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From Café Boulud Cookbook by Daniel Boulud (Simon
& Schuster, Scribner, 1998)
Adapted by StarChefs
Yield: 4 Servings
Chicken Grand-mère, a savory fricassée, is a classic
in French cuisine in general, but it was a classic in my family
too. It was a specialty and a favorite of my Grandmother Francine,
the grandmother who cooked at the original Café Boulud outside
Lyon, and at no time was it better than at mushroom harvest time.
Mushrooms are a typical Chicken Grand-mère ingredient, but
there was nothing typical about the dish when my grandmother would
add rose des prés, pink field mushrooms, newly dug potatoes
and new garlic. Fortunately, this dish always seems to be both satisfying
and soothing whether you're making it plain, with cultivated cremini
or oyster mushrooms and creamer potatoes, or fancy, dressing it
up with exotic mushrooms and any of the small fingerling or banana
potatoes that many greenmarkets now offer.
Ingredients:
- One 3-pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces
- 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- 12 cipollini onions, peeled and trimmed
- 4 shallots, peeled and trimmed
- 2 heads garlic, cloves separated but not peeled
- 3 sprigs thyme
- 4 small Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2-inch
chunks
- 2 small celery roots, peeled and cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks
- 2 ounces slab bacon, cut into short, thin strips
- 12 small cremini or oyster mushrooms, trimmed and cleaned
- 2 cups unsalted chicken stock or store-bought low-sodium chicken
broth
- Salt and freshly ground white pepper
Method:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375°F.
Working over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil in a large ovenproof
sauté pan or skillet – choose one with high sides and
a cover. Season the chicken pieces all over with salt and pepper,
slip them into the pan, and cook until they are well browned on
all sides, about 10 to 15 minutes. Take your time – you want
a nice, deep color and you also want to partially cook the chicken
at this point. When the chicken is deeply golden, transfer it to
a platter and keep it in a warm place while you work on the vegetables.
Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the cooking fat from the pan.
Lower the heat to medium, add the butter, onions, shallots, garlic
and thyme, and cook and stir just until the vegetables start to
take on a little color, about 3 minutes. Add the potatoes, celery
root and bacon and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, just to start rendering
the bacon fat. Cover the pan and cook for another 10 minutes, stirring
every 2 minutes.
Add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and return the chicken
to the pan. Add the chicken stock, bring to a boil, and slide the
pan into the oven. Bake, uncovered, for 20 to 25 minutes, or until
the chicken is cooked through. Spoon everything onto a warm serving
platter or into an attractive casserole.
To serve:
Bring the chicken to the table, with plenty of pieces of crusty
baguette to sop up the sauce and spread with the soft, sweet, caramel-like
garlic that is easily squeezed out of its skin.
Wine Pairing
A rustic Bandol Rouge
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