The ultimate in richness and flavor. This beautiful recipe is a staple at our holiday meals. It is a perfect example of elevating chicken to the next level. The combination of red wine, pumpkin, and figs, along with fresh herbs, really creates a magical dish. Proof that you don’t need to serve expensive cuts of meat to make it impressive.
Chicken with Pumpkin, Figs, and Honey
Servings
8 Servings
Ingredients
- 12 pieces skinless bone-in chicken white or dark meat
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 onions peeled
- 2 cloves garlic peeled
- Leaves from 6 sprigs fresh thyme
- Needles from 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 15-ounce can plain pumpkin puree
- 1 cup red wine
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 cup dried Mission figlets or 2 cups fresh figs stemmed
- 2 cinnamon sticks cracked
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- Slivered almonds toasted
Instructions
- Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper and set aside. Combine the onions, garlic, thyme, and rosemary in the bowl of a food processor and pulse once or twice; do not allow the mixture to become mushy.
- Heat the oil in a heavy skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion mixture and sauté until soft and fragrant, about 6 minutes. Push the onions to the side, add the chicken in batches, and brown for several minutes on all sides.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, wine, honey, figs, cinnamon, allspice, and 1¼ cups water. (This is usually the point where I pour myself a glass of red. Once the bottle is open, why not?) Pour over the chicken to cover. (The aroma is beyond at this point!) Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium. Cover and cook until the chicken looks plump and is cooked through, and the aroma is too much for you to handle, 45 minutes for white meat and up to 1 hour for dark meat. Discard the cinnamon sticks. Place the chicken pieces on a serving platter, spoon the sauce over, and sprinkle the toasted almonds over the top.
yes! just in the same way. Use an ovenproof pan, and bake covered for about 45 minutes.
How well does this recipe freeze and reheat on a blech?
How can I substitute fresh pumpkin instead of the can of pumpkin puree?
I need to double this recipe for a large group. After I brown the chicken, can I finish it off in the oven in a large pan at 350 degrees for the 45 min-1hr? It will make prep easier and I can serve it from the same pan.
Always looking for a great chicken recipe, we eat so much chicken, sweet!
Sweet chicken- great with a simple rice or couscous.
Is the overall flavor sweet or savory? And what would be good as a side?
The chicken is not fried in this recipe, it’s us braised on a stovetop!
Can it be baked?
Instead of frying, can you bake this?
I can hardly wait to try the cholent
what temperature to cook Chicken with Pumpkin, Figs, and Honey at??
Yes, Marsala will work fine though I prefer a dry red wine!
what kind of red wine?
i have marsala cooking wine can i use that?