Today’s recipe is for one of my husband’s favorite dishes – Chicken Marsala. There are lots of ways to make this Italian classic, but this is my preference!
Don’t be daunted by the list of ingredients. Most of them are pantry items or stuff you will have on hand anyway.
For 3 servings, you will need:
- 1.5 lb boneless chicken breasts
- 1 carton mushrooms (pre-sliced if you are lazy like me)
- 1c frozen peas
- 1 garlic clove
- 1/2c flour (for dredging the chicken)
- 1/4c chopped onions or shallots
- 3/4c chicken broth
- 1/2c Marsala wine (I used Marsala cooking wine, although it’s better to use actual Marsala wine if you have it on hand. The cooking wine adds salt and other bad stuff, so omit some of the salt later if you use cooking wine.)
- 4 tbs butter
- 3 tbs Half & Half (or whatever type of milk or cream you have on hand)
- 2c cooked Penne pasta (Fettucine is good here too, or rotini)
- Salt & pepper
- chopped parsley for garnish
Start by coating a large skillet with nonstick spray. Heat over med-high while you chop the onions and garlic.
Saute the onions, garlic, and mushrooms for 3-4 minutes. Stir frequently to avoid burning the garlic.
A couple more minutes to cook the mushrooms down…
Just right. Remove the mushrooms, garlic, and shallots to a plate. No need to cover with foil- they’re going back in later.
This is a good time to start heating your pasta water. Don’t forget, like I have done a few times. You can do eet!
Now pound the chicken breasts to approx 1/4″ thickness with a mallet. Wrap the chicken in plastic wrap, or place in a plastic bag beforehand. Hopefully you have a better mallet than this. Yes, this is the mallet we got in Dr. Sikula’s ethics class for any of you Marshall MBAers out there… lol.
Sprinkle each side of the chicken with salt and pepper; dredge in flour.
Melt the butter in the skillet. You can probably get by with less than 4 tbs if you use a nonstick skillet, but I’m used to stainless steel.
Place the chicken in and cook (still med-high) for 3-4 mins on each side, or until it is cooked through.
Tip: Frying chicken in butter creates a crispier, more golden crust than you get from frying in oil alone.
Like this! Mmmmm.
Once the chicken is cooked, remove it to a plate and cover with foil.
Return the mushroom mixture to the pan. Add the chicken broth and Marsala wine.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cook for 4-5 mins or until the liquid is reduced by about half.
Stir in the peas…
and the Half & Half. Add 1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper and salt. Cook for 1 min.
Add the chicken back to the pan. I try to spoon sauce over the chicken to give it a more intense flavor. Cook for a minute or two, to let the chicken absorb more of the liquids and to make sure the peas are heated through.
Serve on a bed of pasta, garnish with parsley, and enjoy! 🙂
lolfoodie 