Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt, plus more to finish (use half as much if using Morton)
- 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns, coarsely crushed, divided, plus more for serving
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 3 shallots, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed between your fingers
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes (about 2 medium), cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth (one 32-ounce carton), divided
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar, divided
- Chopped flat-leaf parsley, for serving
- Crusty bread or a fresh sourdough boule, for serving
Instructions
- Crush the peppercorns under the bottom of a heavy skillet on a cutting board, pressing and rocking rather than pounding, then finish with a rough knife chop. You want irregular cracked pieces you can see, not powder.
- Pat the chicken thighs very dry and season all over with the salt. Scatter 1 teaspoon of the cracked pepper over them and press it into the meat with your palm so it stays put.
- Warm the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sear the thighs about 3-4 minutes a side, until deeply golden and the crust has set. They do not need to cook through. Move them to a plate.
- Lower the heat to medium and add the remaining butter. Add the shallots with a pinch of salt and cook, stirring often, until they slump, turn sweet and just start to go golden at the edges, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic, thyme and 1 1/2 teaspoons of the cracked pepper and cook 30 seconds, just until you can smell the pepper. Any longer and it turns bitter.
- Pour in 1/2 cup of the broth with 1 teaspoon of the balsamic and scrape up every browned bit from the bottom of the pot. Stir in the Dijon.
- Add the potatoes and the remaining broth and bring to a gentle simmer. Return the chicken and any juices from the plate, partially cover, and simmer until the potatoes give easily to a spoon pressed against the side of the pot and the chicken is cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes.
- Lift the thighs onto a board, shred or roughly chop them, and return the meat to the pot. Lower the heat, stir in the cream until fully incorporated, and add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of cracked pepper. Keep it at a bare simmer 2 to 3 minutes and do not let it boil hard.
- Stir in the remaining 1 teaspoon of balsamic off the boil. Taste and add salt if needed.
- Ladle into shallow bowls. Scatter with parsley, add another turn of black pepper, and serve with big torn pieces of bread for dunking.