CHICKEN OTERO
An Escoffier classic and a cousing to the famous chicken chasseur
Chicken chasseur is one of those recipes every French cook learns early, sautéed chicken, mushrooms, a brown sauce sharpened with tomato and tarragon. Escoffier had his own way of playing with a classic, and here he swaps out the usual white wine for red Port. Same base, same technique, but the colour turns deep and the flavour takes on that particular sweetness Port brings to a sauce. It's a good reminder that once you understand the structure of a dish, changing one component can give you something that tastes like a different meal altogether.
We're also using this recipe to show you how to build a quick stock from scratch, using the parts of the chicken you'd normally throw away. It's worth remembering that a proper stock is what separates a good sauce from a forgettable one.
SERVES 4
INGREDIENTS
For the Quick Brown Stock
1 tbsp (15 ml) vegetable oil
Bones, wing tips and trimmings from the chicken below, chopped small
1 small carrot, diced
1 small onion, diced
Half a celery stick, finely sliced
1 tbsp (15 g) tomato paste
500 ml (2 cups) good-quality beef or veal stock, shop-bought is fine
A few sprigs of thyme
1–2 bay leaves
1 garlic clove, crushed
Ground black pepper
For the Chicken
1 whole chicken (about 1.5 kg / 3 lb 5 oz), jointed into 4 pieces (2 thighs, 2 breasts), bones and trimmings reserved for the stock
30 g (2 tbsp) unsalted butter
1 tbsp (15 ml) vegetable oil
For the Sauce
250 g (9 oz) button mushrooms, left whole
Salt and pepper
1 small shallot, finely diced
10 g unsalted butter, softened (for the beurre manié)
10 g plain flour (for the beurre manié)
2 tbsp finely chopped fresh tarragon, plus extra to finish
20 g (1½ tbsp) cold unsalted butter, to finish
MISE EN PLACE
Joint the chicken into 4 pieces, keeping the breasts and thighs whole. Chop the carcass, wing tips and any trimmings into small pieces with a cleaver for the stock.
Mix the butter and flour together into a ball of dough; this is your "beurre manié." Set it aside, we will use it to thicken the stock later on.
Pluck the tarragon leaves from the stalks and chop finely. You'll need about two tablespoons in total, keep a little of that back to finish the dish.
Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F). Note that we have upped the temperature slightly compared to what was shown on the video tutorial, as it will yield a nicely seared chicken.
Have an oven-proof casserole dish with a lid ready for the chicken, and a sieve on hand for straining the stock.
METHOD
Start by making the quick stock. Heat the oil in a small stockpot over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the chopped chicken bones and trimmings and brown well on all sides, ten to fifteen minutes, stirring from time to time. This step takes the longest, so start it first and let it run while you prepare everything else. A lid on partway through helps contain the splatter without stopping the browning.
When done, remove the excess fat from the pot, then add the carrot, onion and celery, reduce the heat slightly and cook for two minutes, just until softened. Watch the caramelised bits on the bottom of the pot, they should stay brown, not blacken, or the stock will taste bitter.
Stir in the tomato paste and cook for thirty seconds to remove the raw edge and deepen the colour. Pour in a small splash of the stock first to deglaze, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom, then add the rest of the stock along with the thyme, bay leaves, garlic and a grind of pepper. No salt at this stage. Bring to a light simmer, then move the pot to a low heat and leave to reduce by half while you cook the chicken. As soon as the stock has reduced enough, don't forget to turn the heat off.
When ready, strain the stock through a sieve into a large bowl, pressing on the solids to extract the liquid, and discard the rest. When done, clean the pot you used to make the stock and pour the filtered stock back in. Next, bring the stock to a boil over high heat, then whisk in the beurre manié a little at a time until fully incorporated and the stock thickens to a consistency that easily coats the back of a spoon. Take care not to over-thicken the stock, when it looks thick enough, just stop adding more beurre manié.
To cook the chicken, melt the butter and oil together in the oven-proof casserole dish or cocotte over medium-high heat. Season the chicken and place skin side down first, then turn the pieces once a good golden-brown colour has developed on the skin sides. Continue searing the other side for around five minutes, then turn the heat off. Cover the pot with the lid, transfer to the oven and cook for fifteen minutes first, then remove the breasts and keep warm, covered with foil on a plate. Return the pot with the thighs to the oven, uncovered, for a further five to ten minutes, until cooked through. At that stage, turn the oven off, place the thighs with the breasts you reserved earlier, and keep warm.
Now place the pot or dish the chicken was cooked in on the stove over medium-high heat, and when the cooking juices in the pan are bubbling, add the mushrooms with a pinch of salt and pepper. Sauté for a good three minutes, until lightly coloured, then add the shallot and cook for a further minute, letting the natural juices reduce. Deglaze with the Port, scraping up the caramelised bits from the bottom of the pan, and let the liquid reduce for a minute or so.
From there, pour in the thickened stock and stir to combine. The sauce should already be at the right consistency, so there's no need for a long simmer here. If it looks too thick, loosen it with a splash of extra stock or water. Finally, you can stir through the chopped tarragon.
Just before serving, take the pan off the heat and swirl in the cold butter until it melts into the sauce, adding a little shine and silkiness. Do not let the sauce boil again once the butter goes in.
Once ready, you can either add the chicken directly into the sauce in the pot and let it warm up nicely. Alternatively, arrange the chicken on a serving dish or plates and spoon the sauce generously over the top. Finish with a scattering of fresh tarragon, or parsley if you prefer, for colour.
Cooking Notes
If you serve the chicken on plates or on a dish, make sure the dish or plates are warm and the chicken is hot enough to be served. Otherwise, everything will be lukewarm when brought to the table.
Store-bought beef or veal stock works well here, veal stock is more traditional if you can find it.
A splash of cognac added with the Port at the deglazing stage is optional and gives the sauce a little extra depth.