Pat chicken dry with paper towels, to remove any excess moisture from packaging, and season both sides with salt and pepper. Heat the vegetable oil (2 tablespoons) in a large pot until it shimmers. Brown the chicken (3 pounds) in batches, making sure not to crowd the pan. Transfer to a mixing bowl and repeat with the remaining chicken. Leave fond in the pan and wipe up oil with a paper towel and a set of tongs.
Cook the bacon (4 slices) in the same pot, stirring frequently until crispy. Transfer to bowl with chicken.
Stir in onion (1 1/2 cups), garlic (4 cloves), and anchovy paste (2 teaspoons) to the pot then continue to cook, stirring constantly, on high heat until brown bits form on the bottom of the pan. Add 1 cup of broth, wine (1 cup), and soy sauce (1 tablespoon) and bring to a boil stirring to scrape up any brown bits on the bottom of the pot. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid evaporates and vegetables begin to sizzle again, 12 to 15 minutes.
Melt butter (3 tablespoons) on top of vegetables. Sprinkle top with flour (1/3 cup)and stir to form a paste. Cook, stirring constantly for a minute, or until the paste begins to color a bit. Remove from heat and slowly whisk in the remaining 4 cups of broth until smooth.
Add Better Than Bouillon (2 tablespoons), tomato paste (2 tablespoons), bay leaves (2), and thyme (1/2 teaspoon), stirring to dissolve Better Than Bouillon. Add russet potatoes (2), carrots (4), and the browned chicken and bacon. Bring to a boil then immediately reduce heat and simmer, uncovered until vegetables are tender and chicken is cooked through about 20-30 minutes.
Remove from heat and add peas (1 cup), cover and allow to stand for 5 minutes to heat. Adjust seasonings and remove bay leaves. Stir in parsley (1/4 cup) and serve.
Notes
Pot: The best tool you can grab for coaxing amazing flavor out of this chicken stew recipe is a higher-qualityheavy-bottomedpot. They help distribute heat more evenly to prevent burning and encourage a balanced flavor profile. You’ll also be making afondand a simplerouxso the better pot will help with these too.
Get All The Fond!: The first one is scraping up all the brown bits at the bottom of the pan(which is called the fond) when you first add your wine and broth (don’t let them burn, they’re concentrated flavor).
Toast the Flour: The second technique involves adding the flour to the melted butter and stirring until paste forms. Et voila! You have a roux. Then cooking the paste until it begins to color a bit, It helps cook off the flour taste.
Chicken Thighs - Chicken thighs are amazing in this recipe. The flavor of the darker meat really adds a great quality to the overall flavor of the stew that chicken breasts won't provide. Listen thighs aren't my favorite...breasts are. Simply not in this recipe! Also, drying the thighs before you brown them may seem like a skippable (is that a real word??) step but it's really important. It will seriously reduce splattering and, let me tell ya, that's a really great thing for the skin on your arms and face during the browning!!
Dig Down with Your Spoon - Scraping up all the brown bits at the bottom of the pan(which is called the fond) when you first add your wine and broth, is hugely important. Those little brown bits will add tremendous flavor to your stew! (don’t let them burn, they’re concentrated flavor).
Roux - When you add the flour to the melted butter and stir until paste forms... Et voila, you have a roux. Then cooking the paste until it begins to color a bit, helps cook off the flour taste and add just a bit of nuttiness.