Pan Fried Chicken Smothered In White Sauce With Broccoli Food

SMOTHERED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Prework: Add chicken dredge ingredients to a large plate and toss to combine. Set aside. Measure out gravy ingredients prior to beginning.
• Cook the Bacon: Fry bacon over medium-low heat until crispy on both sides. Remove from pan and pour grease into a heat-safe bowl. Reserve 2-4 Tablespoons of clear bacon drippings. Wipe any black residue from the pan if needed.
• Slice & Pound the Chicken: While the bacon cooks, slice each chicken breast in half lengthwise to create 2 thinner slices. Place saran wrap over them and use a meat tenderizer to pound them to about 3/4 inches thick. This gives them a little more texture for the flour dredge to hold on to. They'll plump up more when cooked.
• Coat the Chicken: Wipe the chicken dry and coat generously in the flour mixture, get in every nook and cranny.
• Cook the Chicken: Add the reserved bacon drippings to the clean pan and enough vegetable oil to cover the chicken by half. Heat over medium-high heat. Once heated and glistening, add the chicken. Fry 2 at a time for about 5 minutes per side, until they have a nice golden sear. Set aside on a plate. Adjust heat down slightly and back up throughout cooking as needed.
• Drain the oil: Remove the oil from the pot and use a paper towel to remove any black spots from the pan, but leave any brown remnants. This is called 'fond' and will give the gravy a nice flavor.
• Make the Roux: Melt the butter over medium heat and use a silicone spatula to "clean" the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle the flour gradually, whisking continuously, until a paste forms.
• Add the Broth and Half and Half: Add the liquid in small increments, whisking constantly. It will thicken up in between each splash of liquid. If you add it all at once, you'll "break" the roux and it won't be thick.
• Add remaining gravy ingredients: Slowly add the beef bouillon, soy sauce, and seasonings.
• Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add a few drops of kitchen bouquet if a darker color is desired.
• Add the chicken back to the pan along with any juice from the plate.
• Chop up the bacon and add it to the top of the chicken.
• Cover partially and cook over low heat for 10-15 minutes. The internal temperature of the chicken should reach 165 degrees prior to serving.
• Garnish with parsley and serve with mashed potatoes.

PAN-FRIED CHICKEN SMOTHERED IN WHITE SAUCE WITH BROCCOLI

Steps:

• Place chicken breasts between two sheets of plastic wrap. Pound with a meat mallet or back of a heavy frying pan until about 3/8" thick. An alternative is to butterfly each breast or purchase them already butterflied.
• Dry the breasts and sprinkle with salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder and paprika to taste.
• Reserving 2 tablespoons of flour, dredge chicken pieces in the flour, shaking off excess.
• Put oil into a non-stick skillet and heat on medium high until oil begins to shimmer. Add chicken and sauté about 5 minutes on each side, until it is golden brown and developed a thin crust. Remove from pan to a plate and keep warm.
• Add the 2 tablespoons of butter together with the reserved 2 tablespoons of flour and cook for a minute, stirring constantly. scraping up any brown bits attached to the pan.
• When the roux has formed, add about 1 cup of milk, slowly, stirring constantly, to make the white (bechamel) sauce. Adding more milk will make a thinner sauce, less milk will make a thicker sauce. Allow the sauce to reduce to your desired thickness.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Meanwhile, steam the broccoli by your favorite method.
• Return chicken to the pan and smother with the sauce. When the chicken has been heated through, serve immediately with the broccoli, smothering both the chicken and the broccoli.

ONE-POT CHICKEN BROCCOLI IN WHITE WINE SAUCE

Steps:

• Wash chicken (no need to pat dry), and dip in breadcrumbs to coat both sides. Reserve leftover breadcrumbs.
• Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the butter, stir to combine.
• Brown chicken over medium-high heat, about 4-5 minutes per side. Add leftover breadcrumbs, pepper, mushrooms if using, lemon juice or zest, wine, and most of the parsley (reserve a little to sprinkle on the finished dish).
• Reduce heat to low and add frozen broccoli florets.
• Cover and continue cooking another 10-12 minutes or until broccoli is done to your liking.
• Sprinkle finished dish with the reserved parsley, and serve with white wine sauce and fresh lemon wedges.
• Great with a side of rice pilaf or creamy mashed potatoes--for an extra yummy indulgence, drizzle my Easy Cheese Sauce over the broccoli. Enjoy!

WHOLE CHICKEN IN A PAN

Steps:

• Place the chicken breast-side down on a cutting board. With a poultry shears or sharp knife, make two vertical cuts about 1 1/2 inch apart on each side of the backbone, all the way from the neck to the tail. Cut through the bones, and remove the backbone and tail. Open up the chicken so it lays flat.
• With the chicken still breast side down, use your sharp knife to slice through the cartilage at the top of the breast bone, working from the inside of the chicken. Hold the chicken in your two hands, and bend it backwards to make the breastbone pop out; pull out the breastbone and the cartilage. Use your knife to slice out the ribs from the inside, if you desire. Try not to cut through the skin.
• In a small bowl, mix the sage, salt, and black pepper. Use your fingers to rub the sage mixture all over the inside and outside of the chicken, and push the seasonings under the skin as well.
• Melt butter with olive oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Have a second heavy skillet (such as a cast-iron skillet) or a heavy Dutch oven ready for flattening the chicken. (If you don't have either of those things, wrap a brick in aluminum foil.) When the oil and butter just begin to give off wisps of smoke, place the chicken into the skillet, skin side down and flat. The "knees" of the chicken legs should point towards each other so the legs are flat. Place a piece of aluminum foil on top of the chicken, and weight it down with the heavy skillet or Dutch oven to press the chicken down as it cooks.
• Cook the chicken until the skin is crisp and browned, 12 to 15 minutes; carefully remove the weight and foil, and turn the chicken over so the opened-up side is down. Replace the foil and weight, and cook the chicken until the juices run clear and the meat is no longer pink at the bone, about 15 more minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into thigh meat, not touching bone, should read at least 160 degrees F (70 degrees C).

PAN FRIED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Line two 15x10x1-in. baking pans with foil and grease the foil; set aside. , In a large resealable plastic bag, combine the flour, soup mix, dressing mix and seasonings. Place milk in a shallow dish. Dip chicken into milk, then add to flour mixture, a few pieces at a time, and shake to coat. Place in prepared pans. Drizzle with butter. , Bake at 350° for 35-50 minutes or until juices run clear.