Chicken Fricassee With Bread Sauce And Pan Fried Sprouts
Posted: February 6, 2009 at 2:13 am
Serves 4
Ingredients
For the chicken
- 4 x chicken breasts, skin on (approx 180-200g each)
- 6 baby shallots, peeled and halved
- 250g chestnut mushrooms, halved
- 200g smoked bacon lardons
- 3 garlic cloves
- Few sprigs of thyme
- 100ml Marsala
- 200ml chicken stock
- Small handful of flat leaf parsley
For the Brussels sprouts
- 300g Brussels sprouts, outer leaves peeled and cut in half
- 1 garlic clove
- Knob of butter
- 20g flaked almonds
- Squeeze of lemon juice
For the bread sauce
- 500ml milk
- 1 small onion, peeled
- 3 bay leaves
- 6 cloves
- 100g breadcrumbs
- 25g butter
- Olive oil
- Salt & pepper
Method: How to make chicken fricassee with bread sauce and Brussels sprouts
1. Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper and sauté in a hot pan with a little olive oil until golden on both sides. Remove from the pan and set aside. Cut the shallots and mushrooms in half and add to the pan with the lardons and allow to colour in the pan with a little more oil. Season with a pinch of salt then crush in the garlic, pick in the thyme leaves and continue to cook for further 1 – 2 minutes.
2. Add the chicken breasts back into the pan along with any resting juices. Deglaze the pan with the Marsala and allow the alcohol to cook off. Add the chicken stock and allow to simmer gently for 15 minutes, allowing the stock to reduce to a glaze and the chicken to cook. Roll the chicken in the glaze from time to time to ensure it cooks evenly. Just before serving, chop the parsley and stir through.
3. For the bread sauce, attach the bay leaves to the onion using the cloves to secure them. Place in a pan with the milk, season and bring to the boil. Turn off the heat and allow to sit for a few minutes to infuse. Strain the milk then pour the infused milk back into the pan. Over a gentle heat, stir in the half the breadcrumbs. Allow them to soften and mix thoroughly with the milk before adding the other half. Whisk in a tablespoon of olive oil, then add the butter and mix through. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Allow the bread sauce to heat through and thicken before removing from the heat, approximately 3 minutes.
4. For the sprouts, bring a pan of salted water to the boil. Cook the sprouts for 2 minutes and then drain. Heat a non-stick frying pan with a touch of oil and sauté the sprouts. Crush in the garlic, add the butter and cook for 2-3 minutes until they are nicely coloured and softened. Add a squeeze of lemon juice and the flaked almonds.
5. To serve, spoon the bread sauce onto warm plates and arrange the chicken breasts alongside. Spoon the glazed shallots and mushrooms on top and serve with a spoonful of sautéed sprouts.