Chicken with Apple Juice and Wine Sauce
Can I just say that I love wine. I really do. The smooth, bitter taste, the slight burn on your tongue on the first sip, the mingling of grapes and alcohol conspiring a potent aroma. I love wine from France, from Italy, from Argentina.. Dark, bold red wine on chilly Autumn and Winter nights; light, white wine in the spring and summer. Best of all, it tastes great not only with food but in food as well. Some of the most famous dishes ever concocted by man are bathed in the stuff. This is good news for me, because I recently gave up that “stuff” - that being wine (and all other alcohol). At least for now, while I reassess my love for wine because it may have crossed from an innocent crush to full on infatuation. Alas, I still enjoy it as a base for the sauces in my food. This brings me to this dish - chicken with apple juice and wine sauce. Is this dish an ode to wine, you ask? It just might be. It’s sweet, it’s delicious, it’s bold. It has onions and mushrooms, and just checkout that color. Beautiful.
Chicken with wine and apple juice sauce, mushrooms, and onions (serves 2 - 4)
Ingredients:
For the chicken:
2 - 2.5 pounds chicken thighs, skin on
3 tablespoons flour (or more to lightly coat the chicken)
Kosher Salt
Cracked Pepper
1 tablespoon oil
2 tablespoon unsalted butter, divided
3 yellow onions
1 large shallot (or two small shallots)
1 cup good quality apple juice (100% apple juice, no added sugar)
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 bunch of fresh thyme
1 sprig of fresh sage
1 large apple, peeled and cut into chunks
1 cup red wine (anything you would drink, I prefer using a decent quality pinot noir)
2 Tablespoons parsley, coarsely chopped (optional)
For the mushrooms:
1 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced (something like Baby Bella mushrooms are fine)
2 tablespoons butter
Kosher Salt
Cracked Pepper
For the sauce thickener:
1 tablespoon butter, softened
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Instructions:
If you’re able to, let the chicken rest for 45 minutes to 1 hour to it bring closer to room temperature. This will ensure the juiciest chicken possible. If not, straight from the fridge will of course be just fine.
1. Preheat oven to 400° F. Season the chicken with a couple grinds of salt and pepper. Sprinkle the flour to cover all sides, shake off any excess. Heat 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven on medium-high heat. When the butter foam has subsided, add the chicken thighs skin side down. Sear until nicely golden browned on the skin side, and remove to a plate. You may have to work in batches depending on the size of your skillet or Dutch Oven (don’t overcrowd the pan, that will cause your chicken to steam instead of sear).
2. Remove any burnt butter/oil, leaving the browned bits behind and turn stove down to medium. Return to heat and add the remaining tablespoon of butter and the onions and shallots, scraping up any of the leftover chicken bits. Cook until soft and saucy, 8 minutes. Add a 1/2 cup of the apple juice and the apple cider vinegar, cook until all the liquid has evaporated. Add the bunch of thyme, the sprig of sage, and the garlic, and apple chunks. Return the chicken to the pan, skin side up, along with any juices that have accumulated. Add the remaining juice and the red wine. Bring back to the simmer then immediately place uncovered in the oven and cook for 30 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, make the mushrooms. Slice the mushrooms including the stems if you’d like. Heat the butter on the stove in a skillet and add the sliced mushrooms once the butter foam has subsided. Cook for around 5 - 7 minutes. Shake the pan to toss the mushrooms around as they cook, or use a spatula to stir them about. Once they have released their fat back into the pan and are soft and dark brown, lightly salt and pepper the mushrooms. Set aside.
4.To give the sauce an extra thickening, prepare a “roux” made from butter and cornstarch. Take one tablespoons of softened butter and one tablespoon of cornstarch and mix in a bowl with a fork until combined. Set aside.
5. When the chicken has finished, remove from the oven and place the pan back on the stove. Remove the chicken to either a serving platter or a plate. Discard the thyme stems and the spring of sage. Bring the sauce to the simmer and add the roux, stirring until the roux is incorporated and the sauce thickens. Stir in the mushrooms and any of its juices. Either return the chicken to the pan and serve it from there, or pour the sauce over the chicken and serve on a platter. Sprinkle the parsley on top.
6. Serve with roasted or mashed potatoes.