Prudhomme's Lemon Dill Chicken
Submitted by chrisk
Lemon dill chicken in the Paul Prudhomme style: boneless chicken breasts seasoned with dill, basil and pepper, then pan-seared and simmered in a tangy apple juice and lemon pan sauce. Low-fat skillet dinner.
YIELD
4 servingsPREP
15 minCOOK
45 minREADY
60 minA Paul Prudhomme low-fat number that proves you do not need cream or butter to build a serious pan sauce. The seasoning rub leans on dill, sweet basil, and a mix of black and white pepper, and the sauce is built entirely from chicken stock, apple juice and fresh lemon juice.
This is a layered-deglazing recipe. Each splash of liquid (stock, then lemon juice, then apple juice, then more of all three) gets cooked down to almost nothing before the next one goes in. That’s where the depth comes from. By the time you whisk in the cornstarch slurry, the pan is glazed with concentrated chicken-onion-citrus flavor that no quick simmer could ever produce.
Use a heavy nonstick skillet preheated until it’s properly hot. The browning on those small breasts only gets a minute per side, so the pan has to do the work.
Pro Tips
- Brown the chicken breasts in batches. Crowding the pan steams them and you lose the fond that makes the sauce.
- Scrape the bottom of the skillet between each addition. Those caramelized bits are the entire backbone of the sauce.
- Dissolve the cornstarch in cold apple juice before adding. Dropping dry cornstarch into hot liquid guarantees lumps.
- Skip the artificial sweetener unless you really want it. The apple juice already provides natural sweetness that balances the lemon.
Variations
- Swap dill for tarragon for a more French-bistro feel.
- Use white wine in place of half the apple juice for a drier, more savory sauce.
- Finish with a tablespoon of cold butter whisked in off the heat for a richer (no longer low-fat) version.
Ingredients
Directions
TO SEASON CHICKEN: Combine seasoning mix ingredients in small bowl.
Sprinkle all surfaces of chicken evenly with 2 teaspoons seasoning mix.
Rub it in well.
Dissolve cornstarch in ¼ cup apple juice. Set aside.
Preheat heavy 10-inch skillet, preferably non-stick, over high heat to 350℉ (180℃) for about 4 minutes.
Place 4 chicken breasts in skillet.
Lower heat to medium.
Brown for at least 1 minute per side. Remove chicken. Brown 4 more. Set all the chicken aside. Return heat to high. Stir in ½ cup stock, scraping bottom of skillet to clear it of all browned bits. Add onions and remaining seasoning mix. Stir. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until all liquid evaporates. Stir in ¼ of lemon juice. Scrape bottom of skillet again to clear it. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until liquid evaporates. Add ½ cup apple juice. Clear bottom and side of skillet. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until about half of the liquid evaporates. Stir in remaining 1 cup of stock, the ¼ cup lemon juice and the ¼ cup apple juice. Bring to a boil (will take 2 to 3 minutes), whisk in the cornstarch-apple juice mixture, and return to a boil. Return the chicken to the skillet, lower the heat to medium, and cook until the chicken is done all the way through, about 4 to 5 minutes. Turn off the heat, remove the chicken, and if desired, whisk in the artificial sweetener. Makes 4 servings.
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