? And if I make this again I’ll transfer the cooking liquid to a pan to reduce the sauce because otherwise it’s thinner than broth. The chicken is wonderfully tender, however. The leftovers (it makes a ton) heated up nicely with some leftover rice, and I was happier with it reheated, so I suspect concentrating the sauce through reduction would help it a lot.