Puerto Rican Chicken is Fricasseein' Awesome

The plantains I bought for Caribbean Week STILL haven't ripened, so I resorted to looking through my one and only Puerto Rican cookbook for something other than mofongo to make for dinner. I'd been in the kitchen all day and was feeling kind of cranky, so I wanted something that wasn't fussy or a lot of work but was still going to round out the week on a high note. I chose this particular recipe entirely on the basis of having all the ingredients, a strategy that hasn't always been successful for me, and the lack of effort required to get everything into the pot. One of the great advantages of having 2 prep cooks around the house is that the pile of veggies I don't want to touch seems like (dare I say it?) small potatoes to them. Haha! See what I did there? 'Small potatoes...' 

It's funnier in person. 

I have to admit up front that the kind of things I have laying around my pantry and fridge are not necessarily things that normal people have laying around. However: every single thing here can be found at Kroger, even the salt pork (which is in the refrigerated section by the bacon). I subbed some pre-chopped Hormel ham bits for the lean cured ham the original recipe calls for, because I'm not above taking shortcuts; and in the absence of a whole cut-up chicken - which cannot be found anywhere this week - I used bone-in chicken thighs. 

The only advice I have here is to make sure your pan is large enough to fit everything in a single layer. The last thing you want to do with a nice hands-off dish like this is fuss around trying to make sure that everything cooks evenly. And prepare yourself: an argument broke out over the last of the potatoes. Next time I make this I'll probably double it in the hopes that we actually end up with leftovers. 

Adapted slightly from Puerto Rican Cookery by Carmen Aboy Valldejuli

Chicken Fricassee 

2 1/2 pounds bone-in chicken pieces
1 oz salt pork, diced
2 oz ham, diced
1 teaspoon oregano
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 bell peppers, seeded and chopped
2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped
*
1 teaspoon capers
1 Tbsp vinegar
2 bay leaves
1/4 cup raisins
8 pitted prunes
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 Tbsp salt 
1 lb potatoes, peeled and cubed 
*
1 bag frozen green peas, thawed 
2 Tbsp butter

Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven and brown the salt pork and ham, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to low, add the ingredients through the jalapenos, and saute for 10 minutes.

Add the chicken pieces and cook for 2 - 3 minutes over moderate heat. Add the ingredients through the potatoes and mix. Add 2 1/2 cups of water to the pan, then bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to moderate, cover, and cook for 45 minutes.

Add the butter and peas and cook over moderate heat until the sauce thickens.