Tuscan Chicken Stew

By dette

Ingredients

• 1 5-6 lb. chicken
• 2 cups water
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 2-3 teaspoons salt, divided
• 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper, divided
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 stalks celery, diced
• 3 carrots, diced
• 1 large onion, diced
• 5 medium red potatoes, sliced
• 1 15-oz. can great northern beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 4 roma tomatoes, halved lengthwise and sliced
• Skillet Cornbread
• 1 1/4 cups cornmeal (not self-rising)
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/4 cup buttermilk
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup, plus 3 tablespoons melted bacon grease*, divided

Details

Servings 6
Cooking time 150mins
Adapted from southyourmouth.com

Preparation

Step 1

n a large Dutch oven or soup pot, simmer chicken, water, chicken broth, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper and bay leaf, covered, over medium-low heat for one hour. Remove chicken and set aside to cool. Pour broth through strainer and add broth back to Dutch oven.

Bring broth to a boil and add celery, carrots, onions, potatoes, beans, thyme, garlic, paprika, red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, tomatoes and remaining 1-2 teaspoons salt (this depends on how salty your prepared chicken broth is – salt to taste) and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Reduce heat to medium and cook, uncovered for 45 minutes (cooking this uncovered will help reduce it and enhance the flavor).

Meanwhile, remove skin and bones from chicken; shred or chop chicken, cover and set aside. Once vegetables and broth have cooked for 45 minutes, add chicken and stir to combine. Cover pot, remove from heat and let stew rest for 30 minutes. Stir and serve with cornbread or crusty bread.


SKILLET CORN BREAD
Pour 3 tablespoons bacon grease in a medium (9-10-inches) cast iron skillet**. Place skillet in oven and preheat the oven and skillet to 425 degrees.

Once oven and skillet are preheated, add cornmeal, flour, sugar, salt and baking powder to a medium bowl and stir to combine. Add buttermilk, eggs and remaining 1/4 cup bacon grease and mix until just combined.

Remove hot skillet from oven and pour cornbread batter into pan. Batter will sizzle when it touches the hot oil. This is when the magic happens.

Bake cornbread at 425 degrees for approximately 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and done in the center.

*Substitute vegetable oil for bacon grease if necessary then ask the Lord for forgiveness for throwing away your bacon grease.

** you can use an equivalent sized baking pan if you don't have a cast iron skillet.