Pan-fried Chicken Breasts With Mushroom-Chardonnay Sauce
Serves 4
This is one of two featured recipes for this month that uses the same cooking style of sauté and a mixture of mushrooms to create a simple yet flavorful dish.
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
You’ll Need:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast cutlets or breast halves pounded flat
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper
2 Tbs. Butter and olive oil
3 shallots, sliced
2 cups (6 oz.) mushrooms of your choice, such as morels, chanterelles or button, stems removed, coarsely chopped
1 Tbsp. minced fresh (1/2 T dried) thyme
1/4 cup chardonnay
1 cup chicken broth
Here’s What To Do:
1. Season the chicken with 1/2 tsp. of the salt and the pepper. Heat 1 Tbsp. of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add the chicken. Cook until browned on one side, 3 minutes. Turn; cook until browned on the other side, about 3 minutes. Lower heat to medium-low; cover pan. Cook until chicken is almost cooked through, 5-8 minutes. Remove chicken to a plate; cover lightly with foil.
2. Add shallots to the skillet; cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and thyme; cook, stirring, until lightly browned, about 4-5 minutes. Add the wine to deglaze the pan, stirring up browned bits, reduce by half, about 2 minutes. Add chicken broth; cook, stirring often, until reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Season with the remaining 1/2 tsp. of the salt or to taste. Return chicken and its juices to skillet, add the remaining 1 Tbsp. of the butter, heat 1 minute. Transfer chicken and sauce to a serving dish.
What Goes With What Wines Selections
Castello Di Farnetella Chianti Colli Senesi ’05 (Chianti)
This goes to show that Chianti is a real “go to’ wine for simple food and this is no exception. The wine is a blend of Sangiovese and merlot and has a deep ruby red in color, nice fruit on the nose with a smooth palate and a nice finish with fruit and vanilla notes. We liked both of the lesser wines with this dish because they didn’t over power the mushroom flavors so try a bottle of each. R 89 $11.49
Domaine Chaume – Arnaud Cotes du Rhone ’05, France (Cotes)
This is a deeper style of Cotes that I am seeing a lot of lately and they are truly food wines. The wine is medium bodied with fresh, well defined spicy fruit and a give me another-glass finish. R 89 $10.99