Fondue de Poulet a la Creme

As you may or may not know I am somewhat of a foodie :) 

The other day I invested in the ultimate cookbook: Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle, and Simone Beck. I also am somewhat of a romantic and love the movie Julie and Julia which is what inspired my purchasing the cookbook! I figured I could master at least a couple French recipes with Julia's help. Today I ventured to try Fondue de Puolet a la Creme, which is the fancy French way of saying Chicken Simmered with Cream and Onions. 

With this recipe I may have shaved off a few days of my life due to the rich dairy intake but that is just a risk I am willing to take for the sake of my tastebuds. Unfortunately the cookbook is a little difficult to follow but I gave myself time by starting at 5:00....and ended at 7:00, luckily I had time on my hands today. I made a few changes to the recipe, and where it called for 3 cups of whipping cream, I used 1 cup of whipping cream and 2 cups of 1% milk. The dish was still very rich but I figured the use of all that cream would have taken off more days than I was willing to give. So for two wonderful hours the aroma of the chicken filled the house and now I am feeling a little sad that the meal has already come and gone! The dish was mouth-watering and the chicken was so tender I didn't even need to set the table with knives. Even though it was the longest I have ever taken with a recipe it was worth the wait!

This picture doesn't quite do it justice...kind of looks bland, but it was delicious do not fear!

I paired the chicken with risotto and green peas, but it could also be paired with rice of your choice and another green vegetable.

Fondue de Poulet a la Creme:

Serves 4-6 people

What you'll need:

2 and 1/2 to 3 lbs of chicken breast

3 Tb butter 1 and 1/2 cups thinly sliced yellow onions

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp white pepper

1/4 tsp curry powder

1/3 cup cognac, Calvados, Madeira, or port; or 3/4 cup dry white wine, or 1/2 cup dry white vermouth

        (I used the dry white wine option)

3 cups whipping cream + a splash for later in the recipe, brought to a boil in a saucepan

        (again I used 1 cup cream, 2 cups 1% milk)

Lemon Juice

Parsley (for decoration)

What to do:

1. Dry the chicken thoroughly. Turn it in hot butter for 4 to 5 minutes, until the meat has stiffened slightly but has not browned. Remove it to a side dish.

2. Stir the onions into the butter in the pan. Cover and cook very slowly for 5 minutes, or until the onions are fairly tender but not browned. 

3. Return the chicken to the pan, cover and cook slowly for 10 minutes until it swells slightly and stiffens, but does not brown. Turn it once during this period. 

4. Season the chicken with salt, pepper, and curry powder. Pour in the spirits or wine, raise heat, and boil rapidly until the liquid has almost entirely evaporated. 

5. Pour on the hot cream, bring to the simmer, baste the chicken, and cover the pan. Maintain the barest simmer for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the chicken is tender and its juices run a clear yellow when the meat is pricked with a fork. The creak may look slightly curdled, but will be smoothed out later.

6. Remove the chicken to a hot platter, cover, and keep warm for 5 minutes while finishing the sauce. 

7. Skim fat off the sauce, the boil it rapidly, stirring, until it reduces enough to coat the spoon lightly. Correct, seasoning, adding lemon juice to taste. Off heat, beat in additional cream by spoonfuls to smooth out the sauce. 

8. Pour the sauce of the chicken, decorate with parsley, and serve.

Bon Appetit!