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Recipe Detail Page
Tarragon-Poached Chicken with Spring Roots
Early Summer 2016
Young carrots with tops attached look prettiest for this take on the French classic poule au pot. If you prefer to use the ready-trimmed baby carrots from a bag, use 24 carrots, selecting the larger ones. As for radishes, any table radishes with tops attached work well.
Serves 4
6 stalks fresh tarragon, divided
6 fresh bay leaves, divided
2 stalks parsley
6 cloves garlic, peeled and divided
1 roasting chicken, 3 lbs (1.5 kg)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 small lemon, quartered
2 tbsp (30 mL) olive oil, divided
3 oz (90 g) cubed pancetta
1 cup (250 mL) Viognier or other fruity white wine
2 cups (500 mL) homemade or low-sodium chicken stock
Parchment paper
12 mini potatoes, scrubbed
12 baby carrots, scrubbed and tops trimmed to ½ inch (1 cm)
12 radishes, scrubbed, cut in half and tops trimmed to ½ inch (1 cm)
¼ cup (60 mL) 35% whipping cream
1 tbsp (15 mL) finely chopped fresh tarragon
1 Preheat oven to 325°F (160°C); adjust oven rack to lower-middle position.
2 Using kitchen twine, tie together 4 tarragon stalks, 4 bay leaves and parsley to make a bouquet garni. Put in a large flame-proof pot or Dutch oven, along with 4 garlic cloves, and set aside.
3 If chicken is trussed, only snip strings if you can’t access its cavity. Remove any lumps of fat from cavity. Season cavity with salt and pepper. Crush remaining garlic cloves and put them in cavity, along with remaining tarragon stalks and bay leaves and quartered lemon. Retruss chicken, if necessary, and pat skin very dry with paper towels. Set aside.
4 In a large skillet, heat 1 tbsp (15 mL) oil over medium heat. Add pancetta. Cook, stirring often, until pancetta is browned and crisp and has rendered its fat, about 8 minutes. With a slotted spoon, remove pancetta to a paper-towel-lined plate and set aside.
5 Add remaining oil to skillet and heat over medium heat. Sprinkle chicken all over with salt to taste. Add chicken to skillet and brown on all sides, turning carefully (so as not to tear the skin) every 4 to 5 minutes, until golden brown all over, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer chicken, breast-side up, to pot. Sprinkle generously with pepper.
6 Pour off all fat from skillet, leaving browned bits on bottom. Add wine to skillet and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring to scrape up any browned bits from bottom. Let wine bubble for 1 minute.
7 Pour contents of skillet into pot. Add stock, put pot over high heat and bring to a boil. Lay a piece of parchment paper directly over chicken. Cover pot tightly with a lid and transfer to the oven. Cook until a meat thermometer inserted in a thigh registers 170°F (77°C), about 1 hour.
8 Carefully remove chicken from pot to a warm serving platter. Cover loosely with foil and keep warm.
9 Discard bouquet garni. Add potatoes and carrots to pot. Put pot over medium-low heat and simmer, uncovered, until potatoes and carrots are almost tender, about 10 minutes.
10 Add halved radishes to pot. Simmer until vegetables are tender, 10 to 12 minutes. With a slotted spoon, remove potatoes, carrots and radishes from pot and arrange around chicken. Recover chicken with foil and keep warm.
11 Bring contents of pot to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-high and let bubble, uncovered and whisking occasionally to incorporate garlic cloves, until cooking juices are reduced by about half, about 5 minutes.
12 Stir in cream. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring often, until sauce is smooth and slightly thickened, about 2 minutes.
13 Stir in chopped tarragon and season with salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle some sauce over chicken and pour rest into a pitcher. Scatter reserved pancetta over vegetables.
14 Remove strings from chicken. Carve chicken and serve with vegetables and sauce.
Serves 4
