I made Alison Roman’s Olive Oil Chicken Confit… But what came after was even better.
I made this recipe a few weeks ago. It was cold and raining and I didn’t really feel like cooking. While scrolling through youtube I came across the New York Times Cooking channel and all my prayers were answered. Insert Alison Roman and her spunky personality, small kitchen, and a plate full of chicken dripping with olive oil. Needless to say, she had my attention.
After watching the recipe ten times, I pulled out my dutch oven, my gallon of olive oil, and every fresh herb in my fridge. I did a few things differently :
First off the recipe calls for 2 pounds of chicken and all I had was the small package of 4 organic chicken thighs.
In addition to the oregano and thyme, I added rosemary and sage (would recommend )
I used half olive oil and half vegetable oil ( a neutral oil ) because my olive oil was a tad bitter and I didn’t want to overpower the chicken.
I only let the chicken set out with the seasoning for like 15 minutes, would definitely recommend letting it sit longer with the seasoning.
I turned on the broiler for the last 10 minutes to get some nice browning and crispy skin.
The dish came out nicely, shmaltzy and herby. The carrots were tender and sweet. The little cloves of garlic were * chefs kiss *. We served with rice and had a nice dinner with minimal effort. Now for the good part. After eating and putting up leftovers, I strained the left oil into a mason jar. It smelled so good I could’ve slurped it with a spoon ( I did not do this ). And then I cooked with it for days. I made the best breakfast potatoes of my life. I made a salad dressing. I used it to saute my veggies and start a risotto. I made the breakfast potatoes again. Basically, anything that you would use olive oil for, I used this for and improved every single dish I made. To me, this chickeny, herby, lemony, garlicky byproduct was the star of the show. If you’re looking for a quick weeknight dinner and liquid gold, I would absolutely give this a try. Link to recipe in the caption.
* Be sure to refrigerate the oil after jarring it *
