Sautéed Chicken Breasts With Tarragon

NY Times recipe from Kim Severson who states, “As the owner of the French Laundry, Per Se and Bouchon, restaurateur Thomas Keller is best known for haute cuisine, but he can do weeknight cooking, too. Case in point: this elegant and easy chicken dish that can be ready in about 20 minutes.”

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Sautéed Chicken Breasts With Tarragon

  • Total time: 2 Hours 30 Minutes
  • Servings: 6 Servings

Ingredients

  • 1 tsp Sweet Paprika
  • 1 tsp Madras Curry Powder
  • 6 Large (about 6 oz each) or 12 Small (about 3 oz each) Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
  • Kosher Salt
  • Canola Oil
  • 3 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
  • 1 Tbsp Minced Shallot
  • 1/4 Cup Dry White Wine (substitute chicken stock?)
  • 1 Cup Chicken Stock
  • 1 Tbsp Coarsely Chopped Tarragon plus 1 Tbsp Whole Tarragon Leaves
  • Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Directions

  • 1)

    In a small bowl mix together paprika and curry powder, and sprinkle on both sides of chicken breasts; cover and refrigerate for 2 hours.

  • 2)

    Place 2 breasts on large sheet of plastic wrap, cover with more plastic and pound with a mallet until they are about 1/4-inch thick. Repeat with remaining breasts. (Chicken may be wrapped and refrigerated for up to 12 hours.)

  • 3)

    Preheat oven to 200°F. Season chicken on both sides with salt. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add enough canola oil to film the bottom of pan. Working in batches, without crowding, place breasts smooth side down and let cook until golden brown, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Turn and cook for another 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Transfer to a baking sheet and keep warm in oven.

  • 4)

    Wipe out skillet and return to medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of butter and shallot, and sauté for 30 seconds, swirling pan to coat shallot with butter. Add wine, raise heat to medium-high, and cook until wine is reduced by half, about 1 minute. Add stock, bring to boil, and cook until reduced and slightly thickened, 1 to 2 minutes.

  • 5)

    Stir in chopped tarragon, remaining 2 tablespoons butter, and any juices that have accumulated on baking sheet. Swirl to melt butter, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Arrange chicken on a warmed platter, pour sauce over it, and garnish with whole tarragon leaves.

Notes

From the website:

“This was delicious. I added mushrooms to the sauce and I think that improved it. I didn’t have “sweet” paprika. No worries.”

“Delicious! Read reviews and added cremini mushrooms with the shallot. Used 2 tsp. of dried tarragon since I didn’t have fresh. Added 1 Tbsp of heavy cream with the butter at the end.”

“Very tasty dish! However, the 1 cup of chicken broth was too much. The sauce never did thicken. Suggest starting with half a cup and adding more as necessary.”

“The chicken needs longer either in the initial cooking, where it might toughen up, or with the sauce as it boils down. We decided to throw in the wine, tarragon, and broth together and then add the chicken to it (from the 200 degree oven) to cook it in the sauce. After it hit 160+ degrees, we then put it back in the oven and took another few minutes to finish boiling down the sauce. It was absolutely delicious and moist.”

“I pounded the chicken out and seasoned it in the morning, so it had marinated for 12 hours when I cooked it. It was fantastic – I’m sure refrigerating it over night would be about the same. And I suspect that putting the spice rub on just before cooking would be delicious as well, considering the assertiveness of the flavors.”

Source: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1012849-sauteed-chicken-breasts-with-tarragon