Crispy Chicken Thighs with a Blood Orange Port Wine Sauce & Beet Salad

This dinner is so flavorful and tasty! I first fried the chicken thighs in olive oil, then baked with orange slices, and then topped it with a citrus port wine sauce. The sauce has the perfect balance of sweetness, savory, and spiciness. 

The key to getting the perfect crisp coating on the chicken is by using banana flour! Banana flour is a gluten-free/grain-free flour made from green bananas. The flour does not taste like bananas, so it works in both sweet and savory recipes! 

Frying the chicken!

After frying.. Going into the oven!

 Let's get to cooking!

Crispy Chicken Thighs with a Blood Orange Port Wine Sauce & Beet Salad (serves 4)

• 2 lbs chicken thighs (boneless/skinless)
• 4 beets, cut into chunks
• 4 cups romaine lettuce, chopped
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 3 tablespoons olive oil 
• 1/2 cup WEDO banana flour 
• 2 blood oranges (plain oranges work too) 
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup port wine 
• 2 tablespoons orange marmalade
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper, to taste
• olive oil, to coat pan

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper, then lightly coat in banana flour. Add chicken thighs to hot pan and fry on each side for about 5 minutes, or until crispy and golden. Transfer onto baking sheet, top with orange slices, and bake for 30 minutes.

While the chicken is cooking, we are going to start making the blood orange port wine sauce. Add about 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a sauce pan over medium heat. Once hot, add in onion and garlic. Saute for about 3 minutes, or until translucent. Squeeze in juice of one orange, and chicken stock. Let come to a boil. Add in port wine and let boil a little longer, until thickened. Season with salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper.

Once the chicken and sauce have finished, we are going to quickly make the salad! Toss romaine lettuce with beets, vinegar, oil, salt, and pepper. Plate and enjoy!

-Juliet