Finally, another Food Country Post. Or any post. We apologize for the lack of updates, we know they have been sporadic. Hopefully the next few weeks will see us posting at a regular schedule again. This recipe takes a little bit of prep work (mostly hours of marinating), but it is pretty fantastic. A real good blend of spices, and just a touch of heat; just enough to keep you coming back for more, without it attacking your senses.
Interested? Then read on!
This is an easy recipe that has an elegance to it, mostly because of the caper sauce. This recipe is taken from About.com. So, props About.com.
You will need the following:
The chicken:
4 chicken breasts
Flour
Kosher Salt
Pepper
2 tablespoons of butter
1 tablespoon of oil
The sauce:
6 tablespoons (a little bit more than 1/3 a cup) chicken stock or broth
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons capers (drained)
1 tablespoon of butter
To start, dredge the chicken in flour, kosher salt, and pepper (be generous in your salt and pepper). Heat up two tablespoons of butter and one tablespoon of oil in a frying pan on medium heat. Once hot, crank it up to medium high and put in the largest piece of chicken, wait a minute or so, then pop the other three in. Let them sit for four minutes on one side without moving them.
While that is frying, start your chicken broth if making it from bullion (or even better, from Better than Bullion). I also took the time to pour my lemon juice into a small cup, and to get my capers out of my jar and make sure they were drained (I plopped those into the cup too). Once the broth is done, set it aside; you can pour the juice and capers in once it cools down (you do not want them to cook).
When the four minutes are up, flip the chicken over and cook for another 3-4 minutes. If the chicken is not done at this time (I had large pieces that I didn’t flatten down, so it took a while), turn the heat down to medium-low as to not burn the crust.
Once the chicken is done cooking, put it on a plate and wrap the plate with aluminum foil to keep it warm. Then pour the broth/lemon/caper mixture into the pan to deglaze. Make sure to scrape up all that delicious chicken goodness stuck to the pan. Boil until reduced by half, then mix in the butter until the sauce is shiny. Pour the sauce over the chicken immediately and serve. We found it went well with peas, although I am thinking a light pilaf might also be good.
The result is a lemony sauce that is not tart and is not too salty. The capers give the sauce a very light Dijon mustard taste to it, which goes extremely well with the chicken. Enjoy a nice glass of wine or a cold beer.
Happy Eating!
–Cory