Chicken with Olives, Tomatoes and Lentils

5 from 10 votes

Succulent, fall off the bone braised chicken with olives, tomatoes and lentils. This chicken recipe is so easy to put together and makes a healthy, flavour packed meal the whole family will enjoy any day of the week. Made with chicken thighs, green olives, sun-dried tomatoes and lentils.

Prep Time2

Cook Time50

Total Time52

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Servings: people

Calories: 625kcal

Author: Emily Wyper

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 carrot
1 celery stalk
1 white yellow onion
2 cloves garlic , finely chopped
2 lbs (850g) mixed chicken thighs and legs with the skin on (2 pieces of chicken per person)
½ cup (125ml) red wine
16 oz (480g) canned plum tomatoes
20 green olives (roughly)
10 sun-dried tomatoes (roughly)
14 oz (400g) puy lentils ,pre-cooked, canned
salt and pepper
1 small bunch parsley ,chopped

Instructions

First, heat the olive oil in a large saucepan and brown the chicken on all sides, remove it from the pan and set aside on a plate. Finely chop the carrot, celery & onion and saute in the same pan for 5 minutes then add the garlic and saute for another 2-3 minutes until soft.
Add the chicken back to the pan and add the red wine. Reduce the wine by half then add the canned plum tomatoes.
Use the side of a wooden spoon or spatula to carefully mash the plum tomatoes into smaller pieces. Add the olives and chopped sun-dried tomatoes and a good pinch of salt and pepper.
Simmer the chicken, olives and tomatoes uncovered for 40 minutes then add the pre-cooked lentils. Stir them in and simmer again for another 10 minutes. Serve with a sprinkling of parsley.

Notes

Tip: I use a mixture of chicken thighs and drumsticks with the skin on because I think it gives a lot of extra flavour to the dish and it's also a little cheaper to buy. Because the chicken is braised in a tomato sauce the skin isn't crispy or very nice to eat when it's ready. I simply remove it at the end and I don't mind doing this but you could also buy skinless chicken for this instead.
Tip: The soffritto (finely chopped carrot, celery and onion) needs to be sauteed slowly until soft, it's really the only work that's involved to make this dish and gives a lot of depth and flavour to the sauce. Don't try to rush this step.
Tip: Use a red wine that you would drink and stay away from cooking wine it's just not nice and wouldn't give the same flavour to this chicken dish.

Nutrition Facts

Chicken with Olives, Tomatoes and Lentils

Amount Per Serving

Calories 625 Calories from Fat 198

% Daily Value*

Fat 22g34%
Saturated Fat 5g31%
Cholesterol 102mg34%
Sodium 511mg22%
Potassium 1387mg40%
Carbohydrates 33g11%
Fiber 11g46%
Sugar 9g10%
Protein 53g106%

Vitamin A 4000IU80%
Vitamin C 26.6mg32%
Calcium 89mg9%
Iron 6.4mg36%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutrition