French Chateau Chicken Food

CHICKEN CHASSEUR OR HUNTER'S CHICKEN

Steps:

• Heat up your oven to 375 F. In order to make Chicken Chasseur with a crispy skin, heat up clarified butter (or a combination of butter with cooking oil) in a cast iron skillet on medium heat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and once your pan is hot, add chicken (skin side down) and cook undisturbed for 6-7 minutes, until the skin is nicely browned.
• Turned the chicken over and cook for another 4-5 minutes. Transfer the chicken onto a baking sheet and place in the oven for about 15-20 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the internal temperature shows 165F.
• Once you've moved your chicken to the oven, discard all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the skillet. Add sliced mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and cook for about 5 minutes. Then add chopped shallots and let them sweat for another few minutes.
• If using, add cognac and either flambe it or let it almost entirely cook-off. Add wine and deglaze the pan. Cook until about 1 tablespoon of liquid is left.
• Add tomatoes or tomato paste, chicken stock, and let cook for about 10-15 minutes.
• If your sauce is too liquidy, combine 1-2 tablespoons of either Wondra flour or all-purpose flour with a 1/2 cup of water, mix well (until smooth) and add to the sauce to thicken it up. Cook for another 2 minutes.
• Adjust seasoning, add salt and pepper as needed. Once the sauce has the right consistency, turn it off and add 2 tablespoons of cold butter and let it melt into the sauce (Tip: once you've added butter, then you cannot reduce the sauce more as the butter would break);
• Chop tarragon and parsley. Remove the chicken from the oven. Then for serving, you can either put the chicken back into the pan and sprinkle everything with herbs and serve it family style, or you plate the chicken and drench in your sauce, then sprinkle with herbs. Serve with mashed potatoes or egg noodles. Enjoy!

CHICKEN CHASSEUR

Steps:

• Season the chicken with salt and freshly ground black pepper then toss in the flour to coat.
• Heat a large frying pan until hot, add the oil and half the butter then fry the chicken pieces, skin side down, for 1-2 minutes until golden-brown. Turn the chicken and fry on the other side for another 1-2 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat a frying pan until hot, add the remaining butter and fry the bacon and button mushrooms until they are golden-brown. Add the shallots and caster sugar and fry for 2-3 minutes until golden and caramelised.
• Add the wine and bring it to a simmer, stirring to deglaze the pan, then pour the bacon and mushroom mixture over the chicken. Add the stock, tomato purée and tarragon to the chicken and bring to the boil.
• Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 30-40 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the liquid slightly reduced.
• Meanwhile, for the mash, place the potatoes into a pan of salted water and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 12-15 minutes until the potatoes are tender.
• Drain the potatoes and return them to the pan, then place the pan on the heat for one minute to steam off any excess moisture.
• Mash the potatoes well, then add the butter and milk, beating to form a smooth mash. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• When the chicken is cooked, add the tomatoes and flat leaf parsley, check the seasoning then simmer for a further two minutes before serving.
• Serve two pieces of chicken per person with the sauce spooned over and a dollop of mash alongside.

FRENCH CHATEAU CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Season with salt and pepper pounded chicken breasts.
• Cut each roasted red pepper in half (top to bottom) and place one piece on each breast.
• Spread 1/2 cup of cooked rice on top of red pepper on each breast. Crumble boursin cheese over the rice. Roll chicken into a tight bundle. Wrap each bundle with bacon. Secure with toothpicks if necessary. Brush with the mixture of melted butter and olive oil.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes. While the chicken is baking, divide the spring greens between 4 plates. Sprinkle the pine nuts and dried cranberries over the greens. When the breasts are done, serve whole or sliced over the greens.