Chef’s Recipe: Chicken with Sherry and Tarragon

Chicken with Sherry and Tarragon recipe bought to you by our burgundy barge chefs. You may even want to try it with Poulet de Bresse. The town of Bresse in Burgundy claims to produce some of the world’s best poultry, free-range birds that are fed on creamy milk and wheat. In fact, Poulet de Bresse has the renowned AOC (Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée) status and the chefs on our Burgundy barges always try to source this distinguished bird when creating their imaginative chicken dishes.

Here is a recipe that uses Poulet de Bresse to great effect, accompanied by a delicious sauce.

Ingredients – Chicken with Sherry and Tarragon

1 free-range Bresse chicken, cut into 4 pieces (2 breasts, 2 legs)
2/3 cups sherry vinegar
1-3/4 cup medium dry sherry
4 cloves garlic
2 shallots
2 tblsp freshly-chopped tarragon
A little oil for cooking
2 heaping tblsp crème fraîche
Salt and ground black pepper

Method – Chicken with Sherry and Tarragon

Heat the oil in the frying pan. Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper, then fry the chicken on both sides until golden brown. Remove chicken from the pan and put to one side.
In the oil, fry the shallots until translucent and golden brown. Add the garlic cloves and cook until slightly coloured.
Reduce heat and return the chicken to the pan.
Scatter the freshly-chopped tarragon over the chicken, then pour over the vinegar and the sherry. Simmer for about 10 minutes, then turn the heat to very low and continue cooking for a further 30 minutes, turning the chicken hallway through.
When cooking is completed, remove chicken from the pan along with the shallots and garlic.
Add the crème fraiche and seasonings to the liquid in the pan, mix, then pour the sauce over the chicken.

To Serve

Decorate the chicken with fresh tarragon and serve with seasonable green vegetables such as French beans.

Serves 4