Lemon Chicken à la Ironing Board
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8 half chicken breasts (or 1/2 breast per person)
3/4 c. lemon juice
2/3 c. white wine
1/4 c. oil (plus additional oil for frying)
2/3 c. flour
2/3 c. corn starch
dried tarragon
dried basil
salt & pepper
2 lemons, sliced into rings
1 1/2 c. sliced mushrooms
2 tblsp. parsley, chopped
1/4 stick of butter


Marinate the chicken breasts overnight in 1/2 . of the lemon juice, 1/3 c. of the wine, and the 1/4 c. oil.

The next day, heat a frying pan with enough oil to cover the bottom. Fill a bag with the flour and corn starch, the herbs. Set aside and save the marinate, and shake the breasts inside the bag a few at a time until each is liberally coated. Transfer each immediately from bag to pan, and fry until the breasts are well-browned and nearly cooked through, then transfer the breasts to an oven-proof pan.

Pour off excess oil from the pan (but don't loose any crusty drippings or globules of flour). Add the marinade, bring it to a boil, and cook it rapidly for about 3 minutes. If the mixture is lumpy with flour or chicken bits, force it through a sieve or blend. Set it aside as the roux to thicken the sauce.

Up to this point, the dish can be made a day in advance.

Heat the oven to 350º and bake the chicken uncovered until fully cooked (perhaps 1/2 hour). Meanwhile, add the roux to a pan with 1/3 c. wine and 1/4 c. lemon juice (or to taste). You can add stock or wine if it's too thick or too lemony. About 5 minutes before serving, add the butter, mushrooms, additional herbs if needed. Cook until the mushrooms are just tender.

Transfer the chicken to a serving platter and cover it with the lemon-butter sauce. Garnish with the sliced lemons and 2 tblsp. of chopped parsley (more if Esther's coming).


Source: Paul











Why "Ironing Board" Chicken?

I devised this dish for a large party early in our marriage. Our dining table only seated six.

So we adjusted the ironing board to table height, threw a large cloth over both, and ended up with a large, if oddly shaped dining table.