Cast Iron Chicken and Potatoes with Olives and Lemon Garlic Aioli

BY CASSANDRA HAMMERSTONE

August 2023

Everyone should have a chicken and potatoes recipe in their repertoire, and this is mine. It’s simple, but it takes patience to take each ingredient to the best version of itself. The chicken thighs are crisp and juicy, and the potatoes are buttery and soft, with browned, crispy edges. Together, they yield a rich dish full of flavor that yearn for the briney bite of meaty olives and a cool, creamy lemon aioli. Here's everything you’ll need.

This is a recipe that will come together most easily when you prepare your ingredients ahead. Season the bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs generously with kosher salt and set them in the refrigerator for up to twelve hours to dry brine. Right before you start cooking, slice the potatoes by hand or on the thinnest setting with a mandoline. Zest and squeeze half a lemon.

Choose your largest cast-iron or enameled cast iron skillet so you can go from stovetop to oven. Brown the chicken skin-side down in a tablespoon of olive oil, turn the thighs and and cook them on the other side for a minute or so, then remove them from the pan and set aside. Drain off all but a thin layer of oil and fat from the bottom of the pan.

Coat the sliced potatoes in the melted butter, a generous amount of kosher salt and the dried thyme. I tend to use Yukon gold potatoes because they hold their shape while still being buttery and soft. You can use any potato you prefer or have on hand, though.

Everyone should have a chicken and potatoes recipe in their repertoire, and this is mine. It’s simple, but it takes patience to take each ingredient to the best version of itself.

Add them to the pan, and spread them out in an even layer. The pan should still be hot, and they’ll sizzle when they hit the oil. Place the chicken thighs on the potatoes skin side up, nestle in a whole, peeled garlic clove and roast in the oven uncovered for about 30 to 45 minutes, or until the chicken thighs are cooked through.

When you take the pan from the oven, you’ll see that the chicken has rendered delicious juices into the potatoes, but they’ll still benefit from some browning. Remove the chicken thighs and set them aside to rest, pluck out the garlic clove, top the chicken with a handful of your favorite pitted olives, and place the pan back in the oven for another ten minutes, or until the potatoes are browned and crisp as you’d like.

Roasting the garlic clove along with the chicken will have turned it soft and sweet. Mash it in a bowl along with some salt, then whisk it together with the lemon juice, lemon zest, sour cream and mayonnaise. As soon as the potatoes are done, return the chicken to the pan and serve with the lemon garlic aioli alongside.

Patience is truly the key to this recipe. Letting the potatoes cook until they’re soft but crispy around the edges. Allowing the chicken to first brown, then roast and rest sufficiently. Waiting for the garlic clove to soften in the oven before making the aioli. And for your patience, you’ll be rewarded with buttery, succulent and flavorful chicken and potatoes.

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Cast Iron Chicken and potatoes with Olives and lemon garlic aioli

Season: Any

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

3 lbs chicken thighs, bone-in and skin-on, four to six thighs

3 lbs Yukon gold potatoes

1 cup whole, pitted Castelvetrano olives, drained

3 tablespoons butter, melted

1 tablespoon dried thyme

1 garlic clove

3 tablespoons mayonnaise

1 tablespoon sour cream

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice and zest

Salt to taste

PREPARATION

Preheat the oven to 425°.

Pat the chicken dry, cut off any excess skin and season generously with salt (about 1 tsp of kosher salt per pound of chicken). Coat a large cast iron skillet or enameled cast iron pan with olive oil, and brown the chicken skin side down until the skin is golden brown. Flip and cook for another minute or two on the other side, then remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.

Slice the potatoes into rounds as thin as you can - no more than 1/8 inch - by hand or by using a mandolin. Pour the melted butter over the potatoes, and season with salt and the dried thyme, and mix until the potatoes are evenly coated. Add them in a layer into the pan, then arrange the chicken thighs on top of the potatoes, skin side up. Place one peeled garlic clove on top of the potatoes.

Place in the oven for 30-45 minutes, or until the chicken reaches a temperature of 165°. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside to rest for 10-15 minutes. Pick out the garlic clove from the top of the potatoes. Add the olives to the top and place the potatoes back in the oven and cook for another 10-15 minutes while the chicken rests.

For the aioli, in a medium sized bowl, mash the garlic clove until it begins to fall apart. Zest and squeeze the lemon. Add the zest and two tablespoons of lemon juice to the mashed garlic clove. Stir in the sour cream and mayonnaise until combined, then season to taste with salt.

Serve the chicken and potatoes alongside the garlic aioli for dipping.

Recipe notes: Unless otherwise indicated, all recipes are developed with Kerrygold salted butter and Diamond Kosher salt. If you prefer to use unsalted butter, adjust the seasoning to your taste. If you use table salt, decrease recommended quantities of salt by around half.