Poulet aux Petits Pois à la Française (Braised Chicken with Peas and Lettuce)
Tender braised chicken thighs with sweet peas, little gem lettuce and spring onions in a light, buttery stock sauce.
Made with Homemade chicken stock. Make a batch of the base first, then this takes minutes. Skip to the method
- Time50 min
- LevelEasy
- Costabout £3.64 a head
Cost is worked out from Aldi and Tesco shelf prices in October 2026. Your shop and brands will differ.
Ingredients
Tick what you need to buy. It goes on your shopping list.
Method
- 1
Season the chicken with half the salt. Heat the olive oil in a wide, lidded pan over a medium-high heat. Brown the thighs skin side down for 6 minutes, then turn and brown for 3 minutes more. Lift out and set aside.
9 min - 2
Add the dairy free spread, spring onion and garlic to the pan and cook for 2 minutes. Pour in your ready made homemade chicken stock (see the base recipe), scraping up the golden bits.
2 min - 3
Return the chicken, skin side up. Cover and simmer gently for 20 minutes, until the chicken is tender.
20 min - 4
Add the lettuce quarters and peas, pushing them into the liquid. Cover and cook for 6 minutes until the peas are tender and the lettuce has wilted.
6 min - 5
Mix the cornflour with 2 tablespoons of cold water, stir into the pan and simmer for 2 minutes until the sauce is lightly glossy. Season with the remaining salt.
2 min - 6
Scatter over the mint and serve with crusty bread or boiled new potatoes.
Tips
- Wilted lettuce sounds odd but is classic French cooking. Cooked little gem turns silky and sweet, like a mild green vegetable.
- Frozen petits pois are small and sweet and cook in minutes. Do not add them early or they turn grey and mushy.
- Brown the chicken properly. The caramelised bits in the pan give the sauce most of its flavour.
- Use a gluten free crusty loaf for mopping up the sauce if you need to avoid gluten.
Storing and freezing
Keeps in the fridge for up to 3 days. Cool quickly, then reheat until steaming hot all the way through. The peas will lose some colour. Not recommended for freezing.
Questions
Can I use chicken breasts?
Yes, but they dry out faster. Brown them as above, then simmer for only 12 to 15 minutes in the stock before adding the vegetables. Thighs are more forgiving.
Can I use fresh peas?
Yes, when in season. Podded fresh peas need 8 to 10 minutes in the sauce. Frozen peas are picked and frozen quickly and are an excellent year round choice.
Is this recipe dairy free?
Yes. It uses olive oil and dairy free spread instead of butter. If you can eat dairy, use 20 g of butter in place of the spread for a more traditional taste.
More made with homemade chicken stock
Double check before you cook. Recipes can contain mistakes. Any diet labels come from the ingredients as written in this recipe and are a guide, not a guarantee. Always check every ingredient and the packet label for allergens and cross contamination, and ask your doctor or dietitian what is right for you, especially with coeliac disease, diabetes or a serious allergy. This is not medical advice.