John Pleshette's Chicken with Chanterelles

I love John Pleshette's recipes.  He's the actor and foodie who shares delicious season recipes with friends and family.  We're so lucky to be in his inner circle:

Chicken with Chanterelles

Chicken with Chanterelles

Serves 4

3 to 4 lb chicken cut into 8 pieces

Vegetable oil

Butter

1 lb of fresh chanterelles

6 shallots

White wine

Fresh thyme

Fresh tarragon

Crème fraiche

Lemon

Fresh chives

Heat a large steep-sided pan over a high flame.

Dry the chicken pieces in paper towels.  Salt and pepper.  Pour 4 tablespoons of oil into the pan. 

Brown the chicken pieces skin side down in two batches so they don’t crowd the pan.  Adjust the heat so the skin browns but does not burn.  Cook for 6 minutes, turn, brown the other side 4 minutes more. 

Meanwhile, mince the shallots.  Cut the caps off the mushrooms.  Roughly chop the stems.  

When the chicken is browned, remove to a warm plate.  Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of fat, lower the heat, add 3 tablespoons of butter.  When the butter has melted, add the chopped shallots and the mushrooms. Cover. 

Cook for five minutes.  Uncover.  Raise the heat and cook off most of the liquid.  Pour in 1/2 cup of white wine.  Chop two sprigs of fresh tarragon, strip the leaves off a sprig of thyme and add to the pan. 

When the wine has reduced to a few tablespoons, pour in 1 cup of crème fraiche and stir for a couple of minutes to melt into the mushrooms.

Lower the heat and arrange the chicken pieces on top of the mushrooms.  Squeeze in 1 tsp of lemon juice.

Cook for about 10 minutes.  Pierce the thickest part of the second joint with a sharp fork.  If the juice runs clear, the chicken is done. 

Tilt the pan and nap the chicken with the chanterelles and cream.  Garnish with chopped chives and a few sprigs of tarragon.

Serve with rice, orzo or a rice-sized pasta such as chitarra.

Cellarwise wine pairing

Look for wines with an earthiness to complement 

The chanterelles, enough acid to cut the crème fraiche, and the density to hold up to the dish as a whole. The ’07 michel juillot bourgogne chardonnay (france, $13) has flinty green apple fruit and a bread dough note that would be exquisite here. If you don’t mind spending a little more, the ’07 j. M. Boillot montagny blanc 1er cru (france, $30) defines earthy, edgy green-fruited burgundian chardonnay.  Riesling  works here, such as  one with the stature and backbone of the ’07 peter lehmann riesling eden valley (australia, $15). For reds, the ’07 a to z wineworks pinot noir oregon ($20) is a very pretty, feminine partner to the chanterelles while the ’07 peachy canyon zinfandel paso robles “incredible red” (california, $11) will wrap the entire dish in a soft, red fruit blanket. Enjoy.