Braised Apple & Ginger Chicken with Sage Brown butter Mashed Potatoes

Kayon Reynalls is the founder and editor of The Supper Club Magazine. I’m so hapypy to have her share a braised apple and ginger chicken meal to feed your friends and family  as you gather for the holidays. 

Serves – 4 | For the Braised Apple and Ginger Chicken
+ 900 g (approx.) chicken thighs & drumsticks
+ 2 medium apples, cut into wedges (I used English russet and Kanzi)
+ 4 tbsp olive oil
+ 1 medium to large white onion, chopped
+ 2 ribs of celery, chopped
+ 2 bay leaves
+ 3 cloves garlic, crushed
+ 1 sprig rosemary
+ 1 sprig thyme
+ 5 allspice berries, cracked
+ 4 juniper berries, slightly crushed
+ 1 tbsp ground ginger
+ 1 tsp black peppercorns, crushed
+ 250 ml chicken stock
+ 3 fresh bay leaves
+ 40 g fresh ginger, grated
+ 100 g stem ginger that has been packed in syrup, chopped
+ 3 tbsp of syrup from the stem ginger or honey
+ 250 ml + 150 ml apple cider
+ 4 tbsp crème Fraiche
+ 1 tbsp plain flour

For the brown butter sage mashed potatoes

180 + 60 g unsalted butter

850 g potatoes, peeled and cut in halved or quarters (depending on size)

5 – 6 fresh sage leaves

50 – 150 ml double cream

Salt to taste

Crushed black peppercorns to taste

Make the chicken 

1. Preheat the oven to 190C.

Heat a large casserole pan over medium flames. Brush the apple wedges with olive oil and carefully place each piece into the pan. (Do not overcrowd or they will steam instead of fry) cook until each side is golden brown before removing from the pan and setting aside.

2. Using the same casserole pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil and fry the chicken pieces until golden brown on each side. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

3. Add another 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan and sauté the onion and celery for a couple of minutes, stirring frequently. Add the grated ginger and crushed garlic cloves and continue to cook for another 2 minutes.

4. Stir in the flour and cook for about a minute before gradually adding the chicken stock and  250 ml apple cider, whisking all the time. Add the ground ginger powder and allow to simmer for a couple of minutes.

5. Return the chicken pieces to the casserole pan, add the bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, juniper berries, allspice berries, chopped stem ginger & half the fried apples. Submerge any ingredient that’s sitting on top of the liquid or the chicken. Cover with the casserole lid or foil paper and transfer to the oven.

Braise for 40 minutes to an hour, until the chicken is tender and cooked through.

5 minutes before removing from the oven, add the remaining apple pieces.

6. Remove the pan from the oven and transfer the chicken and all the pieces of apple to a serving plate before straining the sauce left in the pan through a sieve.

If you have enough sauce to serve everyone, go ahead and stir in the crème Fraiche and add salt and pepper to taste.

If you do not have enough, pour the sauce into a saucepan along with 150mls of cider and allow to simmer for a couple of minutes. Stir in the crème Fraiche and add salt and pepper to taste.

For the mashed potatoes

Make the browned butter –

1. Add 180 grams of butter to a saucepan and heat over medium flames. Stirring frequently as the butter melts.

2. Add the sage leaves to the melted butter.

3. As you continue to cook the butter, it will foam up, this is normal, keep stirring frequently. There are two things to pay attention to; aroma and colour change.

4. After a while, the milk solids will begin to turn brown at the bottom of the pan and the melted butter should begin to have a nutty aroma.

5. Once the butter takes on a golden colour, remove from the heat and strain into a jug or bowl. Transfer the crispy sage leaves to a plate and set aside for serving.

Make the Mashed potatoes.

1. Over medium to high heat, bring a large pan filled with water to the boil. Add salt to taste.

2. Carefully add the potatoes to the pan and allow to cook until tender. About 20 minutes.

3. Once cooked, drain and mash with 60 grams unsalted butter, 3/4 of the browned butter, double cream (add according to your liking), salt and black pepper to taste.

4. Transfer the mashed potatoes to a serving bowl or platter, pour over the remaining browned butter and garnish with the crispy sage leaves before serving.

Editors Notes

• You can use your favourite type of apple, just be sure that it’s a sweet variety
• This recipe can be made with other parts of the chicken but be mindful of the cooking time if using the breast, it cooks quicker and dries out quicker too.
• If you aren’t able to find stem ginger packed in syrup, you can also use crystallised ginger.
• If using crystallized ginger in place of stem ginger, you can use honey, maple syrup or brown sugar in place of the syrup that the stem ginger comes packed in.

Thank you so much Kay! I’m so excited to make this for my family. You ca follow Kay over on Instagram. And shop past editions of The Supper Club Magazine, right here.