An illustration by Barbara Henderson from Good Food, p. 50

The most comforting and delicious food is often not the most photogenic. Despite having filled your kitchen will the most amazing smells, when it comes time to take a photograph the result is… a bit beige and uninspiring actually. Lois avoids this issue by not including photographs in Good Food, just simple line drawings of ingredients by Barbara Henderson.

Lois’ recipe for chicken thighs braised with sauerkraut is an unphotogenic recipe. I didn’t even bother taking a photo; instead we just tucked in. The sauerkraut and bacon gives the rich flavour of a slow-cooked dish, though this is a meal that can be put together pretty quickly for a weeknight dinner.

Chicken thighs braised with sauerkraut (Good Food, p.44-45)

8 boneless chicken thighs, skin removed

2 onions, thinly sliced

4 rashers bacon, cut into slivers

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 tablespoons cooking oil

1 tablespoon flour

1 tablespoon tomato paste

fresh thyme

1/2 cup red wine

1 cup water

1 cup of sauerkraut

freshly-ground black pepper

parsley, chopped

Over a medium heat the oil in a cast-iron casserole dish (or similar) and add the onions, bacon, and garlic. Fry gently until the onions are soft and starting to caramelise. Remove the mixture from the pan into a bowl. Add enough oil to lightly coat the base of the casserole dish and brown the chicken thighs on both sides; do this in batches if your dish isn’t large enough to accommodate them all.

Once the chicken thighs have all been browned, add the onion mixture back to the pan as well as the flour, tomato paste, water, and wine. Cover with a lid and bring to the boil. Turn down to a simmer and sprinkle over the sauerkraut. Season with black pepper and simmer very gently with the lid on for 20 minutes.

Sprinkle with parsley just before serving. Very good eaten with baked potato or kumara and steamed broccoli. To bake a potato or kumara, choose small to medium-sized potatoes or kumara and wash the skins in cold water thoroughly. Pierce the skin of each potato in a couple of places with a skewer and place in a 180°C oven for about 30 minutes or until you can push a skewer easily through.