Creamy chicken with baby onions and olives

The creamy sauce is rich but thin; thicken it with a little flour if you prefer a thicker sauce. Or serve with fresh crusty bread to mop up the sauce!

Makes 4 generous servings • Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 45 minutes

• 4 chicken thighs

• 4 chicken drumsticks

• 30ml each butter and olive oil

• 12 baby onions, peeled

• 12 whole cloves of garlic, peeled

• 45ml brandy

• 125ml white wine

• 100g green olives, pitted

• 4 bay leaves

• 250ml cream

1 Mix the chicken pieces with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Melt the butter in a heavy-based pan and fry the chicken until well-browned. Remove and sauté the onions and whole garlic cloves in the fragrant oil until they’re browned (about 5 minutes). Stir in the brandy and scrape off any crispy bits on the bottom of the pan while the brandy reduces.

2 Pour in the white wine and return the chicken pieces to the pan with the olives and bay leaves. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to low and allow the liquid to reduce by half. Pour in the cream and simmer, uncovered, for about 30 minutes or until the chicken is tender and the sauce is fragrant. Serve with rice or mashed potatoes.

Tip To make peeling the baby onions easier, dip them in boiling water and allow to cool slightly before removing their skins.