Ingredients
1 whole chicken (3 lb)
1 lb fresh mushrooms
1/2 tbsp butter
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 tbsp cornstarch, blended with of the crea
1 tbsp minced shallots
1/3 cup port wine madeira may be substitute, d
1 tbsp butter
1/4 cup cognac or a good brandy
Directions
PREHEAT OVEN TO 425F. Truss the chicken, then dry the outside
thoroughly and rub with 1 tablespoon butter all over the skin. TO
BROWN THE CHICKEN: Set the chicken on a rack, breast side up in the
roasting pan, place in the oven for 5 minutes. Turn on its left side
and baste quickly with butter, return to the oven for another 5
minutes. Turn on its right side for another 5 minutes, basting as
before. TO ROAST THE CHICKEN: Leave the chicken on its right side.
Reduce oven temperature to 350F. Leave it for a total of 15-20
minutes, basting it at least every 10 minutes. Salt the chicken, turn
it on its other side, and cook another 15-20 minutes, basting at
least every 20 minutes. Turn the chicken breast up and continue
basting every 10 minutes during the last few minutes it is roasting.
TO TELL IF THE CHICKEN IS DONE: Prick the thickest part of the
drumstick with a fork. If the juices come out clear yellow, it is
done. If not, roast another 5 minutes and test again. As a final
check, lift the chicken and drain the juices from its vent into the
pan; if the last few drops are clear yellow, it is definitely done.
Put the chicken on a warm platter, remove the trussing string, and
let it sit at least 5-10 minutes before carving so that the juices
will not retreat into the tissues. It can wait a good 30 minutes with
foil over it. As the chicken roasts, wipe the mushrooms clean with a
paper towel, cut off the ends and slice them; if small, leave whole.
Bring 1/4 cup water to a boil with 1/2 tablespoon butter, lemon juice
and salt. Add mushrooms, cover and cook for 8 minutes. Separate the
cooking liquid and save it. Pour the cream and cornstarch and cream
mixture into the mushrooms. Simmer for 2 minutes. Taste and correct
seasoning and hold. When the chicken is done, remove it to its
platter and remove all but 2 table- spoons of fat from the pan. Stir
in the shallots and saute for 1 minute. Add the port and mushroom
juices and reduce rapidly while deglazing the pan (scraping up the
coagulated juices) until the liquid has reduced to about 1/4 cup. Add
the mushrooms and cream. Simmer for 2-3 minutes, allowing the liquid
to thicken slightly. Taste and correct seasoning; add more lemon
juice to taste. Butter the inside of a casserole with butter; rapidly
carve the chicken into serving pieces and sprinkle lightly with salt.
Arrange it in the casserole for serving. Warm the cognac carefully,
do not let it catch on fire. Set the chicken over moderate heat until
you hear it begin to sizzle; pour the cognac over it and ignite it
carefully with a match. Shake the casserole slowly till the flames
have subsided. Pour the mushroom mixture over the casserole, basting
the chicken. Cover and let it steep for 5 minutes. Do not allow the
sauce to boil. Serve immediately.
Servings: 4 servings
Chicken With Port~ Cream & Mushrooms Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Chicken; Mushroom; Poultry; Vegetable
The History of Recipes
It is actually possible to trace the history of written recipes far back into history, at least as far as ancient Egypt, and maybe further still. Interesting though that maybe, these, early records were just very simple pictorial, hieroglyphic or cunieform recipes for preparing food.
The truth of the matter is, the oldest recipe discovered so far, according to Professor Solomon Katz, is a collection of stone tablets in the Sumerian language describing the baking of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as making those who drank it feel blissful. As we move into Roman times around 25BC a roman called Apicius wrote a number of documents describing recipes enjoyed by the Romans. In his scrolls, Apicius tells us how the roman meals were split into starters, entrees and desserts, a very modern way of dining. Additionally, he tells us how the Roman chefs were skilled in the use of many herbs, including a few that will be familiar to modern cooks like thyme, mint and parsley. Moving on, we find two interesting books which date from the 14th Century : a recipe book entitled `Forme of Cury`, and another named `Curye on Inglish`. Although the titles sound familiar, they are nothing to do with the indian curry that we all know today, but instead recipes for the types of meals on the tables of the upper classes of the time. Later, in the 15th century, people returning from the crusades brought back many spices and herbs from middle-east cuisine, including coriander, parsley, basil and rosemary. The introduction of these new herbs and spices was responsible for an outbreak in books on cookery, the majority of which are kept safe in private collections. During the following few centuries, the powerful and rich houses competed with each other to serve the most exotic meals, and because of this the best cooks and their collection of recipes were highly sought after. Even so, it was during the 1800s that fine cooking and cookery books became popular. Mrs Beeton in the UK, and the equally famous Fannie Merritt Farmer in the US, spent years to collating, verifying, and publishing recipes to help cooks of their time. By the advent of the 1900s, cook books were in high demand, mostly due to higher levels of literacy, people having more leisure time and being a little richer. The revolution that is television gave us cooking programs and the recipe books that accompanied them. Which pretty much brings us up to date and the invention of computers and the internet, allowing us all to access thousands of recipes like the ones you can find on the site you are now reading. |
We hope you enjoy this Chicken With Port~ Cream & Mushrooms recipe.
