Amarante
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 Thu, Jan 07 2021, 3:55 pm
This was indeed the best kind of recipe - easy to make and results tasted like a potchke. 
I did make it without skin because braised chicken skin is just unappetizing. You could make it with boneless thighs but I think the bone-in chicken has better flavor in a braise.
Don't crowd the chicken when searing as it will be steamed instead of nicely seared. Crowding protein for any dish results in a less than stellar result.
I served with the Cook's Illustrated Baked Brown Rice recipe. Such a simple and foolproof way to make brown rice.
I served with the their Szechuan Roasted String Beans which is one of my go-tos. It is so good that I will make a large batch so I have plenty of leftovers because I love noshing on them straight from the refrigerator. 
I had made some wonderful cookies from Dorie Greenspan's baking cookbooks as she is more known for her baked stuff. Her World Peace Cookies are delicious.
Sweet Chili Chicken Thighs
Excerpt From: Dorie Greenspan - Everyday Dorie
Makes 4 servings
The dish is a simple sauté-then-braise affair and the sauce is a simple chili and soy mixture. Together, they make something so good and so versatile that the only right thing to do is to pull the recipe out regularly.
The dish is weeknight-easy, but it’s also the kind of recipe that you could happily serve for a party — double it, if you’d like, and make a pile of rice to keep it company. It’s not fancy; it’s just what everyone wants.
2 tablespoons canola or other neutral oil, or as needed
1 medium onion, finely chopped, rinsed and patted dry
1½ to 3 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger
2 garlic cloves, germ removed (see sidebar) and minced
Fine sea salt
¼ cup (60 ml) white wine
8 chicken thighs, with or without skin and/or bones, patted dry
Freshly ground pepper
½ cup (120 ml) Thai sweet chili sauce
⅓ cup (80 ml) soy sauce
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard (preferably French)
1 to 1½ teaspoons Sriracha (to taste)
Sliced scallions and crushed red pepper flakes, for serving (optional)
Warm 1 tablespoon of the oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, ginger and garlic, season lightly with salt and cook, stirring, until they soften a bit and are translucent but not browned, about 5 minutes.
Add the white wine, increase the heat and cook, stirring, until most of the wine evaporates, about 2 minutes. Again, don’t color the onions and friends. Transfer the ingredients to a bowl.
Return the pot to medium heat and add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Place the thighs in the pot and brown on all sides, adding more oil if necessary. (If the thighs will be crowded, do them in two batches.) Pour off and discard the oil. If you’ve got burned bits stuck on the bottom of the pot, remove the chicken and scrub the pot, then return the chicken to it. Return the onion mixture to the pot, along with any juices that accumulated, add the chili sauce, soy sauce, mustard and Sriracha and stir to blend. Season lightly with salt and pepper and clap the lid on the pot.
Turn the heat down to low and cook the chicken, basting occasionally, for 30 minutes, or until it is opaque in the center; an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a thigh should register 165 degrees F.
Transfer the chicken to a serving platter (or don’t — serving from the pot is just fine) and spoon over some of the sauce. Sprinkle with scallions and pepper flakes, if you’d like. Pass the rest of the sauce at the table.
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