Chicken Thighs With Green Beans In Spiced Tomato Sauce

Adapted from The Kitchen Shelf by Eve O’Sullivan & Rosie Reynolds (Phaidon, $29.95, April 2016)

Cooking the green beans in spiced tomato sauce brings a new, exciting flavor to a vegetable that is often just boiled and left to linger on your plate alongside its more popular and interesting vegetable relatives. If you can’t find string (runner) beans swap them for any other green bean.

Serves 2
Preparation time: 10 minutes, plus 5 minutes standing
Cooking time: 25 minutes

From the store:
chicken thighs
string (runner) beans

Ingredients

• 4 chicken thighs, on the bone and skin still on
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• ½ teaspoon dried thyme
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the green beans

• 1 onion, finely sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, sliced
• 1 × 14-oz/400-g can chopped tomatoes
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
• ½ teaspoon chili flakes
• 7 oz/200 g string (runner) beans, sliced

Preparation

1. Put the chicken thighs on a plate, drizzle with oil, sprinkle with the paprika, dried herbs, and plenty of seasoning, and leave for 5 minutes.
2. Put a large nonstick skillet (frying pan) over medium heat. When hot, add the chicken thighs, skin-side down, and cook for 10 minutes until the skin is golden and crisp, and most of the fat has been rendered from the skin. Turn over and continue cooking for 5 minutes, or until the chicken thighs are cooked through. Remove from the skillet, cover, and keep warm.
3. Tip out all but a coating of fat from the skillet. Add the onion and garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, cinnamon, paprika, and chili flakes and let boil for 2 minutes.
4. Add the string (runner) beans and continue to cook for about 5 minutes, until the sauce has thickened and the beans are just tender. Remove from the heat, season with plenty of salt and pepper, and serve with the crisp chicken thighs.

Tip: Leave any leftover beans in the tomato sauce to cool and serve the dish as part of a mezze lunch with flatbreads and garlic yogurt