Best Tarragon Lemon Pan Sauce Cooks Illustrated Recipes

WEEKNIGHT ROAST CHICKEN WITH TARRAGON-LEMON PAN SAUCE RECIPE - (3.7/5)

Steps:

• For the chicken: 1. Adjust oven rack to middle position, place 12-inch ovensafe skillet on rack, and heat oven to 450 degrees. Combine salt and pepper in bowl. Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Rub entire surface with oil. Sprinkle evenly all over with salt mixture and rub in mixture with hands to coat evenly. Tie legs together with twine and tuck wing tips behind back. 2. Transfer chicken, breast side up, to preheated skillet in oven. Roast chicken until breasts register 120 degrees and thighs register 135 degrees, 25 to 35 minutes. Turn off oven and leave chicken in oven until breasts register 160 degrees and thighs register 175 degrees, 25 to 35 minutes. 3. Transfer chicken to carving board and let rest, uncovered, for 20 minutes. While chicken rests, prepare pan sauce, if using. Carve chicken and serve. For the pan sauce: While chicken rests, remove all but 1 tablespoon of fat from now-empty skillet (handle will be very hot) using large spoon, leaving any fond and jus in skillet. Place skillet over medium-high heat, add shallot, and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. Stir in broth and mustard, scraping skillet bottom with wooden spoon to loosen fond. Simmer until reduced to ¾ cup, about 3 minutes. Off heat, whisk in butter, tarragon, and lemon juice. Season with pepper to taste; cover and keep warm. Serve with chicken.

TARRAGON PAN SAUCE

Steps:

• To skillet add minced shallot and cook over moderate heat, stirring, for 1-2 minutes, or until softened. Add vinegar, wine and tarragon. Deglaze pan, scraping up brown bits, until reduced by half. Add chicken stock (have heated so that it comes to the boil quickly). Bring to a boil. Strain sauce into a small saucepan and bring back to a boil.

TARRAGON CHICKEN WITH LEMON

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Heat a medium-large skillet over high heat. Add the olive oil. Season the chicken all over with salt and pepper, and lay the pieces in the pan rounded-side down first (the side that had the skin). Cook the chicken, turning only once, until golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes. Transfer chicken to an oven-proof dish, reserving the skillet. Place the chicken to the oven and bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken registers 170 to 75 degrees F, about 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, pour the vermouth into the reserved skillet, scraping up any browned bits that cling to the pan with a wooden spoon, and cook over medium heat until the liquid reduces by about half. Add the chicken broth and continue to cook until slightly thickened.
• In a small bowl whisk a teaspoon or so of cold water with the cornstarch, then whisk the mixture into the broth and bring to a full boil. Remove from heat and add the zest, lemon juice, and tarragon. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
• Remove the chicken from the oven. Pour any pan drippings from the chicken into the sauce and stir to combine. Divide the chicken pieces between 4 plates. Pour the sauce over the chicken and serve.

LEMON TARRAGON CHICKEN WITH PAN SAUCE

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 425°F Rinse the chicken and pat it dry with paper towels. Cut away any excess fat and tuck the wings behind each breast.
• In a small bowl, mash the soft butter, lemon zest, 1 Tbs. of the lemon juice, the mustard, and the tarragon until well blended and smooth. Stir in 1 teaspoons of the salt and pepper to taste.
• Loosen the skin from each chicken piece to create a pocket. Be careful not to tear the skin or peel it away completely. Spread an equal amount of the flavored butter under the skin of each piece. Use your fingers to massage the butter around so that it spreads out as evenly as possible under the skin. Pull the skin back in place over the butter.
• Arrange the chicken in a shallow baking pan that can safely go on the stovetop. (An enamel-coated cast-iron pan such as a Le Creuset or a stainless-steel pan would work well.) Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 teaspoons salt and more pepper. Bake, basting at first with the remaining lemon juice and then the pan juices, until the chicken is browned and cooked through, 55 to 60 minute.
• Remove the chicken from the pan and loosely cover it with foil. Pour off the pan juices into a small measuring cup and let them settle until they separate. Spoon off the fat and discard it. Meanwhile, set the baking pan over medium-high heat and add the chicken stock and 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil, scraping the bottom and sides of the pan to loosen the browned bits. Continue boiling until the sauce is reduced by half. Add the reserved pan juices, taste, and adjust the seasoning. Spoon a little sauce over each piece of chicken before serving.

LEMON-TARRAGON CREAM SAUCE

Steps:

• In a saucepan over medium heat, saute garlic in butter until the garlic begins to brown.
• Add the Riesling.
• Mix, add the cream, and, lowering the heat, reduce the sauce for 10 minutes.
• Add the lemon and tarragon and cook for 5 minutes more.
• Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve over fettucine.