Oven-baked chicken thighs with fennel

Ingredients for 2 servings:

• ½ organic lemon(s), juice and zest
• ½ tsp brown sugar
• 2 tbsp olive oil or rapeseed oil
• Salt and pepper, freshly ground
• 2 chicken legs
• 2 fennel bulbs
• 1 garlic clove(s)
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 150 ml water, approx.
• ½ tsp chicken broth powder
• Olive oil or rapeseed oil

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Rest time approx. 1 hour; Cooking/baking time approx. 1 hour; Total time approx. 2 hours 30 minutes

low-carb

Wash the lemon, dry it, and finely grate about half of the zest. Squeeze half of the zest. Mix the lemon juice and zest with the sugar, oil, salt, and pepper. Wash the chicken thighs, pat them dry, coat them all over with the marinade, pour the remaining marinade over them, and cover and marinate in the refrigerator for about 1 hour. Peel the garlic clove and finely slice it. Roast the fennel seeds in a pan without fat until fragrant. Preheat the oven to 200°C (top/bottom heat). Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a cast-iron roasting pan and brown the chicken thighs all over. Briefly fry the fennel seeds and garlic. Deglaze with the water, add the stock powder and the marinade from the peel, cover, and cook the thighs in the oven for about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, clean the fennel, quarter it, remove the tough stalk, and cut the quarters crosswise into strips. Finely chop the fennel greens. After 30 minutes, add the fennel to the chicken thighs, add a little more water if needed, and drizzle the fennel with 1-2 tablespoons of oil. Continue cooking the dish with the lid closed for about 15 minutes and uncovered for 5-10 minutes. Arrange the chicken thighs and fennel on plates and serve sprinkled with the fennel greens. For those who are particularly hungry, serve with some white bread or rice. This will of course no longer be low-carb. Fennel seeds and garlic burn quickly, so have the water ready to deglaze the pan. If necessary, season the fennel with salt before serving. Cooking times are only a guide and depend on the cookware used and the heat your home oven actually reaches.