Chicken With Raisins
This recipe is courtesy of Florence Fabricant, adapted from the legendary French chef Madeleine Kamman, originally published in The New York Times. Photo is by Melina Hammer. The recipe calls for a whole chicken cut into pieces but we find chicken thighs or drumsticks (or a mix of both) make for a great substitute.
"I turn to this recipe — adapted from the French chef Madeleine Kamman, who died in the summer of 2018 — when cool weather is on the horizon. Perhaps it’s the dried fruit or chicken braised in a sauce (instead of being striped on the grill) that appeals to the season. But it’s an easy winner for those first dinners when fall appears. Though plumped raisins are called for, other dried fruit, like diced figs or quartered prunes work well, too." — Florence Fabricant
Serves 4
Ingredients:
- 1 3.5lb chicken, cut in 10 pieces, backbone and wingtips removed or chicken thighs or drumsticks or a mix of both
- ½ cup black raisins
- ½ cup brandy
- 3 tablespoons walnut oil
- Salt and ground black pepper
- ¼ cup minced shallots
- ¾ cup verjus (unfermented juice of green wine grapes, is sold on many winery websites and specialty grocers)
- 2 tbsp glace de viande or de volaille (concentrated meat or chicken stock) or packaged roasted chicken base
- 3 tbsp crème fraîche
Preparation:
Place raisins in a bowl, add brandy and set aside to plump overnight or for at least 8 hours.
Make the chicken: Dry chicken pieces. Heat oil in a sauté pan on medium-high, add chicken, skin side down, season with salt and pepper, and sear until golden brown, 6 to 8 minutes. Turn pieces and brown second side. Scatter shallots over chicken. Add verjus to the pan, cover, reduce heat to low and cook 15 to 20 minutes, basting chicken once, until chicken is cooked through.
Remove chicken to a dish and cover to keep warm. Add raisins with their brandy to the pan, bring to a simmer for a couple of minutes, then add glace de viande and crème fraîche. Cook for several minutes, until the sauce thickens enough to coat a spoon.
Return chicken to the pan, baste with the sauce, then transfer the contents of the pan to a warm, rimmed platter and serve.