Chicken Breast with Vegetables in the Oven – Juicy Braise

Step-by-step recipe

1. The most delicious chicken fillet with vegetables is made from a homegrown or farm chicken. We cook the fillet with the skin on – this meat is very fragrant thanks to the open-flame singeing when the bird is dressed. The vegetables are juicy ones – celery stalks, carrots, bell peppers and onions. In spring or summer, when there are plenty of fresh young vegetables, the dish turns out even better.
   
2. To brown the chicken we use butter or a mix of olive oil and butter – the aroma is wonderful. Heat the fat in a skillet and fry the chicken breasts, turning often, until lightly golden. Cook over medium heat without covering the pan. Transfer the browned meat to a plate for now and cover it.
   
3. Fry the vegetables in the remaining fat. Peel the onions and carrots and cut them into large cubes. Cut the celery stalks into large cubes too. Separate the head of garlic into cloves – peel 2-3 of them and chop coarsely. Leave the rest in their skins. Seed the bell and chili peppers and chop them. Put all the vegetables into the hot fat in the skillet.
   
5. Fry the vegetables for 4-5 mins, stirring almost constantly so they brown evenly. Season everything lightly with salt and pepper. Next, add the tomato. If tomatoes are in season, scald a few very ripe ones, remove the skins and seeds, and purée the flesh – a blender will handle this. Alternatively, open a can of tomato pulp. Add the tomato to the vegetables, stir and simmer covered for 15 mins.
   
6. The chicken fillet with vegetables finishes cooking in the oven. A ceramic or clay baking dish with a lid is perfect for this. Clay doesn't handle sudden temperature changes well, so the dish has to go into a cold oven. Also, pour water into the dish beforehand so it soaks into the pores. When the fillet and vegetables are ready, put the browned chicken pieces in the dish and pour over the vegetable and tomato sauce.
   
7. Cover the dish with the lid and put it in the oven. Then turn on the heat – set it to 200°C. As a rule, there's quite a lot of meat and vegetables, so it takes a good while to heat through. Once the sauce starts to boil, you can take the lid off. From that moment, the chicken fillet in vegetable sauce cooks for 30 mins.
   
8. When the meat is done, all that's left is to transfer it to a plate and add the thick sauce of braised vegetables. If you like, sprinkle with finely chopped herbs or green onions. Serve the dish while it's hot. With braises we usually serve just bread and wine. The meat turns out very juicy and fragrant, it doesn't need any side dish.
   
9. Sometimes we add a little sugar to the sauce for a sweet-and-sour taste. You can make it spicier if you like. If the fresh tomatoes aren't very juicy, add a little water – or better, white wine.