Chicken alla Basque

  

A preparation from the French Basque country whose recipe, just as it is made in France, is given below. The versions that are made on the Spanish side have fewer ingredients but we have chosen this one because it is very tasty.

INGREDIENTS (4 people)

• 1 chicken cut into 8 pieces, that is, make two longitudinal halves and of these two transversal halves, to finally make two other halves.
• 800 grams (1.8 lb) of ox heart tomatoes*
• 400 (0.9 lb) grams of peppers (a combination of red and green is best)
• 1 clove garlic
• 2 red onions (sweet) or fresh
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 sprigs of thyme
• 100 grams (3.5 oz) of serrano ham cut in small cubes**
• A cup (200 ml) of white wine
• Extra virgin olive oil
• 25g (1 tbsp) butter
• Salt
• Ground black pepper

* The oxheart tomato is a large, intense red tomato with an irregular shape and usually has few seeds and a thin skin. If you can't find them, you can use ripe red tomatoes.

** Prosciutto also works ok

First, pour a generous splash of olive oil and butter into a large saucepan. In it, over medium heat, fry the chicken pieces until they turn golden brown. We withdraw and reserve.

In the same saucepan where we fried the chicken, we proceed to add the onions and peppers, all finely chopped. We add the clove of garlic, also chopped and without the green germ and the diced ham, as well as a pinch of salt so that the onion sweats. Let it cook until the sauce comes together (about ten minutes over medium-low heat should be enough).

Next we add the cup of wine and let it reduce by half. Add the peeled and seeded tomatoes, cut into small cubes, as well as the thyme and bay leaf. Add the previously fried chicken and let it cook for 30 minutes, adjusting the salt and pepper five minutes before finishing cooking. Stir occasionally.

In this case, cooking the chicken should be done with the pot covered, although if there is too much liquid at the end you can finish with the pot open so that it can evaporate.

It is usually served with cooked white rice.