Friday, 19 September 2008

Creamy Mushroom and Vegetable Sauce on Panfried Chicken Breast with Rice

Pan Fried Chicken with a Mushroom and Vegetable Sauce

I love snapping up a bargain in the supermarket and on this particular visit, I managed to pick up a whole chicken for a good £2 less! Yay! But it was the middle of the week and I couldn't be bothered to cook the whole bird. So I removed the breasts and wrapped the rest of the chicken up for another meal.

Putting it all together:
  • The rice was cooked by first frying off some garlic and salt in a pot with oil. Before the garlic browned, the rice went in and tossed until each grain was slightly translucent. I then added chicken stock - I did actually have some home made chicken stock on hand. When I'm not feeling lazy after we've had a roast, I do put the bones into a large pot filled with water. I'll let it simmer with some onions and carrots, if I have them. If not, it's just chicken and water.
  • I pan fried the breasts with a little oil, trying to ensure that the skin was nice and crispy.
  • In the meantime, I made a sauce by sautéing some red onion and garlic then adding thickly sliced field mushrooms and some soaked dried mixed mushrooms (it came in a pre-packaged mix of shitake and oyster). Once it has all softened slightly, I added a splash of white wine and let the alcohol cook off. Once the acidic alcoholic smell had gone, I sprinkled on some English mustard powder and seasoned it with salt, pepper and some Maggi seasoning (it really is a lifesaver!). For creaminess, I used a small tub of low fat crème fraîche and to break it down slightly, I added the liquid from the soaked mushrooms. Last in, a few handfuls of washed spinach. I let it simmer for awhile to let the spinach wilt, to burn off some of the liquid and to let the flavours...fuse.
Pan Fried Chicken with a Mushroom and Vegetable Sauce

Verdict?
The chicken was still nicely moist but unfortunately the skin was not as crispy as I would have liked. I love creamy sauces but unfortunately my tummy doesn't agree with my brain and taste buds :( So this was the perfect compromise. A hint of cream without being overwhelmingly heavy. Mushrooms + cream? Match made in heaven :)

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