Chicken and Potatoes in Marinara Sauce

By Kim Ohlweiler
This recipe is so easy, especially if you make the Marinara Sauce ahead of time. I keep a quadruple batch of the AHA All-Purpose Herb Mix in a shaker jar next to my salt & pepper since it's so versatile. That makes it even easier! The potatoes get very tender and soak up that good sauce. The chicken falls off the bone.

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts, bone-in, skin removed
5 medium white potatoes, skins scrubbed, sliced into 1/4 inch slices
2 cups Marinara Sauce (recipe below)
AHA All-Purpose Herb Mix
Salt & Pepper
1/4 cup Olive oil


Directions:

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Season chicken liberally with the AHA Herb Mix, salt and pepper and brown on one side in the skillet. Turn the chicken, scatter in the potatoes, and season them with salt and pepper. Pour the marinara sauce over all, working the potatoes down into the sauce. If more liquid is needed, add some chicken stock or water. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce to a simmer. Cook covered for 45 minutes, then remove the lid and cook for another 15 minutes.

Marinara Sauce:

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 slices thick bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 large Spanish onions, cut into 1/4-inch dice
Salt & Pepper
4 large garlic cloves, smashed and chopped
4 (28-ounce cans) Italian plum San Marzano tomatoes

Coat a large sauce pot with olive oil and add the bacon. Put the pot over medium-high heat and cook the bacon until crisp. Add the onions, season generously with salt and pepper, to taste, and stir to coat with the olive oil. Cook the onions for 6 to 7 minutes, stirring frequently. The onions should become very soft and aromatic but have no color. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes, stirring frequently.

Pass the tomatoes through the food mill. Be sure to pass all of the pulp through the holes leaving only the stems and the seeds, and be sure to scrape the pulp off of the bottom of the food mill. Add the tomatoes to the sauce pot and 1 can of water (about 2 to 3 cups). Season generously with salt and TASTE IT!!!! Tomatoes take a lot of salt. Season in baby steps and taste every step of the way. Cook the sauce for 2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally and tasting frequently.

Use the sauce right away on pasta or for any other tomato sauce need, or store in the refrigerator for several days. This sauce can also be frozen.

This makes a huge pot of marinara sauce. If making only for this recipe, you can cut it down by at least half.
Serves: 4