Monday, February 10, 2025

Death Row Chicken, a meal worthy of being your last!

I will tell you right now, this is one delicious chicken dinner! Granted the name has a bit of tongue-in-cheek humor, but this is so delicious that it is actually quite worthy of being your last meal on earth...Death Row Chicken!

Tons of flavor plus an easy two step cooking process, and dinner is done.

This recipe for Death Row Chicken is all about flavor! Just reading through the list of what will be dished up onto your plate will convince you of that. Golden brown chicken thighs, a rich pan gravy infused with a bit of dry white wine, mushrooms, and spinach. Served over your choice of rice, pasta, or mashed potatoes. And as promised, only two steps in the kitchen and dinner is done. Step one, is browning the chicken, and for the second step, it all goes into the oven! I don't think you will find another recipe, that will give so much deliciousness to a meal.

Yes, another delicious dinner from chicken thighs.

Chicken thighs are a favorite ingredient around here, and with no reservations. We have so many delicious recipes with thighs as the star attraction. But this dish utilizes those found at the marketplace with skin on and the bone in! My usual preference is bone-in meat for cooking, it always has more flavor. And this cut of chicken shines in this dish. You will notice this recipe calls for butter or lard for browning, the use of this fat guarantees a rich flavor. Meat always browns better in butter or lard...so trust me, you will miss out on full flavor if you try to brown the meat in oil.

Even the oven directions for baking, have a purpose!

The directions for baking in the oven have a specific goal, to keep the golden-brown skin, golden and as crispy as can be possible! The sauce for Death Row Chicken needs to be poured between the pieces of chicken, and not over the top...which is quite easy to do, and will result in tender baked chicken with a rich sauce and (still even after baking) crispy skin! Plus like most baked sauces, there is a bit of concentration in the flavor as time in the oven cooks the dish to perfection.

Some thoughts on this recipe:

If desired you may use bacon fat for browning for a mild smoky flavor!

While baby spinach is called for, regular spinach works great, simply tear the large leaves into smaller pieces before adding it to the sauce. The smaller size helps with serving, keeping everything tidy!

To adapt this recipe for using boneless skinless chicken thighs, simply dredge in flour before browning.

Ingredients needed for this recipe:

bone-in skin-on chicken thighs
butter, lard, or bacon fat
garlic
mushrooms
spinach
salt and freshly ground pepper
balsamic vinegar
dry white wine
chicken stock

You will also need:

large skillet
9X13 or 12X15 inch baking pan
tongs
measuring cups
measuring spoons
kitchen knife
cutting board
serving platter

Now we are ready to begin!

Death Row Chicken
adapted from: RecipeAddicts
375-degree oven

UPDATED: 02.10.2025

8-10 chicken thighs, skin on and bone-in
1 - 2 T butter or rendered lard- as needed for browning

1 pound of mushrooms, sliced
3 - 4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 T butter (or more, it will depend on the mushrooms)
1/4 c Balsamic vinegar
2 C rich chicken stock
salt and pepper to taste

*dry white wine if needed
2 large hands full of baby spinach leaves

Serve with one of the following: rice, pasta, or mashed potatoes

Mince the garlic, set aside. Slice the mushrooms, set aside. Prepare the spinach is needed, set aside.

Cut off any excess fat from the chicken thighs.

Melt the butter in a large skillet, and begin browning the chicken thighs. You must leave room between the pieces of chicken to fry and not steam from overcrowding. Adjust the heat as needed to avoid burning the chicken.

A deep rich dark brown is what you want to achieve on the skin, turn over and brown the other side. When all chicken is browned, remove it to a large flat baking pan, 9X13 or 12X15 as needed for the chicken to fit without overcrowding.

Important: arrange the chicken pieces with a small amount of room around each piece, the pan gravy/stock and mushrooms will surround the meat, and not be over the top of the meat.

Drain excess fat from the skillet, but do not discard the portion that has the sought-after brown bits of flavor!

Using the same skillet, add 2 T butter, the minced garlic, and the sliced mushrooms. Sauté the mushrooms to a golden brown, scraping the golden bits from the bottom of the pan. When the mushrooms release their juices, this will help deglaze the pan. Add the chicken stock, vinegar, and salt, and pepper to taste.

Carefully drizzle some of the pan gravy over each chicken piece, then spoon the mushroom slices around the chicken pieces along with the rest of the pan gravy mixture. Important: the stock mixture should not cover the chicken, the goal is to have the skin continue to bake in the oven and remain crispy.

Bake 45 minutes.

Carefully remove chicken from the baking pan, place it on a large serving platter.

Return the platter to the oven to keep warm if desired.

Pour pan juices back into the (same) skillet used to brown the chicken, along with 1/4 c dry white wine. Over medium-high heat reduce the stock by half. The pan gravy will coat the back of a spoon. Add the spinach and simmer briefly until tender.

Spoon the sauce over the chicken, and serve.

Storage options for Death Row Chicken. Store covered in the refrigerator for up to three days. I do not recommend freezing Death Row Chicken due to loss of flavor and texture upon thawing.

UPDATE: For your convenience, a "copy and paste" version of Death Row Chicken has been included below.