Balsamic Braised Chicken Thighs

This may not be pretty but it's sooo good and so easy. A while back Ron and I went out to dinner with my mom and Ron ordered...chicken. Gasp! We're not chicken orderers because we make it at home and it's easy and it's good and, well, it's just chicken. But this chicken was different...Mr. Martino's had a chicken special that was just about as far from a crappy boneless skinless chicken breast as you could get. This was a chicken leg slowly braised in balsamic and it fell right off the bone - I'm sure that whatever was on the side was great but I can't remember anything other than the chicken. I've been meaning to make a homemade version of this forever but was reminded of it when a friends told me about a vinegar braised chicken entree she had at Supper.





I seared boneless skinless chicken thighs that I'd seasoned with salt and pepper in olive oil, pulled the chicken out and sauteed some sliced onions and chopped garlic in the fat that was left in the pan. Once the onions were soft I added about 1/4-1/3 cup of balsamic to deglaze the pan. Once all of the brown bits were up from the bottom I added the chicken back in the pan along with a cup or so of chicken stock - I covered the pan and let the chicken simmer on low for 20 minutes on each side. Meanwhile I cooked gigante beans in some of the liquid that the chicken was simmering in, when the bean were heated through I added some chopped kale just until it was wilted. When the chicken was finished I pulled it out and reduced the sauce, it was sweet and syrupy and the chicken pulled apart - no knife required. This dish also made for awesome leftovers.