Cast Iron Chicken Provençal with Tomatoes & Olives
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Chicken Provençal is a flavor-packed dish that hails from the Provence region in southeast France. This classic French chicken recipe is ready in just under an hour. And with white wine, garlic, olives, tomatoes, and capers, this rustic one-pan recipe is the perfect way to bring summers in Provence to your table!
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Chicken Provençal
The full ingredients list and instructions are found in the printable recipe card at the end of this post. I highly recommend reading the blog post all the way through so that you don’t miss any tips or substitution suggestions; to ensure that you have all the ingredients and equipment required, and to understand the steps and timings involved.
The Provence region of southeast France borders Italy and the Mediterranean sea, and as such Provençal cuisine is focused on taste and seasonality, using fresh ingredients like tomatoes, garlic, herbs, olives, olive oil, and lemon.
You probably already know of several Provençal dishes without realising it! There’s Bouillabaisse (a fish and seafood stew), Ratatouille (a vegetable casserole), Tapenade (an olive dip), and Aïoli (a garlic sauce).
And of course, there is there is Chicken Provençal, which we’re making in this post!
This cast iron Chicken Provençal recipe features economical bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs for maximum flavor, but any cut of chicken can be used provided the cooking time is adjusted accordingly.
With that in mind, always cook meat to temperature, rather than by time. Final cook time will vary according to several factors, including the thickness of the cut, internal starting temperature, and individual oven variations.
For best results, check with an instant-read thermometer after 15 minutes and adjust the final cook time accordingly. (Chicken should be just over 160°F/71°C when it comes out of the oven. The temperature will continue to rise several degrees as it rests until it reaches the recommended safe temperature of 165°F/74°C).
Ingredients & Equipment Used In This Recipe
While most ingredients can be bought in grocery stores, for your convenience, any specialized or notable ingredients (and equipment) needed for this recipe have been listed below and linked to Amazon or other stores if available online. The complete list of ingredients with measurements is found in the recipe card.
- Protein – Chicken Thighs with bone-in and skin-on.
- Fresh Produce – Garlic, Shallots, Cherry Tomatoes, Flat-Leaf Parsley, Lemon.
- Dry White Wine – use a wine that you enjoy drinking.
- Green Olives
- Niçoise Olives – the traditional choice for this classic southern French dish. However, any black olive can be used if they are unavailable.
- Capers – usually available in jars packed in brine. They are the small flower buds of the Capparis shrub that grows in the Mediterranean and add distinctive sour/salty flavour to many savory dishes.
- Herbs de Provence – this is a herb blend and depending on the brand you buy, may contain thyme, savory, oregano, rosemary, marjoram, parsley, tarragon, and lavender. These herbs are most commonly used in French cuisine, though the flavors also pair well with Mediterranean cuisine. If you don’t want to use this blend or can’t source it, you can use the same measurement of a single herb if you prefer – rosemary, oregano, and thyme all go well with chicken, or use a mixture of herbs of your preference.
- Chicken Broth/Stock
Recipes on The Purple Pumpkin Blog use both cup measurements and/or weighted measurements. American cups and kitchen food scales are handy pieces of equipment to have in your kitchen as it means you’ll be able to make all of the different recipes on my blog. I try to give American, imperial, and metric measurements in my recipes. You can mix cup measurements with weighted measurements, but never mix imperial (pounds, ounces, pints, etc.,) with metric (kilograms, grams, litres, etc.,).
More Recipes Using Chicken
One of the hero ingredients in this dish is chicken, so here are some more recipes using the same:
- Pozole Rojo de Pollo (Red Pozole with Chicken)
- Slow Cooker Chicken and Vegetable Stew
- Chicken Shawarma with Rainbow Couscous
Recipe Tips
- Niçoise olives are the traditional choice for this classic southern France dish. However, any black olive can be used if they are unavailable.
- The multi-colored tomatoes featured in these images are a “baby” heirloom variety. Regular cherry or grape tomatoes may be used instead.
How Do I Make Chicken Provençal?
Check out the printable recipe card below with full ingredients and instructions. Any demonstration photos do not print out to save your ink.
Cast Iron Chicken Provençal
Chicken Provençal is a flavor-packed dish that hails from the Provence region in southeast France.
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
- 6 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- Sea salt and black pepper, to taste
- 4-5 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 small shallots (or 1 large), chopped
- ¼ cup dry white wine
- ⅓ cup green olives, drained and halved
- ⅓ cup Niçoise olives, drained and halved*
- 1 pint (280-300g) grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 tsp capers
- 1 tsp herbes de Provence
- ½ cup chicken broth
- 2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 large lemon, sliced and then cut into small wedges
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 220°C/425°F/Gas 7.
- Add one tablespoon extra virgin olive to a large cast-iron skillet or frying pan and set over medium-high heat. Lightly season the chicken thighs with salt and black pepper and add to the hot skillet. Cook for 5-6 minutes until the skin is nicely browned and releases easily from the bottom of the skillet.
- Flip and cook for another 4-5 minutes on the remaining side. Transfer chicken to a platter and set aside.
- Reduce heat to medium and add remaining tablespoon olive oil to skillet. Add garlic and shallot and sauté, stirring continually, for 1-2 minutes or just until the shallot softens and develops some color.
- Add the white wine and deglaze the skillet by gently scraping with a plastic spatula to release any browned bits from the bottom.
- Add the olives, tomatoes, capers, herbes de Provence, and chicken broth to the skillet and stir to combine. Cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring occasionally, just until heated through.
- Remove from heat and nestle the chicken thighs in amongst the olive and tomato mixture. Transfer the skillet** to the center of the preheated oven and cook for 20-25 minutes, or until an instant-read thermometer reads just over 160°F when inserted into the thickest part of the meat (but not touching the bone). Juices should run clear when the chicken is cooked through.
- Remove from oven and loosely cover the skillet with foil for 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
Notes
*If you can't source Niçoise olives, substitute for any kind of black olives
**Or place in a roasting pan if your frying pan can't go in the oven.
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Make It A Full Meal!
You’ve made the main dish, but what about the rest of the courses?
Here are additional recipes to make a full meal for a dinner party or special occasion:
- Appetizer: Instant Pot Baked Brie and Apple Appetizer
- Side Dish: Garlic and Chive Cauliflower Mash
- Beverage: Cucumber Cantaloupe Mint Fizz
- Dessert: Coconut Macaroons
There are 500+ Recipes on The Purple Pumpkin Blog for you to enjoy – please feel free to check them out too!