This is right out of France’s 100 greatest hits of home-style recipes. A classic of the housewife’s kitchen, it is justifiably made over and over again, and is a dish that I find guests adore.
6 SERVINGS
EQUIPMENT: Kitchen twine; a 6-quart (6 l) cast-iron pot with a lid; a warmed platter; 6 warmed dinner plates.
1 large bunch fresh tarragon
1 cup (250 ml) heavy cream
1 chicken (3 to 4 pounds/1.5 to 2 kg), free-range, cut into 8 serving pieces, at room temperature
Fine sea salt
Coarse, freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons (30 g) unsalted butter, Clarified Butter, or Ghee
1/4 cup (60 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
2 onions, peeled, halved lengthwise, and cut into thin half-moons
4 plump, fresh garlic cloves, peeled, quartered, green germ removed if present
1/4 (60 ml) dry white wine, such as a young Chardonnay
2 cups (500 ml) Chicken Stock
Cooked rice or fresh pasta, for serving
1. Tie half of the tarragon in a bunch with kitchen twine. Set aside the remaining tarragon. In a small saucepan, combine the cream and the tied tarragon and bring just to a boil over medium heat. Remove from the heat, cover, and set aside to infuse the cream.
2. Generously season the chicken on all sides with salt and pepper.
3. In the pot, combine the butter and olive oil and heat over medium heat until shimmering. Add the chicken, skin side down, and sear until it turns an even golden color, about 5 minutes, working in batches if necessary. Using tongs (to avoid piercing the skin), turn the pieces and sear them on the other side, 5 minutes more. Carefully regulate the heat to avoid scorching the skin. Transfer the browned chicken to a platter and season once again with salt and pepper.
4. Add the onions and garlic to the fat in the pot and sweat—cook, covered, over low heat—until soft but not browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer the onions and garlic to a platter. Deglaze the pot with the white wine, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Simmer for 2 minutes to burn off the alcohol. Return the chicken and any cooking juices to the pot. Add the stock.
5. Cover and simmer gently over low heat, turning the chicken in the sauce once or twice, until the chicken is cooked through and has thoroughly absorbed the sauce, about 20 minutes more. The breast meat will cook faster than the dark meat, so check during the cooking time for when it is cooked through and tender. Look for juices that run clear when pierced with the tip of a knife in the thickest part of breast, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the flesh, avoiding the bone, reads 165°F (74°C). Transfer to a platter and tent with aluminum foil. Continue to simmer the remaining meat gently for about 15 minutes more, or until the dark meat is cooked through and the juices run clear when pierced with the tip of a knife. Return the breast meat to the pot to warm through. Taste for seasoning.
6. Meanwhile, strip the leaves from the remaining tarragon stems, discarding the stems, and finely chop the leaves.
7. With tongs, transfer the chicken pieces to the warmed platter. Remove and discard the tarragon bundle from the cream. Stir the cream and the chopped tarragon into the sauce in the saucepan to combine. Taste for seasoning. Pour the sauce over the chicken and serve immediately on the warmed dinner plates with rice or fresh pasta.
WINE MATCH: This calls for a white that can stand up to the carefully infused tarragon cream: A lively Viognier-based wine from the Northern or Southern Rhône would be right at home here.