Chicken Basquaise Recipe
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Chicken Basquaise is a dish that defines the simple elegance of French Basque cooking. The peppers, onions, and garlic are cooked until they are melting, then topped with some piment d’Espelette and browned chicken. Recipes for this traditional dish are few and far between, and we can’t figure out why.
This recipe was featured as part of our Family-Friendly Party Done Right photo gallery.
- 1 (3- to 3-1/2-pound) broiler chicken, cut into 8 pieces (ask your butcher to do this)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Pipérade
- Rinse chicken pieces and pat dry with paper towels. Season well with salt and freshly ground pepper. Heat oil over medium-high heat in a 3-1/2- or 5-quart casserole or large Dutch oven.
- When oil shimmers, add chicken pieces in a single layer (do this in batches) and let cook until very brown, turn, and repeat until pieces are well-browned all over, about 10 minutes per batch. Remove browned pieces to a plate and set aside. Discard excess oil and wipe out the pot with paper towels.
- Place pipérade in the bottom of the pot, top with browned chicken pieces, cover, and bring to a simmer over low heat. Cook, stirring occasionally (make sure to scrape the bottom of the pot so the sauce doesn’t burn), until the chicken is cooked through, about 45 minutes. Serve on top of steamed rice or potatoes.
Beverage pairing: Domaine Ilarria Irouléguy Rouge, France. Go all-in on the Basquaise with a not-well-known Basque wine. Made from a blend of Tannat, Cabernet Franc, and Cabernet Sauvignon, Irouléguy’s not a delicate wine, but nor is it as big as wines made with these varieties in the New World. Its smoky flavor and dark fruits will merge nicely with the rustic onions, garlic, and red Espelette peppers in the sauce.
Thanks Aida. This was a huge hit. Flavors were deep and balanced. This was all cooked in 1 dutch oven - no need for anything else. I'm not sure why someone would complain about using too many pans??
Changes:
2 Red and 2 Yellow Peppers - no green
1/2 paprika - 1/2 cayenne
bacon instead of ham
1 can of crushed roma tomatoes
1 cup of chicken stock during braising
After all the chicken was gone, the leftover piperade was a delicious add-in to sandwiches and omlettes. Yum!
I tried this with small, white meat chicken and regular red peppers for the piperade(??), and it turned out FANTASTIC!! This is my new pot luck dish for sure! And it was surprisingly inexpensive! Oh, I used Brown rice-- extra healthy, too.
Suzanneh from Montana
I throw in a buch of trimmed watercress at the end for color and flavor
chicken recipe
dish is ok to eat but its not easy to make and lots of pots etc to clean so no second time around for me. btw, i wonder why chow doesnt keep the comments attached from the previous times its posted this recipe
Oh goodness. I just made this tonight -- swapping in another red and yellow peper for the green in the piperade. Extremely delish.
Made it last night. Spicy, delicious, and heavenly. It also looks beautiful served, as the sauce is a deep red color. I will definitely be making this again.
Oh man. So I made this one night a few months ago with the modification of using turkey bacon instead of the ham (Mom can't eat pork products and the what-have-you) and it was delicious. I just made this again tonight (with prosciutto, no turkey) with the modification of using the slow cooker for step 3, on low all afternoon, and OH MAN, delicious, melt-in-your-mouth goodness. This is making it on the ever growing list of my favorite recipes. You know, #923873 on that long, long list.
This one is a keeper, simple and satisfying. I used a spicy Hungarian paprika and a little cayenne in the piperade. Perfect cool-weather dish with the last of the summer peppers. Serve with crusty French bread. For a sidedish I made a butternut squash and creamed spinach gratin from epicurious. Nice balance of sweet to the spicy.
same as first night......nice but nothing to write home about
forgot to say that I'm hoping a day or two sitting in the fridge will make a big difference. Will let you know how the leftovers tasted haha
made this last night. it was ok, but not something to write home about
I'm very interested in trying this one out but due to a limited budget at the moment, I may have to substitute the better ingredients. Markiank, your variations sound good!
What sort of vegetable side dishes would be good to pair with this as a main?
made this last night. substituted paprika for the piment d'espelette ($16 for a miniscule jar of this made me recoil a bit) and forgot to pick up the jambon bayonne so used some very nice bacon as a substitute. all in all -- this dish was glorious, especially when mopped up with crusty bread.
I have to confess to being very heat intolerant. If I used cayenne I wouldn't be able to eat this at all. But if I used only sweet paprika my wife (the chili-head) wouldn't be satisfied. Is there a very mildly spice pepper you could recommend. Poblanos (i.e. chilis rellenos) is about the maximum heat I can tolerate. Would they do?
Thanks for the paprika feedback Winenut.
Ive been using them more and trying to learn more of the many nuances they have, and which work best where.
An acceptable substitute for the paprika is a good quality Spanish pimenton such as La Odalista or El Ruiseñor. These are available from YAYA Imports in San Leandro, California and on line through several specialty houses as well.
I like the picante as its a bit more spicy, but it comes in a mild form as well.
Looks fantastic! Goes on the next week-end's menu!
Look pretty good. Thank you.
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Sounds wonderful and so simple. Developing good flavors. I have to try this on the fall Friday evening food adventure!
Suggestions for type of Paprike--yes, most likely I will firs try with basic substitutions that graduate up the scale.
Thanks for the recipe.
This is a classic in the french part of my family - I make way to seldom!
*note to self: make Poulet basquaise more often :-) *