Chicken Marsala
A Variety of Mushrooms
Marsala gets its name from the wine, but we would be fooling ourselves if mushrooms didn’t get half the credit. That is why it is important to pick mushrooms you will enjoy serving.
If it is your first showdown with mushrooms - start simple with cremini or baby bella mushrooms. They’re easy to use, not too powerful and can give you an idea of how to work with mushrooms.
For a more advanced sauce, and overall texture on serving, a mix of porcini or shittake mushrooms does great here. In reality, most mushrooms will work, with the exception of portobello. They are just too big to work with for a pan sauce.
Don’t Skimp on the Wine
If you’re going to make a Marsala wine, go get yourself a Marsala wine. This means going beyond the grocery store bottles of cooking wine. Any large liquor store should have a Marsala, often grouped in the Port section, for anywhere from $5-$15.
Cooking with an actual wine makes an immense difference.
Taking Stock
This recipe relies on a homemade chicken stock. A homemade stock is not only going to allow you better control of flavor, but also tends to provide a bit more natural fat from the chicken bone used to create it.
This is important because, while this sauce adds butter, this sauce does not add heavy cream. There is plenty of fat coming from the butter, oil, and stock that we can live without the cream.
No time to make a homemade stock? Work with the recipe as listed, using a store bought stock, and at the end you can adjust lightly with cream or butter to get a silkier consistency.
The Chicken
Chicken breast is the way to go here. Sliced thin, as a cutlet, take a tenderizer and flatten the cutlet for a uniform cooking time.
The chicken is only going to brown at first, and then finish warming through in the pan sauce, so it is important to use a thin piece for each serving. In the end we want a browned, but not dry, piece of cutlet for our Chicken Marsala.
Ready To Get Started?
This one comes together rather quickly, so be sure to have everything prepped before starting.
What you’ll need
Serves 4
4 thin sliced chicken breasts, or cutlets
Flour to dredge chicken in
8-12 ounces of porcini or shittake mushrooms. A variety if able
1 shallot, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 tablespoons of butter
1/4 cup of olive oil
1 cup marsala wine
1 cup chicken stock
Seasonings: Salt, Black Pepper to taste
Freshly chopped parsley, to garnish
Lets Do This
Hydrate any dried mushrooms in a bowl of chicken stock for 30 minutes before drying. Afterwards, chop mushrooms into pieces, leaving a handful whole for a texture variety
Place chicken in a ziplock or in cling wrap and tenderize the chicken cutlets if necessary to a flat, uniformed size. Dredge in flour, shaking off any excess
Add 2 tablespoons of butter and 1/2 of olive oil to a pan over medium heat. When hot, add chicken pieces 1-2 at a time, lightly browning for 2-3 minutes per side. Set aside
Add 1 tablespoon of butter to the pan and additional oil if needed. Add mushrooms, stirring and allow them to cook. After 2-3 minutes season with salt and pepper
Add the shallot and cook until slightly colored. Lower heat to low, and add garlic
When garlic is fragrant and begins to color a light yellow, add the stock and marsala wine and bring to a simmer. Allow to simmer on low heat for 10-15 minutes or until sauce is thickened. Add an additional tablespoon of butter if needed, or heavy cream to bring the sauce to a silky consistency. Adjust seasoning to taste
When sauce has thickened, return chicken to pan and warm through, flipping the chicken once if needed
Remove chicken and place in a serving tray. Pour sauce over the chicken, leaving some of the whole mushrooms on top
Top with the chopped parsley and serve immediately
The chicken stock makes all the difference. Luckily we have got you covered.
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