Chicken with tarragon
French Cooking Academy · ♥ 12.7K likes · 387.1K views · 14 min video
Read about whole bird in the BrightCulinary Book
Timestamp
Ingredients
Method
Techniques
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1 whole carrot
- 1 branch celery
- 1 whole shallots
- 200 ml dry white wine
- 50 ml cognac
- 200 ml homemade stock
- 200 ml cream
- 1 bunch tarragon
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 whole chicken
- salt
- pepper
Cut carrot, celery and shallots into a small mirepoix. Cut a whole chicken into pieces, season the pieces with salt and pepper and dust them with flour - the flour thickens the sauce slightly and toasts as the chicken browns.
Mise en place and flouring the chicken
Pluck the tarragon leaves from the stems. Wash and reserve the leaves for the cream; tie the stems into a bundle with string to use as an infuser in the pot.
- oil
Heat a spoon of oil in the cast iron pot until it sizzles, lay the chicken skin side down and colour it on medium heat. Leave it alone and let it brown - about five minutes a side; do not charcoal it.
Turn the pieces, give them about another three minutes, then lift them out and reserve them on a tray.
Add the shallots, carrots and celery to the pan with a little butter and mix them with the caramelised juices. Keep it medium to low and let the vegetables sweat about two minutes until coloured and fragrant.
Deglaze with the cognac - no flambe - and reduce until almost dry and syrupy.
Add a small glass of white wine and reduce again, about three minutes, to drive off the alcohol and the acidity. Taste it on a spoon to check it is no longer acidic.
Return the chicken to the pan, add the stock to come about halfway up - not over the top - and plunge the bundle of tarragon stems under the liquid to infuse.
- black pepper
Add no salt yet; a little black pepper only.
Cover and simmer gently a good 25 minutes. Breast takes about 15 minutes and thighs and legs about 25, so take the breast out after 10 to 15 minutes maximum or it overcooks.
Meanwhile put the cream on low heat with the tarragon leaves in it and reduce it to make a tarragon-infused cream.
Remove the tarragon stems, bring the cooking liquid to high heat and reduce it.
Strain the reduced cream into the sauce, holding back the tarragon, and reduce again to the right consistency.
Add freshly chopped tarragon to the finished sauce, keeping some back for decoration, return the chicken and warm it through on low heat about five minutes, spooning the sauce over and turning the pieces.
Taste for seasoning. Serve hot: chicken on the dish, sauce poured over, the mirepoix garnish kept as part of the plate, and a sprinkle of tarragon on top.
Tasting and plating