Good Food Hunting

Chicken with Browned-Butter Balsamic Sauce
Garlicked Potatoes

After my original plans for fish and rice were abruptly canceled by a lack of appropriate fish at Whole Foods, I figured I had to make something with the chicken in our fridge. And I knew I had a bunch of Yukon Gold- like potatoes, from my mom by way of Costco (or should that be from Costco, by way of my mom?) along with a gallon bag of green beans, gifted by the neighbors. I was going to go with a basic chicken in bread crumbs with boiled potatoes and quick-sautéed green beans. Then I watched Rachel Ray while I awaited the proper time to start so that dinner would be ready about the time Chris got home from Southfield. And RR was making fish, dredged in seasoned flour then pan-fried, and a browned-butter sauce to top the fish. I only saw the last 10 minutes so I had to get on-line to find the actual recipe and FYI, the mobile version of Food TV’s website is a pain in the arse. I gave up and went to the laptop*.

What I Used

3 tablespoons butter

¼ cup balsamic vinegar (get the good stuff)

One shallot, diced small

1 cup reduced sodium broth (chicken or vegetable)

optional: 1 tablespoon butter combined with 1 tablespoon flour

½ cup flour

Seasonings for flour (I used salt, pepper, cayenne pepper and dried basil)

Olive oil

3-4 large Yukon Gold potatoes

2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced thinly

Salt & Pepper

1 package chicken, pre-cut in ‘tender strips’ per the packaging

What I did:

Potatoes:

Heat oven to 375.

Slice potatoes in to evenly sized shapes- I suggest half-moons. Toss with olive oil and salt and pepper.

Spread potatoes out in one layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle sliced garlic cloves over potatoes.

Bake in oven about 35-45 minutes, turning potatoes periodically, until potatoes become golden brown and the whole house smells like roasted garlic.

Chicken:

Heat large sauté pan over medium-high heat with 1 tablespoon olive oil.

Dredge chicken strips in flour mixture and sauté, turning once, until cooked through. I had to do two batches to avoid overcrowding. Add more oil if necessary. Remove chicken from pan and cover to keep warm.
In pan, reduce heat to medium and add 3 tablespoons of butter. “Toast” the butter until the foam begins to turn a light brown color and the butter smells nutty. Do not burn!

Add shallots, stirring to coat. Add balsalmic vinegar to pan and increase heat to medium-high, scpraing the bottom of the pan to get up any sticky bits. Once the initial bubbling subsides, add broth and continue to cook at low boil until sauce is reduced. Optionally, whisk in 1 tablespoon butter combined with 1 tablespoon flour to thicken.

Serve potatoes and chicken with browned butter-balsamic sauce drizzled over top. Try not to eat all the best most garlicky, golden-brown potatoes yourself. Unless you are alone. In fact, this might be a good dish to make when you are all by yourself so there is no pressure to share.

*This experience is pushing me further towards really wanting to purchase a tablet type computer so I can use the internet for recipes in the kitchen without having to make counter space for my 17inch widescreen laptop or trying to scroll through a recipe on a 2 inch phone screen. Something like an iPad but maybe a wee bit less pricey.

I’m curious to try this butter-balsamic sauce on some other foods like say, mashed potatoes or roasted root veggies or just lick it up right from the pan. Be generous with the balsamic- a lot will “burn off” leaving behind the sweet sweet nectar that balances perfectly with the nutty, deep earthy butter.