Preheat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Season the chicken.
On a medium high heat, add the oil to a high sided, oven proof dish (a Dutch oven or casserole pot is great!). Add the chicken, skin side down to crisp up the skin and develop good colour, 5-8 minutes.
Flip the chicken, add the shallots and lemon to caramelize, 2-3 minutes.
Add enough water to the pan so that the crispy skin we so lovingly made is still exposed, about 250ml. Add the chilli flakes to the pan. Nestle the torn up dates and thyme sprigs to the pan. The dates will break down as they cook!
Place the pan in the oven, uncovered for 25 minutes. At this point, the chicken will be tender and there will be a tasty thick sauce.
Serve, enjoy! We had ours with loads of greens.
Thank you for sharing such a delicious dish!