Chicken Marbella

An adaptation of Sheila Lukins’s classic Chicken Marbella first published in The Silver Palate 1979. This dish has become a standard at dinner parties and is celebrated for its bold, sweet, and savory flavors. When I make it I use boneless chicken and double the liquid ingredients and dried apricots.

ingredients

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 cloves garlic, finely pureed
1/2 cup dried oregano
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1/2 red wine vinegar
1/2 extra-virgin olive oil
1 cups pitted dried plums
1 cups dried apricots
1/2 cup pitted green olives
1/4 capers with a tablespoon of the juice
3 bay leaves
1/4 brown sugar
2 cups white wine
finely chopped fresh parsley or cilantro

directions

1
1. Place the chicken in a large bowl. Cover it with the garlic, oregano, coarse salt and pepper, vinegar, olive oil, dried plums, olives, capers and juice, and bay leaves. Rub the chicken well with the marinade and refrigerate, covered, ideally overnight, but at least for 2 hours.
2
2. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
3
3. Arrange the chicken in a single layer in 1 or 2 large, shallow baking pans and spoon the marinade over it evenly. Sprinkle the chicken pieces with brown sugar and pour white wine around but not on them.
4
4. Bake for about 40 minutes, basting every 10 minutes with the pan juices.
5
5. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken, dried plums, olives, and capers to a serving platter. Moisten with a few spoonfuls of pan juices and sprinkle generously with the parsley or cilantro. Serve the remaining pan juices in a separate bowl.