Greek chicken with tomato sauce and peas (Κοτόπουλο κοκκινιστό με αρακά)

A traditional Greek one-pot meal of chicken pieces cooked alongside potatoes, carrots and peas in a flavourful tomato sauce. This rustic Greek recipe is made with only a few simple and common ingredients, and the result is incredible. Serve with bread, olives and feta for a complete Greek feast.

Growing up Greek my parents often made one pot meals where ingredients were put together, cooked slowly and then served as a complete meal. I loved those recipes then, and I still do now. I also understand why meals like Spanakorizo (spinach and rice) and potatoes yahni (Greek potato stew) were so popular with my parents. They are simple, use common ingredients, and they taste delicious.

I love this recipe for chicken with tomato sauce and peas. It is really a great dish and I hope you give it a try, and love it as much as I do.

Why I love this recipe

This may actually be one of my favourite meals. Not only does this dish of chicken, cooked alongside potatoes and peas in a rich tomato sauce satisfy all sorts of comfort cravings, it also comes together pretty easily.  Nothing too fancy in terms of technique or ingredients, this is humble, real Greek food.  This is the type of meal I grew up on, and this is the type of meal that I turn to today, when I want something that tastes like home.

I also love that when I make this meal, I don’t have to worry about making anything else. No extra veggies are need, no salad, no rice or other accompaniment. Everything you need is right there in the pot!

Key ingredients

Chicken I use a whole chicken for this recipe that I cut up myself into 8 serving pieces. It is pretty easy to cut up a chicken, and less expensive to do it this way (usually) than purchasing already portioned chicken.

Tomato sauce I use homemade tomato sauce to make this dish. You can follow my family recipe to make tomato sauce as well. Otherwise, a good quality jarred passata (strained tomatoes) will work out well.

Peas I use fresh or frozen peas, never canned to make this recipe. When I use frozen peas I defrost them a little bit before adding them to the pot.

Potatoes Any potatoes work well here but I tend to use yellow fleshed or Yukon Gold potatoes. I find that they taste best, and are nice and creamy.

Olive oil As always, my go-to is Greek olive oil. The fragrance and flavour is just the best!

Yellow onion I love to use yellow onion because it is easy to find, not too strong and cooks up really well.

Carrots I like to add carrots for a touch of sweetness and a pop of colour!

Dill Fresh dill is a wonderful herb! I use it a lot in my cooking, and add plenty of it in my recipes.

Cinnamon In Greek cooking cinnamon is commonly used in savoury meals. It is not uncommon to find it in meat dishes like this one. Trust me, it is amazing!

Salt & pepper I have rarely made a meal without using some salt and pepper. These are the basics guys, and bring out all the flavours!

How to make it

Step 1
Carve your raw chicken into 8 – 10 pieces; you will end up with 2 drumsticks, 2 thighs, 2 wings, and 2 breasts which depending upon the size, you may want to cut further in half (so you will either end up with 2 breast pieces, or 4 small pieces).  Remove the excess skin off of the chicken pieces.  Discard the carcass or reserve it to make stock. Season the chicken with salt.

Step 2
In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium high heat and fry your chicken pieces for approximately 5 minutes per side or enough time that the chicken browns on the surface.  You may have to cook the chicken in batches.  As the chicken is removed from the skillet, transfer it directly into a large pot.

Step 3
After your chicken is all browned, fry the potato wedges.   As with the chicken, you do not want them to cook through entirely; you only want your potatoes to be golden brown on the sides.  This will take 2 – 3 minutes per side.

Step 4
As the potatoes cook, transfer these to the pot with the chicken.  Pour the olive oil that you had used for frying carefully (it is hot) into the pot as well.

Step 5
To the pot of chicken and potatoes add the carrots, tomato sauce, pepper, cinnamon and water. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium.  Cover your pot and cook for approximately 25 minutes.

Step 6
Add the peas to the pot, cover, and cook for an additional 10 – 15 minutes, over medium heat.  Lift the lid and add the chopped dill to the pot.  Return the cover.  Remove the pot from the heat and let it sit, covered, for 5 minutes.

Step 7
Prior to serving, mix the contents of the pot carefully with a wooden spoon or spatula.

Recipe substitutions

If you prefer to use baby potatoes, then do so. I would not peel them in this case, simply wash the skins and outside of the potato well.

If you don’t have or don’t like dill, then you can use parsley instead.

If you prefer not to use an entire chicken, or want to have only white or only dark meat, then you can easily do that as well. Try to have 8 serving size pieces of chicken however, so that the rest of the ingredients are proportional to the chicken.

Cooking tips

Buy a whole chicken

It is usually more economical to purchase a whole chicken that you then cut up into serving size pieces yourself versus buying chicken pieces.  Don’t be intimidated!  All you really need is a sharp knife, a cutting board and perhaps this tutorial from Martha Stewart.

Save the carcass

After portioning your chicken, you will be left with the carcass.  This is perfect for making a stock that you can then use for avgolemono soup or this perfect easy chicken noodle soup.

Prep the chicken before frying

As with most of the traditional Greek recipes my sister and I share, this one was taught to me by my parents. I need to note that before frying the chicken, my parents like to boil it for about 5 minutes in water and 1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar.  According to them, this helps to eliminate some of the fat.  Who knows if this is true! Maybe the vinegar also adds a subtle flavour…but even that is unclear.  If you don’t feel like doing this step, it’s probably fine to skip it (I won’t tell my folks).

Use a lot of pepper

The amount of pepper listed in this recipe may seem like a lot; it’s not a mistake.  Surprisingly, the end result is not too peppery…it is just right!

Recipe variations

If you love the idea of this dish, but are looking for something vegetarian (actually, vegan), check out my recipe for stewed green peas.  Equally delicious, minus the chicken.

Also, if you love the idea of this dish and want to try something similar, I think you will also enjoy my recipe for Greek chicken with chickpeas.

Storing and reheating

Chicken in tomato sauce with peas will keep well in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Any longer and you can freeze this meal. Keep in mind that the potatoes may not hold up as well after being reheated, but they will still be delicious.

To reheat, either use the microwave, or reheat in a pot on the stovetop.

How to serve

This recipe is a complete meal, so you don’t have to worry about making any extra vegetables or adding anything else to the table. The only exception is bread! I always serve this meal with plenty of fresh bread (preferably homemade using of the my best bread recipes), some Kalamata olives and feta. When I have my dinner with a glass of my dad’s homemade wine, I am in my absolute happy place!

Related recipes

If you love this one pot comfort meal, then I think you will also enjoy these traditional Greek recipes:

Rabbit stew A traditional Greek stew made with rabbit, potatoes and many small onions. This is true comfort food, and the combination of flavours is out of this world!

Artichokes and peas in an egg-lemon sauce A wonderful vegetarian meal. The sauce made with egg and lemon is tangy and rich. Be sure to serve this with some bread, to sop up all the delicious sauce.

Greek green beans with potatoes A vegan dream of a meal! This is rustic Greek cooking at its best. All made in one pot, and so delicious!

Serving size

This recipe serves 4 – 6 people.

Thanks for sharing!