Provencal Chicken Mussels Pot

By joanmarie

Ingredients

• 3 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 pound skinless boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch chunks
• 2 carrots, coarsely chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 small fennel bulb, cut into 1/2 -inch pieces
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 3/4 pound small Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed and quartered
• 1 large tomato, diced
• 2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup dry vermouth or dry white wine
• 2 teaspoons herbes de Provence
• 24 mussels, scrubbed and debearded

Preparation

Step 1

1 Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in medium Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chicken, in two batches, and cook until browned on all sides, about 4 minutes per batch; transfer to plate.

2 Add remaining 1 teaspoon oil to Dutch oven and reduce heat to medium. Add carrots, onion, fennel, garlic, salt, and pepper; cook, stirring, until carrots and fennel are crisp-tender, about 8 minutes. Add potatoes, tomato, broth, vermouth, and herbes de Provence; bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until potatoes are almost
tender, about 10 minutes.

3 Return chicken to Dutch oven along with mussels; cook, covered, until mussels open and chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes longer. Discard any mussels that do not open.

FYI Herbes de Provence is a mix of dried herbs that are commonly found in the southern region of Provence in France. This herb blend, often packed in small brown crocks, usually contains basil, lavender, rosemary, sage, savory, fennel, and thyme. It is very flavorful, so a little bit goes a long way.