3/30/2021 – When thinking about how to use some large chicken thighs, Mary decided to roast them over onions, cabbage, and carrots. This one-dish meal turned out great and will be made again. The ingredients were assembled in a large cast-iron skillet that helped create the rich flavors of roasted chicken plus the rich flavors of the vegetables. The vegetables cooked quickly at the roasting heat under the thighs that added their melted fat to almost sear the vegetables in the bacon grease and chicken fat. Given the quick cook at the roasting temperatures the vegetables maintained some firmness; i.e. not mushy. We must give credit to Marion’s Kitchen’s “Smoky Sriracha + Lime” Chicken Marinade that contributed a lot to the dish.

This is an enhanced version of the simpler recipe here.

Ingredients

• 5 large chicken thighs with little fat and some skin.
• 4-5 oz. Marion’s Kitchen’s “Smoky Sriracha + Lime” Chicken Marinade
• About a 2″x2″x3″ block of bacon pieces cut into 1″ pieces.
• 1 large yellow onion cut into 1/4″ thick rings
• 3 large cloves of garlic cut into small pieces
• 2 8″-long carrots, julienned
• 1 average head of Cheers cabbage from our garden sliced 3/4″ thick.

Directions

1. The morning of this cook, prepare the thighs by trimming the excess fat and skin then dry brining both sides with salt.
2. When beginning to prepare the vegetables, put the thighs into the marinade with fresh coarse ground black pepper.
3. Saute the bacon in a No. 11 cast iron skillet. Removed the bits for later.
4. Sauteed most of the onion in the bacon grease until wilted.
5. Place the thick slices of cabbage over the onion with the reserved fresh onion. Sprinkled on salt, coarse ground black pepper, and cayenne pepper flakes from our garden.
6. Spread the bacon bits and garlic on top.
7. Spread over the top the long slivers of carrots.
8. Placed the brined, marinated thighs on top of the carrots and press them down a little so they are not too far above the edge of the skillet. Pour the remaining marinade from the bowl over the thighs.
9. Cover with a pizza pan with the burner on medium-low to keep the skillet warm while the oven heats up.
10. When the convection oven reached 350° inserted the hot skillet and baked for 20 minutes. Turned up the oven to roast at 400° until the thigh’s internal temperature was 165° AND the tops are nicely browned. The right coloring of the roasted thighs was achieved even if they were overcooked a bit.

Used a spatula to cut the vegetable layers around each thigh then scooped the thigh-vegetable stack onto a plate. Ladled some of the broth over the top of the roasted thigh.