Daily life that is fueled by homemade, nutritious meals is a rich one. Those meals don't require a ton of effort ... maybe a little forethought and shopping, but not a lot of effort. Chicken with Tomato Tarragon Sauce is an easy weeknight meal as well as an elegant offering to dinner guests.
What cut of chicken ?
Choose what you want! The recipe is most delicious with bone-in, skin-on pieces. This is easily achievable by using a whole chicken, but if you don't want to break down a chicken, simply buy bone-in, skin-on pieces such as thigh, legs, and breasts.
Pearl onions?! What's a substitute?
Great question. Pearl onions are lovely, small members of the allium family, but they are high-maintenance. They need to be trimmed and peeled. While I don't mind that chore (I tend to go into a zen mode when I do these menial kitchen tasks), they do require effort. My method is to cut off the root end first. Many times, more of the skin will follow making it easier to peel. From there, I just keep peeling until the whole is clean.
Browning the chicken adds flavor
When you use skin on chicken pieces, you'll get the most flavor from it if you brown it skin side down in the skillet. The fat gets rendered, which is where flavor comes from. And no one is opposed to that crispy yumminess.
After you've rendered some of the chicken fat (AKA smaltz), put the pearl onions in and let them caramelize, get a bit browned, and start to soften.
Tomato sauce ingredients and method
The tomato and tarragon sauce is really a bit like a tomato gravy. Add the flour to the fat left in the pan, then deglaze with tarragon vinegar and chicken stock, and add some tomato paste. Stir it till it thickens a little bit, then nestle the chicken pieces into the sauce and cook it till the chicken is done.
Tarragon ... what is it? What does it taste like?
Tarragon is one of my favorite herbs, one that is used in several French dishes. It has a slightly sweetness with a bit of licorice flavor, is perfect to grow in your herb garden, and is a perennial so it comes back each year.
How to serve Chicken with Tomato Tarragon Sauce
I love a bit of rice with this dish because it soaks up the tomato tarragon gravy so well. I also always love a green vegetable like sauteed beans or green peas.
Recipe
Chicken with Tomato Tarragon Sauce
Ingredients
- 3 pounds chicken pieces See notes
- Salt and pepper to season the chicken
- 1 Tablespoon butter
- 2 Tablespoons olive or avocado oil
- 8 ounces pearl onions about 250 grams
- 3 Tablespoon flour
- ½ cup tarragon vinegar
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 2 Tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 pound cherry tomatoes about 500 grams
- ½ bunch tarragon sprigs 6-7 sprigs
Instructions
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper.
- Heat a shallow braising pan over medium-high heat. Add the butter and oil. When the butter has melted, add the chicken pieces skin side down. Work in batches, if needed, till all the pieces are browned. Remove to a platter
- Reduce heat to medium, add more fat, if needed, then add the pearl onions. Saute till they are browned and slightly tender.
- Add the flour, stirring for about a minutes, then add the tarragon vinegar and chicken stock, whisking until slightly thickened. Add the tomato paste and stir to incorporate. Bring to a simmer and add the chicken back to the pan along with the tomatoes and tarragon. Cook and simmer for 15-20 minutes until chicken is cooked through.
- Serve with rice and a green vegetable.
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