Braised Chicken Thighs with Tomatoes and Smoked Paprika

Kelly Kolb
With 15 years of working around some of the most brilliant culinary experts, I pride myself on creating delicious and nutritious meals that bring joy to the family table.
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Updated: 8/18/2020

Meltingly tender chicken in a rich sauce of sherry, paprika and ancho chili.

Cooking the thighs slowly produces fall-off-the-bone chicken. Serve with white rice or corn tortillas.

3 hr 15 min Prep: 15 min Cook: 3 hr
Serves: 4 Save

Ingredients (14)

  • 8 bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
  • Coarsely ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 large sweet onions, thinly sliced
  • 2 large carrots, sliced on the bias into 1/2-inch rounds
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1/4 cup dry sherry
  • 1 tablespoon smoked Spanish paprika (or pimenton)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon ground ancho chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano, crumbled
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 (28-ounce) can peeled tomatoes with their juice

Directions

  1. Trim excess fat from chicken thighs and season with 1 teaspoon salt and pepper.
  2. Heat oil in a Dutch oven or deep ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add half the chicken and cook until golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate. Cook remaining chicken and transfer to plate. Combine onions and carrots in pan. Add remaining salt and saute about 6 minutes. Add garlic, bay leaves and sherry; cook 2 minutes, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Add paprika, chili powder, oregano and cayenne and stir until vegetables are coated with spices.
  3. Preheat oven to 325 F.
  4. Add tomatoes (using your fingers to break them up) and their juice and cook 2 minutes. Return chicken to pan; cover and bake 2 1/2 hours.

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