Thursday, February 12, 2009

Chicken with Garlic and Parsley

I have made this dish countless time. It comes from Jacques Pepin's "Fast Food My Way"
It is probably one of my kid's most favorite dinners. It is quick and very forgiving.
I usually increase the amount of chicken as this is a little bit short for four in my house...especially with two teen aged boys at the table. But it is easy to just add a bit more garlic and parsley and maybe a tad more butter...just eyeball it. You can not go wrong. Of course you could change the recipe and add other things. But we love it just the way it is.
In fact my kids lovingly call this "Jacques Chicken"

Chicken with Garlic and Parsley
Jacques Pepin
"Fast Food My Way"

"In France, the classic way of cooking frog's legs is to dredge them in flour, sauté them over high heat in oil and butter and finish them with garlic and parsley and some fresh lemon juice. I've replaced the frog's legs with cubes of chicken breast. Make sure that you dry the cubes well with paper towels before you season them, and don't dredge them in the flour until just before sautéing. Finely milled Wondra flour will give you the crispest coating on the chicken; substitute all-purpose if you must. If possible, prepare this dish in a 12-inch skillet (preferably nonstick), which is large enough to accommodate the chicken in one layer."

  • 3 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (each about 7 ounces), cut into 1- to 1 1/2-inch cubes
  • 2 tablespoons Wondra flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons good olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 lemon, quartered

Dry the chicken cubes with paper towels and toss them with the flour, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over high heat until very hot but not smoking, add the chicken cubes, and cook in one layer, turning occasionally, for about 3-1/2 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the garlic and parsley in a small bowl. Add the butter and the parsley mixture to the skillet and sauté for 1 minute longer, shaking the skillet occasionally to coat the chicken.

To serve, divide among four plates, add a wedge of lemon to each plate, and serve within 15 minutes.


7 comments:

  1. oh this is my kinda food, and super pic! i keep meaning to tell you i love your iris on the sidebar too~ or did i tell you? shh menopause, who knows anything anymore!

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  2. This looks like my kind of dinner. Your pictures are gorgeous - making my mouth water! ;)

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  3. Thank you sweet ladies
    Jain... I am an iris fanatic...I do not have that much space for them...but I love them...those Peonies, hydrangeas, and lilacs are my very favorites...I know full well about the menopause loss of memory...found myself staring into the fridge a few minutes ago and had no idea at all why I was there!
    Lori...this is a great one for you and the leftovers(if there ever are any!) Re-heat really well...like for a lunch the next day. I do not even want to admit how much chicken I made last night...these boys are eating me out of house and home!
    L*

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  4. I'm always looking for this kind of recipe, one that I can cut back to one or two servings. Butter, garlic and a little squirt of lemon. Yum.

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  5. This looks really good, I must try it!! I have been meaning to stop at the bookstore to look a Pepin's book but haven't yet. What do you think of it? I went through this phase of "butter is evil" and I was very restrictive with what I was eating...which of course caused me to fail. Now, I'm at the point of understanding that if it's made at home with great, fresh ingredients then I'm way ahead of drive-thru meals. I've even arrived at the point of finding drive-thru & chain restaurants totally unappealing. I find that amazing.

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  6. Yes I have his book...I love it...simple wonderful food...all great recipes...this is from the first Fast Food My Way...there is a new one out as well....

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  7. perfect! i was on the hunt for a chicken recipe for tonight thanks!!

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