French Chicken Fricassee with Root Vegetables
My quick French chicken fricassee is comfort food for a weeknight dinner. Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are braised along with root vegetables in white wine and then finished with a bit of cream and egg yolks to make a smooth and silky sauce.
Servings 4 servings
Calories 900kcal
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil, divided
- kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
- 1 1/2 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs, 4-6 thighs
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 tbsp brandy
- 1/2 cup white wine
- 3 cups chicken stock, low or no sodium
- 4 medium carrots, cut into spears
- 4 medium parsnips, cut into spears
- 2-3 sprigs thyme
- 2-3 sprigs parsley
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 tbsp butter
- 12 oz egg noodles
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of well salted water to a boil.
- In a large, deep skillet heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, sprinkle the chicken thighs with salt and pepper and saute them for 2-3 minutes per side, or until lightly browned. Remove the chicken from the pan.
- Add the second tablespoon of olive oil to pan and begin cooking the onions. Add a sprinkle of salt and saute them until they are soft, about 5-7 minutes.
- Deglaze the pan with brandy, wait 10 seconds, then add the wine bring to a boil. Boil about 30 seconds and pour in the chicken stock. Add the carrots and parsnips. Tie the thyme, bay leaf, and parsley together with some kitchen string and add it to the skillet (or make a bag from string and cheesecloth). Return the chicken to skillet. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat until you have low simmer. Simmer, partially covered for 20 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and the vegetables are soft.
- Once the fricassee is almost done, add the egg noodles and cook according to package directions. Drain the noodles, keeping 1 cup of the water. Add the noddles back to the pot with the water.
- Remove the chicken and vegetables to a bowl. Remove and discard the herbs. Bring the sauce to a boil and let boil for 5 minutes to reduce it a little. Mix together the cream and egg yolks in a bowl. Take the skillet off the heat. Then begin adding a little of the sauce to the egg yolk mixture while whisking continuously. Continue until you have added about 1 cup of the sauce to the eggs. Then pour the eggs into the skillet while whisking again. While still whisking, bring the sauce back to a very gentle simmer and then take the skillet off the heat.
- Whisk the butter into the sauce and then add back the chicken and vegetables. At this point you can either combine the noodles and fricassee into one pot and warm them together or pour some of the sauce over the noodles but keep the two parts the dish separate. Garnish with fresh parsley.
Notes
- Thickening: When thickening with egg yolks it is very important to both temper the eggs (add some of the hot liquid to the eggs before mixing them in) and to keep the heat low after you add them. If the temperature gets much above 160F for more than a few moments you will have a curdled sauce.
- Substitutions: Other root vegetables, like potatoes, winter squash, and turnips are also really nice in this recipe.
Nutrition
Calories: 900kcal