Garlic Chicken with Polenta

Remove the skin from the chicken legs and divide them at the joint. Sprinkle them generously with salt and pepper.

Heat oil in a large, heavy bottom pan. Add the chicken parts to the pan and brown all over. Sprinkle the paprika on top and stir well to coat the chicken. Add stock; it should almost entirely cover the chicken.

Chop parsley and add half to the pan. Add some pepper, bring to a boil, lower the heat and cover the pan, leaving the lid slightly ajar. Cook for about 30 minutes, turning the chicken once while cooking or until cooked through.

Start making the polenta about now if you want to serve this immediately (see instructions below).

After 30 minutes, the sauce should have reduced by half. If you think it is still too thin, you could transfer the chicken to a plate (and keep warm) and continue cooking the sauce on high until it reaches the desired consistency. I didn’t find that necessary; I liked the sauce a bit thin in this case, and it worked perfectly with the soft polenta.

Grate the garlic and add to the pan together with the rest of the chopped parsley. Cook for 1 minute, remove from heat and season.

To make the polenta, heat the water in a large pan but do not let it come to a boil. Add salt, stir to dissolve. Add the polenta in a slow stream, stirring continuously. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, cover but allow steam to escape, and cook, stirring often, according to polenta package instructions. Mine takes about 35 minutes.

Serve as soon as polenta is ready. A green salad or some gherkins would be great on the side.