OK.  Here’s a recipe for the most tender (tenderest?) chicken you will ever have.  I’m talkin’ fall-off-the-bone tender.  So here’s the deal.  I bought a family pack of chicken legs at the grocery store – there were 12 in the package (now I wish I had made more).  I’ve already told you that my family really only likes legs, although my husband will eat thighs too.  Anyway, I cooked them in spaghetti sauce and they were absolutely delicious.  I didn’t have the 6 or 7 hours needed to make “long gravy” with all the different types of meats like my dad does, but I did have enough time to make this dish which turned out wonderful.  I served the chicken with some rigatoni – Yum!  And, I had enough sauce left over to freeze for at least two more dinners – even better.  Anyway, this is super easy to make, and although you let the sauce cook for 2 ½ hours, it’s not like you have to stand in the kitchen the whole time.  Just stop in every now and then to give it a stir.  Now, like I said, I used only legs for this dinner, but a combination of legs and thighs would also be great.  Try this, you will like it! 

 

You will need:

Chicken parts, such as legs and thighs

Black pepper, to taste

Garlic Salt, to taste

Vegetable oil, to drizzle

 

For the sauce:  (This is how I made it, but if you have your own family recipe for spaghetti sauce, use that.)

2 – 28oz. cans of Tomato Puree

2 – 28oz. cans of Crushed Tomatoes

1 can of water (use one of the cans above)

1 TBSP granulated garlic

2 TBSP dried basil leaves

1 tsp. black pepper

½ TBSP salt

1/3 cup olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Spray a 13 x 9 baking pan with cooking spray.  (Depending on how much chicken you make, you may need 2 pans.)

Place chicken pieces in the pan and sprinkle each piece with black pepper and garlic salt.

Drizzle some oil over the chicken pieces and bake for 30 minutes.

Then, flip the pieces over and bake an additional 30 minutes.  The idea here is to slightly brown the chicken.

While the chicken is baking, start to prepare the sauce.  You will need a very large pot with a lid for this.

Spray the bottom of the pot with cooking spray.

Add in the cans of puree, the crushed tomatoes, and one can of water.

Add in the spices and the olive oil.

Stir and bring the sauce to a boil.  Then, reduce the heat and simmer on the lowest possible setting.

When the chicken is baked, add the chicken to the sauce, ensuring that all pieces are covered with the sauce.  Cover the pot.

Simmer the sauce and the chicken for approximately 2 ½ hours on the lowest possible heat.

Stir often to prevent sticking and burning, but do it gently to keep the chicken in tact – like I said, it will be fall-off-the-bone chicken.

Serve with a side of pasta and Enjoy!

Save and/or freeze extra sauce in smaller containers for future use.