I was beginning to think boneless skinless chicken thighs were a myth.
When I first went to the grocery store to get the needed ingredients for this dish, I went on a Friday evening. Turns out, Friday evenings are not the best night to shop. I went to three grocery stores that night looking for the mythical boneless skinless variety. I found bone-in skin-on chicken thighs at each place, prompting me to wonder if the words boneless and skinless were directions instead of adjectives.
The first store said they were out but should be getting a delivery the next morning at 08:00 and told me to give them a call. I figured they didn’t have the market on chicken parts so I tried the other two places to find they too only had the DIY version.
On Saturday morning, I returned to the first the store and my hopes soared as I saw a man and a woman stocking the shelves with various plastic wrapped chicken parts. I scanned the shelves only to find further evidence of the myth. I was left with only one option, to dampen my testosterone and summon some estrogen—I had to ask for directions.
I found a guy in a long white coat unloading packages from boxes marked Jenni-O and figured he was either a scientist conducting rogue E. coli experiments or a butcher. He directed me to an open freezer where I could find the mythical poultry. He said, “Boneless skinless tenderloins, then thighs, then breasts.”
When I approached the freezer, I quickly spotted the former and the latter, but no thighs. I checked again, thinking I missed them, while at the same time forcing down rising panic that I would need to return to the scientist/butcher and ask AGAIN.
Fortunately, my parenting skills kicked. You know how when your child hollers from the bedroom, “I can’t find my such-and-such!”
And you yell around your toothbrush, “Did you check in _____________?”
“Yeah, I looked everywhere.”
Forcing you to stop brushing and go to said child’s room, literally foaming at the mouth, and move a few things until the mystical sought after item magically appears?
That’s what I did. I maneuvered a few breasts and loins until I unearthed the boneless skinless chicken thighs.
If your odyssey to obtain the chicken for this dish is less challenging than mine, then you’ve already surmounted the most difficult part.
Stout-free Chicken Stew
This chicken stew recipe was originally made with Guinness stout. A stout is a heavy-bodied brew that is darker and sweeter than porter. It has a higher percentage of hops and uses roasted malt. In my version, I’m using beef stock.
Alcohol Element
If your recipe calls for beer or ale: substitute ginger ale, grape juice, or chicken broth for light beers. For heavier beers, use a chicken, mushroom, or beef stock. I’m a fun guy so I’m partial to mushroom stock, but since I’m using 8 oz. of Cremini mushrooms, I didn’t want the mushroom to overpower the dish, and thus, I went with beef stock.
Chicken
Thighs are a darker meat, (they get all that extra blood flow) so they can handle extended cooking time without risk of drying out or becoming tough. This makes them perfect for the slow cooker. I’ll include some hearty vegetables and bacon. The bacon gives it an added touch of the savory and, hey, it’s bacon (that’s all the reason one really needs).
Ingredients
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
½ cup all-purpose flour (yes, a separate additional ½ cup of flour)
1 teaspoon salt (plus more to taste)
½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper (plus more to taste)
2 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs (trimmed)
4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil (divided)
4 pieces bacon (chopped)
1 14 ounce can beef stock
1 pound whole baby carrots
8 ounces cremini or button mushrooms (halved if large)
2 cups chopped onion
4 cloves garlic (minced)
1 ½ teaspoons dried thyme
1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 cups frozen baby peas (thawed)
You'll want to use either of these mushrooms, but for an earthy more robust flavor go with the Cremini on the left.
Directions
1) Take the 6 tablespoons of flour, the teaspoon of salt, and ½ teaspoon of pepper and mix thoroughly in a shallow bowl. Coat the chicken thoroughly with the flour mixture and place on a plate.
2) Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a large skillet to medium-high, place half of the chicken in the pan and cook until well browned, 3-4 minutes on each side. Remove from pan and place in a 5 or 6 quart slow cooker. Reduce the heat, add 2 more teaspoons of oil and repeat with the remaining chicken. Layer the bottom of the cooker with your chicken.
3) Cook the chopped bacon in the same pan, stirring often, for about 2 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining ½ cup of flour over the bacon and cook for an additional 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the beef stock, and stir it in with the bacon. Pour the mixture over the chicken.
4) Add the mushrooms, carrots, thyme, garlic, and onion in an even layer over the chicken. Add the chicken broth over the top of it all. Cover and cook 4 hours on high or 7-8 hours on low. The chicken should be fall off the bone tender, if we had used bones.
5) Mix in the peas, cover and cook an additional 7-10 minutes (we don’t want any cold peas). Season with the remaining ½ teaspoon of salt and maybe an additional ½ teaspoon of pepper (to taste).
This should adequately make 8 servings and prep time is anywhere from 45 – 90 minutes depending on your culinary acumen (my prep time skewed long).
The result is a mild earthy flavored stew where the mushrooms, beef stock, and bacon complement one another. I even got my 11-year-old to eat the mushrooms!
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