CHICKEN FRICASSEE

After a less than successful attempt to roast a chicken last night (chicken was underdone, roast veggies were soaked in drippings), I tried improvising some chicken fricassee out of some of the leftovers this evening, and the result was one of my best improvisations to date. Flavorful, filling, creamy, all things that usually won’t touch my cooking with a ten foot ladle. Went a little something like this:

1-2 cups cooked chicken
4-5 white mushrooms
1/2 a med-sized onion, chopped (maybe 1/4 cup)
1 large clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp butter
1tbsp flour
3/4 milk
1 tbsp chopped rosemary
1 tbsp chopped sage

Melt a tbsp of the butter in a frying pan / skillet, and saute the onion and garlic (w/ a bit ‘o’ salt and the rosemary) over low-med heat until tender/translucent. Turn up the heat and add the mushrooms. Toss them around so they get some grrrrease and fry to they look brownish. I found that raising the heat helped vaporize the water in the mushrooms, which otherwise threatens to steam or braise them instead of saute them, something that often happens to me with soggy, unbrowned results. Once they’re done, toss in the chicken and take off the hear.

In a med saucepan, melt the other tbsp of butter and add the flour. Stir them together. They should have the consistency of a loose paste, sort of like ketchup, but not doughy or chunky. They tell me this is called a roux. Leave it in a pan a bit until it looks tan. It’s ok if there are a few bubbles but don’t let it boil and burn. Add the milk and stir until you get a smooth sauce (you can dilute with more milk or try to thicken with a milk/flour mix). Season with the sage and salt and pepper to taste. Throw in the shrooms and chicken, and serve it up with rice, spuds, and/or crusty bread.