Sheet-Pan Chicken Marbella

In 1982, Sheila Lukins and Julee Rosso published The Silver Palate Cookbook, named after their gourmet food shop on Manhattan's Upper West Side. At a time when most cookbooks written for American home cooks looked to France for inspiration, Silver Palate recipes highlighted other global flavors and ingredients, such as Sichuan chile oil and Spanish pimentón. Since its publication, the book and its recipes have become staples for many home cooks. One of the recipes that has developed a bit of a cult following is Lukins and Rosso's chicken Marbella.

Silver Palate’s chicken Marbella feeds a crowd: The recipe calls for quartering four small chickens, marinating the poultry with prunes, olives, and capers overnight, then cooking it in several large baking dishes. It’s fairly minimal in terms of active prep and cook time, but the recipe notes that the chicken’s moistness comes from many hours of marination. (The cup of brown sugar in the marinade also helps with caramelization and browning.) However, many home cooks don't have enough bowls, baking dishes, and fridge space to accommodate about 10 pounds of chicken—which is where my shortcut version, scaled to serve four to six and designed for a standard half sheet pan—comes in.

In my twist on the classic, tender chicken thighs, prunes, and olives quickly soak up a tangy marinade in a bowl as the oven preheats. I've stayed true to the original in my inclusion of the prunes and olives, as well as the core ingredients in the marinade. As much as I love the original, it's a touch too sweet for me, so here, I use just enough sugar to offset the acidity of the red wine vinegar and white wine in the marinade.

As the chicken roasts, the rendered fat melds with the marinade to create a rich, salty-sweet pan sauce that you'll spoon over the chicken and rice or couscous. The dish can be served hot, cold, or at room temperature, making it ideal for both dinner parties and weeknights. Though this recipe and Silver Palate’s differ, the two work much the same, so it feels worthwhile to share a line from the original’s headnote that applies to this sheet-pan version too: “It travels well and makes for excellent picnic fare.”  

Why Use Bone-in Chicken Thighs

Here, I opt for bone-in chicken thighs, which have more fat than breasts and can better withstand high-heat cooking. That means you can roast the chicken in a hot oven without risking it drying it out. Chicken thighs are often the most tender when cooked a bit past the safety threshold of 165ºF (74°C), to about 185 to 195°F (85 to 90°C). At this temperature, the meat is  "rich and deeply chickeny in the best way," as senior culinary editor Leah describes chicken cooked to a higher temp in her article about why this "wrong way of cooking chicken" is so right. As the meat cooks, the collagen and connective tissue melt into gelatin, resulting in tender, juicy flesh.

A Super-Quick Marination Still Delivers Great Flavor

The beauty of this sheet-pan version is that it comes together quickly. By using smaller chicken thighs, you can simply toss them in the flavorful marinade and leave them to sit for an hour. That said, you can marinate the chicken for up to eight hours in the refrigerator if you'd like. When you're ready to cook, arrange the chicken, olives, and prunes on a sheet pan, pour the marinade over, and pop it into a preheated oven. Served with rice or couscous, it's a wonderfully easy, satisfying dinner that's equally great for a weeknight or special occasion.