Chicken with Cannellini Beans and Broccoli

This chicken with cannellini beans and broccoli recipe makes a tasty and satisfying cold weather meal. Lemon juice and zest adds fresh tanginess to the warm and hearty sauce.

Dusting the chicken in flour before browning gives the stew a toasty flavor and thickens the sauce.

Tips

• You can replace the olive oil with a vegetable oil if you prefer.
• I used canned beans, but you can cook dried beans and use them in the stew.
• If you are a broccoli lover, add a couple more cups to up the vegetable ratio. I always want more vegetables!

Ingredients

You need the following ingredients to make this chicken, cannellini beans and broccoli dish.

• 3 chicken breasts, skinned and boned (about 3 pounds), cut into large bite-sized pieces
• 1/2 cup flour
• 2 teaspoons Kosher salt, divided in half
• Fresh ground black pepper, to taste
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
• 32 ounces chicken stock
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice, divided in half
• Zest of 1 lemon (add to juice to keep zest from drying out)
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 15.5 ounce cans cannellini beans, drained
• 4 cups of broccoli florets

Directions

Put the flour in a large, flat bowl. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and some pepper. Pat some of the chicken pieces dry and toss them in the flour. You’ll need to flour and cook the chicken in batches for the best results.

Add 1/4 cup of olive oil to a large heavy skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add several pieces of floured chicken to the pan, keeping a little space between each piece so that it browns well. Brown the chicken on one side and then turn it over and brown the other side. You may need to turn the heat down after the pan warms up, so the chicken doesn’t burn. Remove the chicken from the pan and continue cooking the remaining chicken pieces, storing them in a bowl when each batch is done.

Add a tablespoon of oil to the skillet. Add the onion and garlic and sauté it until the onion starts to become translucent. Bits of the browned flour will mix in with the onions. That will nicely flavor and thicken the stock.

Add the chicken stock to the skillet. Turn the heat up a little and stir the stock, scraping the browned pieces from the bottom of the pan. Add the thyme and half of the lemon juice and zest. Bring the liquid to a light boil.

Add the chicken and cook it for about 5 minutes. Add the beans and broccoli, then cook it until the broccoli is tender (not mushy). Just before the broccoli is done, add the remaining lemon juice. Add salt and pepper to taste.

This dish is delicious served over brown rice. It is also be good with pasta.

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