Diana Henry’s Poulet Au Vin Blanc (Chicken with White Wine)
She has an entire cookbook devoted to chicken (A Bird in the Hand), so expect Poulet Au Vin Blanc perfection in this classic from Diana Henry.
Serves: 4 People Cooking time: 40 minutes
Ingredients
- 8 chicken thighs, or a mixture of chicken joints, skin on
- 15g unsalted butter
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 4 shallots, peeled and sliced lengthways
- 2 cloves garlic, grated to a purée
- 100ml dry white vermouth
- 200ml dry white wine
- 6cm celery stalk
- About 6 parsley stalks and 1 tbsp chopped parsley
- A few long chives plus ½ tbsp chopped chives
- 2 sprigs tarragon plus the chopped leaves of 6 sprigs
- 225g slim carrots or baby carrots, trimmed at the top (if the tops are neat you can leave them, but clean well)
- 100g green beans, topped but not tailed
- 150g peas, podded weight
- 1 egg yolk
- 100ml double cream
Instructions
Step 1. Heat the butter and oil in a large pan. In batches, brown the joints all over, getting a good colour on them. Be careful not to let the fat burn because you’re using unsalted butter and a little oil this should be possible. Remove the joints to a dish as they’re ready.
Step 2. Add the shallots to the pan and cook until they’re soft but not coloured. Put the garlic in the pan and cook for another 2 minutes. Add the vermouth and wine and cook until the liquid is reduced by half.
Step 3. Put the celery together with the parsley stalks, the long chives and the sprigs of tarragon and tie them with kitchen string. Put this in the pan with the carrots. Return the chicken to the pan, including any juices that have run out of it, and season. Bring to a gentle simmer, cover the pan and cook for 35 minutes. Check every so often – if the liquid is getting too low add some just-boiled water.
Step 4. Check to see whether the chicken is cooked. If it is lift it out of the pan with a slotted spoon and cover to keep it warm. Remove the herb bundle.
Step 5. Add the beans to the pan and cook for about 3 minutes, then ladle about 75ml of the chicken cooking liquor into a cup. Mix in the egg yolk and a couple of tablespoons of the cream. Add this to the pan along with the peas and the rest of the cream, leave the lid off and, without letting it boil, simmer until it thickens. By the time this happens, the peas and beans will be cooked. The sauce should be the thickness of single cream. If it gets too thick, add water.
Step 6. Toss in the chopped herbs, check the seasoning and put the chicken back in the pan. Heat through, spooning the warm sauce up over the chicken.
