Braised Chicken with Onions, Garlic, & Balsamic Vinegar

I love recipes with minimal ingredients. They make my already busy life so much easier. I especially love it when I happen to have all those ingredients in my kitchen. So, I was absolutely thrilled to come across this little wonder on foodnetwork.com. It has such amazing flavor. I hope you all enjoy it as much as we did.



Braised Chicken with Onions, Garlic, & Balsamic Vinegar





6 slices bacon (4 oz), cut crosswise into 1/4 inch strips
1 chicken, cut up into 8 pieces (I used chicken legs because it was all we had)
1 lb onion or shallots, thinly sliced
1 head garlic, cloves separated & peeled
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar.

Cook bacon in a deep, 12-inch, heavy skillet over moderately low heat, turning twice, until crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain and reserve bacon fat in skillet.

While bacon is cooking, pat chicken dry and season with salt and pepper. Brown in bacon fat, beginning with skin side down, in 2 batches, over moderately high heat, turning, about 8 minutes. Transfer browned chicken with tongs to a plate, and pour off all but 2 tablespoons fat from skillet.

Lower heat, add onions to skillet and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until soft and pale golden, about 10 minutes.

Remove lid and cook onions, stirring, until deep golden, about 10 minutes more. Add garlic and 1 cup water to skillet and boil, stirring, 1 minute.

Return chicken to skillet, turning pieces to coat, then arrange them skin sides up and gently simmer, covered, until chicken is cooked through and garlic is tender, about 30 minutes.

Transfer chicken with tongs to a serving dish. Add vinegar to sauce and boil, uncovered, mashing garlic with back of a spoon or a potato masher, until slightly thickened. Season sauce with salt and pepper and pour over chicken, then sprinkle with bacon (I tossed out the bacon after using it for the grease because I don't really care for bacon).