Chicken With Peas and Mint

By Carolina Gelen

Updated April 9, 2026

  • Ghazalle Badiozamani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
Media 1 of 1
Ready In
35 min
Rating
5(62)
Comments
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Crispy, golden chicken thighs, nesting among brothy mashed peas and showered in fresh mint leaves, make an irresistible one-skillet dinner. The recipe starts by partially cooking the thighs in a cast-iron skillet, extracting their savory schmaltz, which becomes the foundation for the peas. A reliable freezer staple, frozen peas are simmered alongside sweet, slightly charred shallots in chicken stock, with the seared thighs nestled into the mixture until everything cooks through. For a silky bite, some of the peas get mashed and stirred in the broth, slightly thickening the mixture. Pop the skillet under the broiler to crisp up the chicken skin, top with fresh mint leaves and a splash of vinegar for brightness, and dinner is done. Serve as is or with some crusty, toasted bread, chewy pearled couscous, or boiled-then-seared potatoes on the side to soak up all those flavors. Anything hearty and starchy would make a lovely pairing.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

  • 2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs 

  • Salt and black pepper 

  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

  • 2 shallots, thinly sliced 

  • 2 (12-ounce) bags frozen peas 

  • 2½ cups chicken stock 

  • 6 garlic cloves, crushed and peeled 

  • 2 tablespoons rice vinegar 

  • ½ cup fresh mint leaves 

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Pat dry the chicken on all sides using a paper towel. Season with salt and pepper on all sides. 

  2. Step 2

    To a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat, add the oil. Place the chicken skin-side down and cook, undisturbed, for 6 minutes, until the skin is lightly golden and crispy. 

  3. Step 3

    Flip the chicken. Add the shallots to the skillet. Cook, stirring the shallots occasionally, until softened and beginning to brown, about 4 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate. 

  4. Step 4

    To the skillet, still on medium-high, add the peas, chicken stock and garlic. Season with a generous pinch of salt and a few cracks of black pepper. Cover and bring to a vigorous simmer. Nestle the chicken, skin-side up, among the peas. Partially cover with a lid and simmer for 15 minutes. 

  5. Step 5

    Reduce the heat to medium. Scoop out about 1½ cups of peas and garlic using a measuring cup. Using a mortar and pestle (or potato masher), carefully crush into a coarse paste. Transfer the crushed peas to the skillet and stir into the remaining peas to thicken. (Alternatively, crush the peas against the edge of the skillet, using a wooden spoon or spatula, for similar results.) 

  6. Step 6

    Place an oven rack underneath the broiler. Set the broiler to high. Place the skillet in the oven and broil for 5 minutes, until the chicken skin is crispy. 

  7. Step 7

    Drizzle the vinegar over the peas, sprinkle the mint leaves all over and serve.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
62 user ratings
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Comments

muriel

I wanted to make exactly as is but of course couldn't... I cooked the shallots and then added the chicken in, I was not going to dirty an extra dish. I also decided to add mustard instead of vinegar at the end. Cooked it a bit, I wonder if I would add it at the beginning next time. also, 1.5 cup of broth was a bit too much.

Jennifer B

This was really delicious, and I didn’t expect it to be as good as it was. I made it because the ingredients were simple, and I had them all in my freezer. My husband and I kept eating and commenting,”this is so good!’. I didn’t change anything, except I made it a little smaller; I used a 10” skillet, 1.75# chicken, 1# peas and 1 1/2 cups chicken stock. It was so easy, we’ll make this again.

Wendy

Used a larger frying pan. Twelve inches was too small for the ingredients. My husband and I worked hard to cook this and we thought we were making something not so good. Maybe it was the peas that discouraged us. But surprise, it was delicious! Skinless boneless chicken worked fine, tender and flavorful.

Kathy

Saw our fresh mint in the yard and the next day this recipe appeared. Excellent seasonal celebration. You could just make peas this way as a side dish. My wife says there was enough salt without the pinch as you start the peas, but I did season the chicken well before cooking and she is trying to lower her salt intake.

Julie

Made this last night. I was short of frozen peas by almost half, so I cut back on the broth to a little bit less than 2 cups. I roasted potatoes with this meal — turns out this gave my husband all kinds of childhood “favorite food” nostalgia. I imagine the broth to peas ratio usually results in a nice pea mash, but for my husband it was “peas with gravy”. All this to say, this is a forgiving and delicious recipe!

CG

I was very skeptical about this recipe. Even though I’m a huge fan of a mint/pea combo, I couldn’t imagine peas being any good after stewing this long, but holy cow. They gave the sauce a lovely sweetness and the smushing is a must! I just used my spoon and the side of the skillet. It took a while but was oddly satisfying. I don’t think I’ve ever felt compelled to comment on a NYT recipe, though I’m a devotee of these comment sections. Don’t skip the vinegar at the end. Another commenter suggested mustard and I bet that would be good too, but rice vinegar for the win.

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