Chicken & peppers

My new culinary obsession? Peppadew peppers. Sweet, a little kick, vinegary goodness. Here's what I'm doing with them tonight.

2 bone in/skin on chicken breasts
1 yellow onion, sliced thin
1 each red, green, yellow bell pepper, sliced into thin strips
3-4 cloves garlic, rough chop
8-10 peppadew peppers, rough chop
1/2 teaspoon thyme
Grape tomatoes, halved (30 or so? About half or more of one of those plastic containers)
1/2 small bag of mixed baby potatoes (red, purple and yellow) halved or quartered, depending on size
2 glasses Pinot Gris or other dry, white wine (1 for you, 1 for the pot)

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

In a big dutch oven, over med high heat, sear the chicken 3-4 min each side until golden/crispy. Set aside.

While the pan is still hot, sauté the onions for a minute or so. Once they're translucent and the pan has cooled slightly, toss in the peppers & garlic (you wanna cool off the pan because burnt garlic is bitter and awful). Sauté together for about 5 minutes. Add the baby potatoes and cook another 10 min. Then add the peppadews, thyme and tomatoes cooking just until heated through. Add in a glass of wine (and pour a new one for yourself). Bring to a boil, add a bit of water if the veggies are not mostly submerged. Snuggle the chicken atop the veggies and cover tightly. Cook at 400 for 25 minutes (check the chicken for doneness with a meat thermometer... Big pieces take longer).

When done, set the chicken on a board to cool, use a slotted spoon to pull out the veggies and place the broth over high heat. Reduce it until about a cup of liquid is left. You can thicken with a roux if needed. Bone the chicken and stir everything back together. if you have it, my husband wants you to throw in some chopped up grilled Italian sausage at this point. Some leftover ham is a nice, salty touch too.

Serve in shallow bowls with some crusty French bread. Sweet, spicy, rich and so colorful. I am totally obsessed with this meal.