Sauteed Breast of Chicken a la King
Submitted by BlackDiamond
Chicken a la king with sauteed breast, mushrooms, roasted red and green peppers, scallions, and a sherry-cream pan sauce. A refined, from-scratch version of the retro classic.
YIELD
4 servingsPREP
20 minCOOK
20 minREADY
40 minThis from-scratch chicken a la king keeps whole sauteed chicken breasts instead of cutting them into cubes, giving the dish a more refined, restaurant-quality presentation. The creamy sauce is built right in the same skillet using the fond from browning the chicken.
After the chicken comes out, mushrooms, roasted red pepper, diced green pepper, and scallions get sauteed in fresh butter. A splash of dry sherry deglazes the pan and picks up all those browned bits. Chicken stock reduces by half, then heavy cream mixed with cornstarch goes in to thicken the sauce into a glossy, spoonable consistency.
The whole dish comes together in about 20 minutes once the chicken is browned. Spoon the sauce directly over each breast on a warmed plate and finish with a generous scatter of minced parsley.
Chef Tips
- Dust the chicken lightly with flour before sauteing. It browns better and contributes to thickening the sauce.
- Discard the oil and butter after browning and start with fresh butter for the vegetables. This gives you a cleaner-tasting sauce.
- Reduce the stock to a quarter cup before adding the cream. This concentrates the flavor so the sauce isn’t thin or watery.
- Use dry sherry, not cooking sherry. Cooking sherry is loaded with salt and tastes harsh.
Variations
- Serve over puff pastry shells, egg noodles, or toasted bread points for a more traditional presentation.
- Add a squeeze of lemon juice to the finished sauce for brightness.
- Swap sherry for dry white wine if that’s what you have open.
Ingredients
roasted, peeled, and, seeded or 1 jar (2 ounces) drained, roasted red bell pepper, cut into medium dice (1/2 cup)
Directions
Sprinkle the chicken breasts with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper.
Dust lightly with flour.
Heat the oil and 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet.
Add the chicken breasts; sauté until lightly browned on both sides and cooked through, about 8 minutes.
Remove the chicken from the skillet, cover and keep warm.
Remove and discard the oil and butter from the skillet.
Heat the remaining butter in the skillet.
Add the mushrooms, red and green peppers, and the scallions; sauté for about 3 minutes until the vegetables are softened.
Add the sherry; stir to loosen browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
Add the chicken stock and simmer until the liquid reduces to ¼ cup, about 7 minutes.
Mix the cornstarch and heavy cream together; add to the skillet.
Bring to a boil and simmer until the sauce thickens, about 2 minutes.
Return the chicken breasts to the skillet and simmer them to heat through, about 1 minute.
To serve, place a chicken breast on each warmed dinner plate and spoon a portion of the sauce over each chicken breast.
Sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately.
Makes 4 servings.
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