Chicken with vegetables in a pot

Perhaps the most common dish in pots is chicken with potatoes - an excellent choice for a hearty lunch... and a festive dinner. The cooking technique is the simplest, even an inexperienced, young hostess can handle it. But first, let me share one secret - I recommend filling ceramic pots with water for about 20 minutes just before cooking. Why is this necessary? Since ceramic is a porous material, it can absorb some of the liquid during cooking, resulting in a dry dish. Soaking the pots prevents this issue, and all the juices will be retained in the dish. For chicken in pots, you can use any part of it, but in my family, drumsticks are the most beloved - the meat is juicy, and there are fewer bones. Now I will show you my simple way of preparing chicken with potatoes and vegetables in pots. Start by rinsing the chicken drumsticks and drying them with a paper towel. Then cut them into portion-sized pieces, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and let them marinate for a while, allowing the spices to penetrate. Meanwhile, prepare the other ingredients.

Peel and chop the onion and garlic - finely chop the garlic and cube the onion, as they will practically dissolve in the finished dish. If the garlic is not fresh, I would recommend removing the green sprouting core before chopping it, as it can be quite tough, and the garlic may change its color (turn blue) due to it.

Peel and wash the carrots and potatoes, then cut them into any shape you like - wedges, slices, or cubes. I prefer to cut the potatoes into medium-sized wedges, while the carrots are diced into pea-sized cubes. This is the basic set of ingredients, but feel free to improvise and add your favorite vegetables such as sweet peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms (e.g., champignons)... I decided to include some green peas for brightness and contrast. Moving on, let's start by sautéing the onion in heated oil (I used clarified butter) until softened and slightly golden. Then, add the chopped garlic, carrots, and peas, and sauté them together for about 2-3 minutes.

Now, using the same oil, sauté the chicken pieces until they develop a delicious crust.

Now, all that's left is to combine all the ingredients and put them to simmer in the oven. Start by placing a couple of spoonfuls of the sautéed vegetable mixture at the bottom of each individual pot, followed by several slices of potato on top.

Arrange the sautéed chicken on top of the first layer of vegetables.

Next, distribute the remaining vegetable mixture and potato slices. For added aroma and flavor, I also crushed some dried wild mushrooms into each pot, without fully grinding them - just enough for a tasty bite. Now, add a small bay leaf to each pot and pour in the broth (vegetable, chicken, or any other of your choice) so that there is approximately 2 centimeters of space left at the top of each pot - this will allow room for steam to develop inside. If you don't have broth, you can simply use boiling water. In case you opt for water, you may need to add salt to taste.

Finally, cover the pots and place them in a preheated oven at 180 degrees Celsius for about 40-45 minutes. During this time, the potatoes will become tender and the chicken juicy... now, you can remove them from the oven. To avoid cracking due to a sudden change in temperature, place the hot pots on a wooden board and let them stand for about 10 minutes - during this time, the dish will continue to cook slightly and cool down before serving. If desired, you can also distribute it onto plates, but... eating it straight from the pot is more interesting, and there's no need for fancy plating. Bon appétit!