Chickens
by Cat, Oct 2007 (Photo, right, from Wikimedia Commons)
I’ve not used marsala wine much in cooking, so this recipe intrigued me – especially because it is quick and easy. This recipe is adapted from Fine Cooking (1), originally by Jennifer Armentrout.
If you’re not familiar with crimini (or cremini) mushrooms, they are available in most produce sections; they look like the usual white button mushrooms in shape, but are brown in color. If they are not available, use the white variety.
This is really quite good – mushrooms and gorgonzola are perfect companions for the marsala sauce. I make up enough to have leftovers.
See also: 1. Brining Chicken; 2. Preparing Chicken or Other Cutlets; 3. Poultry Menu which includes chicken cutlet recipes on other sites.
Chicken Marsala with Mushrooms & Gorgonzola
I like to have more sauce, so I increase the amount of cream; also I usually use half raw heavy cream and half sour cream. If sauce gets too thick, I add some cooking water from the pasta. Excellent with whole wheat linguini or other flat pasta.
Crimini mushrooms, or fresh-picked mushrooms are best in this dish, but in a pinch you could use the button mushrooms available in the produce section. Gorgonzola is an Italian blue cheese and is a must. Any other blue cheese just wouldn’t have the right flavor.
If you really like garlic flavor, add another minced clove. I don’t recommend using powdered garlic in this recipe..
The recipe calls for cooking the breasts in olive oil; this is fine if you don’t heat above medium heat. Otherwise, use lard or coconut oil.
Fine Cooking recommends serving this dish over mini penne, but any pasta shape – or gnocchi will do. Starting the meal with Celery, Fennel & Black Olive salad with Parmigiano Dressing (2), from FineCooking.com). Or you could serve with my recipe for Beet, Fennel & Orange Salad (3).
Serves 2 – 3
Ingredients & Equipment:2 –
Half recipe amounts in parenthesis.
- 2 (1) boneless chicken breast halves, brined and prepped for cutlets
- 1 – 2 (½- 1) Tbsp unbleached flour
- Unrefined Sea Salt (only if you don’t brine the chicken) and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 – 3 (1 – 2) Tbsp coconut oil, divided doses (or olive oil if use medium instead of medium-high heat)
- 6 (3) oz crimini or small white mushrooms, sliced
- 2 (1) large cloves garlic, minced
- 1 (½) Tbsp chopped parsley
- ½ (¼) cup dry Marsala
- 6 (3) Tbsp sour cream
- 3-4 (1-2) Tbsp heavy cream
- Adjust thickness and amount of sauce:
- 2 Tbsp – ¼ cup pasta cooking water, as needed to thin the sauce, and/or
- ¼ – 1 cup heavy cream or sour cream to thicken and/or increase amount of sauce
- 1.5 (0.8) oz crumbled Gorgonzola; or in grams: 40 (20) g
- Equipment:
- 10” cast iron skillet
- plate
- foil or lid
Method:
- Prep: Brine chicken and prepare cutlets. Rinse & pat dry.
- Cut breasts crosswise at an angle into pieces about ¾″ thick. Dust with flour & season with pepper; season also with salt if you did not brine the meat.
- Slice mushrooms, mince garlic and chop parsley, setting them aside in separate bowls.
- Cook: Heat 2 (1) Tbsp oil/lard in skillet over medium-high neat. Add half of the chicken & cook 1 – 2 minutes per side, until lightly browned and just barely cooked through. Transfer to a plate & cover with foil or lid to keep warm. Repeat with remaining chicken.
- Add remaining 1 (½) Tbsp oil to the hot pan. Add mushrooms, season lightly with salt, and sauté, stirring, until slices are coated with oil. Lower heat to medium, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and well browned, 3 – 4 minutes.
- Add garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 30 seconds.
- Sauce: Deglaze with marsala, simmering until reduced slightly, about 2 minutes.
- Stir in creams and simmer until thickened slightly, 2 – 3 minutes.
- If too thick, add more heavy cream or some of the pasta cooking water.
- If too thin, add more sour cream.
- Add ⅔ of the gorgonzola and stir until melted, 1 – 2 minutes. Adjust seasoning.
- Add chicken and any accumulated juices, and turn to coat with the sauce.
- Serve immediately, sprinkling with remaining gorgonzola and parsley.
Serving suggestions:
- Serve over pasta, such as penne, bow-ties, or gnocchi. Or steamed wild rice would be nice, too.
- I like seared green beans, broccolini or asparagus (4) with this dish, and a green salad. Or my Beet, Fennel & Orange Salad (3).
Testing
5/10/19: I’ve made this before several times, but decided to record my test for today’s dinner. Made Half recipe (using one half-breast) as written, but ended up adding some sour cream (about 3 Tbsp) and more heavy cream (1-2 Tbsp) because I like a lot of sauce and need more fat on my keto plan. Didn’t have any gorgonzola so used regular blue cheese, and doubled the amount. Did not serve over pasta or other carb. Served with lightly braised asparagus, a steamed beet, and a few fresh radishes. Result: delicious. I love the sweetness of the Marsala with the flavor of the blue cheese!
1/27/21: Haven’t made this for a couple years, so made using 1 small chicken half-breast (for 8 half-inch slices). I added more sour and heavy cream (about 1 Tbsp each) to make more sauce (as in updated recipe from previous test). Did not serve with pasta since I’m doing keto. Result: very delicious; I used up all my marsala so need to get more, it’s so good in this!
5/10/21: Finally got more marsala wine so made this again, but using 1 large half-breast (for 12 half-inch slices) so I added about ½ Tbsp more marsala to deglaze the pan, more sour and heavy cream (about 1 Tbsp each), and an extra ounce of mushrooms. Result: Soooo good.
8/3/21: Used 1 half-breast for 8 half-inch slices, and 4 oz Crimini mushrooms (sliced). Mistakenly used ⅓ cup Marsala instead of ¼ cup; it was too much, so had to add some tapioca starch and an extra Tbsp sour cream to the sauce to thicken it. Otherwise, made as written; did not serve with pasta. Result: As before, Soooo good! Enough for 4 small servings (just the right size for my aging body).
