Chicken with Creamy Tarragon Sauce

hoho, Miz, I managed to find tarragon, finally~! Its a herb usually used in French cooking, apparently. AND I managed to track down a recipe that seems quite similar to Solitude's Tarragon Chicken AND one that sounds yummy enough, hehe. Coincidentally, I also had a pot of cream on hand, so what to do but make Chicken with Creamy Tarragon Sauce (continuing on from my French breakfast, hehe). So... here we go!

What you need:
3 pieces boneless chicken
300 ml chicken stock
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon dried tarragon
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
175 ml whipping cream (I used 160 ml double cream :P)
1/2 tablespoon dried tarragon (or 1 tablespoon fresh)
salt and black pepper, for seasoning

What you do:

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Place in one layer in a saucepan. Pour over the chicken stock (add more, if needed). Add dried tarragon and garlic.
2. Simmer over medium heat and cook gently for 8-10 minutes, or until cooked.
3. Transfer the chicken to a plate and keep warm. Strain cooking liquid into a small saucepan. Skim off any fat and boil to reduce by 2/3.
4. Add cream and boil to reduce by 1/2. Stir in more tarragon and adjust the seasoning. Slice chicken and spoon over a little sauce.

Solitude's chicken was actually grilled, I think. I decided to cook roast potatoes with this (instead of rice), so I placed the chicken on top of the potatoes for the last 10 minutes of cooking. The potatoes were seasoned with olive oil and mixed herbs, just so you know. This baking actually made the chicken shrink, I think, heh, but the final texture was very tender, and still juicy. Not a problem, except that you might still be a bit hungry after, hehe.

As for the sauce, well, when I first tasted it, I didn't quite like it, but Hadi pronounced it okay when he gave it a taste test. But, when eaten when the chicken, it was actually quite nice. A bit sweet, and very creamy. Hadi and Justin were in love with it, hehe. They kept on estimating how much they would be willing to pay for this in a restaurant. (I believe it was 6-7 pounds, but then again, they're cheapskates :P) Hadi practically licked off the last bits of his plate (as well as mine :P).

In fact, they spooned the extra sauce over the roast potatoes! I admit, those potatoes were a bit tasteless, heh. I hardly ever cook potatoes, and don't know how much to season them with. Also, I think they were slightly undercooked, but Hadi and Justin insisted it was fine, so I let it be. I think they were just very hungry though, since they just came back from the gym.

This was, of course, a French recipe, and being French, it actually had wine in it. I just added extra chicken stock and some sugar though, and it doesn't seem too bad, although its quite a big modification, hehe. I... didn't quite like the sauce though, and I think the chicken might have been better if it was crispy. Maybe pan-frying or grilling it, instead of being simmering it might be a better idea next time, hehe. Then again, Hadi and Justin loved it, so maybe its just me?

Quote of the day: The best way to lose weight is to eat all you want of everything you don't like.