Chicken Breasts With Peppers, Tomatoes and Saffron

By Pierre Franey

Chicken Breasts With Peppers, Tomatoes and Saffron
Craig Lee for The New York Times
Total Time
30 minutes
Rating
4(1,148)
Comments
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Portugal launched great explorations in the 15th and 16th centuries, often in search of spices, and to a large extent, their discoveries defined their national cuisines. They discovered Madeira, the Azores and the Cape Verde Islands. Vasco da Gama, seeking a sea route to India, brought back one of most important spices of all, black pepper. Exploration of the New World turned up sweet and hot peppers, corn, all varieties of beans, tomatoes, vanilla, avocados, chocolate, squashes and guavas (from which chewing gum is made). These discoveries truly revolutionized the kitchens of Europe. This dish has a sauce based on tomatoes and is typical of casseroles found in Portugal. First the peppers, onions and garlic are sautéed in olive oil. Tomatoes and saffron, another spice associated with the Iberian peninsula, are added to this mixture. The chicken is browned first, then slowly cooked. The pan is deglazed with chicken stock and white wine before the other ingredients are combined.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 2tablespoons olive oil
  • 3cups cored seeded sweet red, green and yellow peppers, cut into thin strips
  • 1cup thinly sliced onions
  • 1tablespoon finely chopped garlic
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  • 1cup canned crushed tomatoes
  • ¼teaspoon saffron stems or ½ teaspoon turmeric
  • 2tablespoons butter
  • 4boneless skinless chicken breasts, about 1¼ pounds
  • 1tablespoon finely chopped shallots
  • ¼cup dry white wine
  • ¼cup fresh or canned chicken broth
  • 4tablespoons finely chopped parsley
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

353 calories; 17 grams fat; 5 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 8 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 14 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 35 grams protein; 823 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat the oil over medium high heat in a skillet. Add the peppers, onions, garlic, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, about 3 minutes or until crisp tender. Then add the tomatoes and saffron. Cover and simmer 10 minutes.

  2. Step 2

    Meanwhile, melt the butter in a skillet large enough to hold the chicken breasts in one layer. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Turn the pieces, reduce the heat and cook about 5 minutes or until done. Do not overcook. Transfer the chicken to a warm platter and keep it warm.

  3. Step 3

    Add the shallots to the skillet and cook until wilted. Do not brown. Pour in the wine and scrape the bottom with a wooden spatula to dissolve any brown particles that may cling to the bottom of the skillet. Reduce the wine almost completely and add the chicken broth. Let this cook until it is almost totally reduced. Add the chicken breasts and any liquid that may have accumulated. Add the pepper and tomato mixture, bring to a simmer and add the parsley. Serve with rice.

Ratings

4 out of 5
1,148 user ratings
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Comments

Joan

Identical to an old family recipe minus 1 tbsp. lemon juice added with the tomatoes. Brings up the flavor of the spices

Pikawicca

Add orange zest and black olives to make this dish sing.

Pauline

I always looked forward to Pierre Franey's recipes; reliably obtainable ingredients, easily put together and always delicious. Thank you for continuing to post them.

Bob

We haven't made this for a while, but revived it because we had a plethora of bell peppers. A few changes: (1) I cooked the chicken first and put it on a plate, (2) cooked the pepper & onion mix with paprika and oregano in the same skillet, no saffron, (3) added some dry sherry instead of wine and broth, and then the chicken breasts. The basic recipe is so good that it's hard to ruin it with some minor changes, and this way, I had only one skillet to wash.

JWF

Very good recipe! I did my chicken in cubes and added near the end. Also used a tablespoon of chile crisp instead of crushed chile peppers. Will definitely make again.

Frosty

This was phenomenal. I omitted the wine and cooked down the peppers longer than instructed which resulted in a sauce deeply rich and flavorful. I added lemon which was lifting but wouldn't add next time - although the lemon zest was a nice contrast. A little cayenne goes a long way here. Next time would garnish with a dash of parsley rather than adding it into the sauce which overpowered the saffron. Would likely use this sauce for a white fish

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