Chicken fat does triple duty in this weeknight dinner recipe to yield crisp skin, golden toast, and a schmaltzy dressing. When cooking the chicken, we start with a cold pan because it encourages gentle, thorough rendering of the tasty fat, which you’ll use for the bread and greens. Keeping the thighs skin side down the whole time allows the skin to get extra crispy while the flesh cooks through.
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 450°. Mix garlic and 1 Tbsp. lemon juice in a medium bowl to combine. Pat chicken thighs dry with paper towels and place in a bowl. Season with salt and toss to coat. Let chicken marinate at room temperature for at least 20 minutes and up to 1 hour.
Step 2
Meanwhile, bring honey and chile to a bare simmer in a small skillet over medium-low. Let hot honey cool.
Step 3
Drizzle oil into a large heavy skillet, preferably cast iron, and place chicken thighs, skin side down, inside. Set over medium-high heat and cook until skin is golden brown underneath, 8–10 minutes. Transfer skillet to oven and bake chicken until cooked all the way through, 16–20 minutes. Pull chicken out of the oven and move to a plate. Save those pan juices in the skillet, though.
Step 4
Place skillet with juices over medium heat and add bread. Fry bread until nicely toasted and golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. (You’re essentially making a large chicken fat–doused crouton here.) Transfer bread to paper towels to drain and sprinkle with a bit of salt.
Step 5
Toss endive in a medium bowl with remaining 1 Tbsp. lemon juice and a drizzle of fat from the skillet (if the pan is scorched or the drippings are all gone, use olive oil instead), season with salt, and toss to coat.
Step 6
Tear the bread in half and poke it with a paring knife to create a few holes (this will help the bread soak up the chicken juices). Arrange on plates and top with chicken thighs. Scatter endive leaves around and drizzle some of the hot honey over the chicken (and the endive if you want).
