One-Pot Chicken with Beans & Vegetables

An easy weeknight supper recipe, served straight from the pot on the table. A healthy stew, packed with cooked beans and root vegetables. Lighter than many stews so a great choice during a winter-to-spring 'transition'.

An easy one-pot chicken dish, just add canned beans and vegetables and voila, supper's on the table.

A decade ago, my food life was forever changed – for the better – by one simple recipe.

St. Louis food writer Ann Lemons wrote a piece for the local paper’s Sunday magazine. She roughed out the concept for making a simple vinaigrette, a rub of garlic, a dollop of mustard, a scratch of good salt, a splash of vinegar and a glug of olive oil. Sound familiar? It’s My Favorite Salad Dressing. I make it nearly every day, some times twice a day, right in the salad bowl. It’s that simple.

Ever since, I never buy salad dressing. It’s too expensive, too filled with calories, too packed with chemical-sounding ingredients. I’ve even challenged others to Never Buy Salad Dressing Again!

So – um – why does this easy chicken recipe call for a commercial salad dressing, the ubiquitous Italian dressing?

Well – um, you see – stuff happens. My dad left a bottle in my fridge and ever the thrifty cook, I wanted it to use it up. Ha. I’ve been ruined. Thanks to this recipe, I foresee keeping a bottle on hand. For. Ever. For. Always.

This chicken is so good – the perfect dinner recipe for a harried cook pulled in 360 directions by kids, work and other responsibilities. The beans and vegetables simmer in an almost lemony sauce, even as the chicken absorbs moisture from below. There’s no getting enough!

ALANNA’s TIPS For this recipe, I recommend using bone-in chicken which remains moist and tender during cooking. Boneless chicken pieces, especially boneless breasts, dry out and get tough.

To my taste, the preferred cooking method is in the oven. The chicken stays moist and the vegetables cook just enough.

To reduce calories, we’ve all been taught to remove chicken skins. But there’s so much flavor in chicken skin! My compromise is to remove the skins and to discard all but one, then to cook it in the skillet along with the chicken pieces. In this way, some of that rich chicken flavor is cooked in, but without so many calories.

ONE POT MEALS:
ONE-POT CHICKEN with BEANS & VEGETABLES

Hands-on time: 30 minutes
Time to table: 90 minutes (oven) to 6 hours (slow cooker)
Serves 8 (but easily halved)

1 tablespoon olive oil
8 pieces chicken, preferably bone-in (see TIPS)
Salt & pepper to taste

2 15-ounce cans white beans, rinsed and drained
2 carrots, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 ribs celery, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 turnip, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

2/3 cup Italian dressing (use 1 cup for the slow cooker, low-fat works just fine)
2 teaspoons dried rosemary (don’t skip), crushed
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper

If cooking in the oven (see TIPS), preheat oven to 350F.

In a large skillet, heat the oil on medium high till shimmery. Rinse the chicken pieces under running water. (Optional: Remove the skins from the chicken pieces, discarding all but one. Add the one piece to the skillet. See TIPS.) Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Add the chicken pieces to the skillet in a single layer, the fleshier side down. Season and cook without moving for about 5 minutes, turn over and repeat.

Meanwhile, combine the beans, carrots, celery and turnip in a large casserole dish or a slow cooker. Place the cooked chicken on top, nesting slightly into the vegetables.

Stir together the sauce ingredients and pour over top.

OVEN (see TIPS) Cover and bake for 1 hour. Serve tableside. Leftovers reheat beautifully.

SLOW COOKER Cover and cook on Low for about 5 hours. For best texture, add the turnips for only the last two hours.

NUTRITION ESTIMATE Per 317: Cal; 8g Tot Fat; 2g Sat Fat; 95mg Cholesterol; 485mg Sodium; 27g Carb; 7g Fiber; 3g Sugar; 30g Protein; Weight Watchers 6 points

Adapted from a Taste of Home seasonal cookbook

Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences.

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