Braised in a creamy white mushroom sauce, browned chicken pieces make up the classic French chicken stew known as Chicken Fricassée. Similar to a white sauce version of Coq au Vin, but with a much shorter preparation time; it’s a rustic family-style dinner that’s perfect for the middle of the week!
My first cookbook, “Dinner,” included this fan-favorite dish because of the overwhelming demand for it.
A Fricassée of Chicken
If you’re craving a hearty stew but don’t have time to spend hours in the kitchen, try this fantastic dish (pronounced “fri-ka-say”). The typical rich, dark brown sauce that is often served with stews, like this baked Chicken Stew and Coq au Vin, is replaced with a creamy white sauce that has mushrooms in this classic French chicken stew.
The chicken is really delicious; it’s juicy, golden brown, and everything else you could want in a piece of chicken. The creamy white sauce, nevertheless, is the star of this casserole.
Chicken Fricassée Fixtures
The ingredients for Chicken Fricassée are as follows.
1. Chopped Chicken
If you want your chicken to retain its juicy texture after cooking in the sauce, use skin-on, bone-in chunks. This stew just requires 30 minutes to cook, so don’t be alarmed. However, at this time, boneless breast or thighs would still cook to a grisly perfection. But, because I’m sure some of you may wonder, I’ve included my thoughts on how to prepare Chicken Fricassée using boneless thighs and breasts in the recipe notes.
The chicken thighs and drumsticks used in the recipe for Chicken Fricassée are raw.
2. Additional Chicken Fricassee Ingredients
The remaining components for Chicken Fricassée are as follows:
Chicken Fricassée Fixtures
Onions and garlic—The backbone of many savory recipes, including Chicken Fricassée!
The sauce’s herb seasonings—bay leaves and thyme. While fresh is always preferable, dried will do in a pinch.
Spread – It hails from France. Enough now! 😂
Traditional vegetable ingredients in the sauce include mushrooms. Actually, any vegetable that is good for braising will work in this recipe; it’s that versatile. Start with veggies that can handle a 30-minute braising period and add those that cook more quickly, such as asparagus and green beans, towards the end.
White wine—any dry white wine that isn’t too sugary or has a strong woodsy flavor will do. Especially Chardonnay brings out delicious flavors. To make it alcohol-free, just add additional low-sodium chicken stock or broth.
Use whatever store-bought chicken stock or broth you choose; this meal is delicious either way. However, when you use homemade chicken stock, it takes it to a whole new level! The extra flavor from homemade chicken stock is well worth the effort of making it. (Plus: the bones provide additional minerals and there’s less salt than store-bought).
The sauce may be slightly thickened with flour.
Cream—Not only does it make the sauce rich, creamy, and indulgent, but it also thickens it!
Making Chicken Fricasse by adding homemade chicken stock to a saucepan.You can make any meal taste like it came from a restaurant by using homemade chicken stock.
Broiling chicken in butter before braising it in a creamy mushroom sauce thickened with a touch of flour is the basic recipe for Chicken Fricassée. The chicken will be cooked thoroughly after only 30 minutes of simmering in this fast stew.
Routine for preparing Chicken Fricassée
Fried chicken – Before anything else, season the chicken with pepper and salt. The next step is to melt the butter over medium-high heat in a big covered pan. (No need to worry if your skillet or pot doesn’t have a cover, or if you don’t have one of an equivalent size or bigger; I explain what to do in the simmering phase.)
To begin, brown the chicken thighs by laying them skin-side down in the melted butter. Once they start to develop a beautiful golden color, which should take around 4 to 5 minutes, flip them over and cook for another minute or so. Take the thighs out of the pan and set them on a serving platter. Give the drumsticks a go now. Searing drumsticks for three sides at once (for about two minutes each) ensures good coverage throughout. Place them on top of the platter with the thighs once they’re done.
Although most of the butter has browned, there is still enough to be found in the pan. This means it’s even more delicious – yay!
To begin the sauce, sauté the mushrooms, onions, thyme, and bay leaves in the remaining butter for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic towards the end of the sautéing. Instead of becoming a rich golden brown, the mushrooms will become a lighter shade of golden. Braising mushrooms will cause them to lose their color, so browning them thoroughly is pointless.
After that, whisk in the flour and continue cooking for another minute to eliminate any raw flour flavor.
The next step is to include the chicken stock and wine. Be sure to scrape the bottom of the saucepan to include any browned pieces that have stuck there into the sauce, and stir the mixture well. This substance, which enhances the sauce’s flavor, is known as “fond” and contains concentrated flavors.
Put the chicken back in the pan – With the skin side up, put the chicken back in the pot. We want it largely submerged, so that’s good. While the chicken soaks up the flavorful sauce, the braising liquid keeps it moist.
After adding the chicken to the sauce, return the liquid to a simmer and cover for 10 minutes. This is the recipe for chicken fricassée. Next, lower the heat to a point where it’s bubbling continuously but not boiling quickly; refer to the video for an illustration of this. The heat setting on my stove is medium.
Cook, covered, for 10 minutes.
After 20 minutes of simmering without a lid, add the lid and continue cooking for another 20 minutes. Here, the sauce will thicken and decrease until it reaches the consistency of thin gravy.
“Cook the chicken at what point?” By now, the chicken should be done cooking. Because the chicken is cooked immersed in a very hot liquid, a mere 30 minutes is all that’s needed for the stew. It will be cooked through and very soft, but purposefully not at the “fall-apart-at-a-touch” stage.
Now whip the sauce until it’s smooth – Get the chicken out of the sauce and set it aside. After whisking in the cream, return the sauce to a boil and continue cooking.
Plate and enjoy! Bring the sauce to a simmer again, and then add the chicken back in. Once the cream has been added, simmering the sauce is unnecessary.
Before serving, garnish with a generous quantity of parsley.
Chicken Fricassee Recipe Instructions
- Individual portions of Chicken Fricassée may be served straight from the pan. To serve it family style, either set the skillet out on the table or move the Chicken Fricassée to a big serving dish. That way, everyone can help themselves.
- Vegetable Sides
Any sauce of this quality calls for a starchy accompaniment, so that leaves us with Chicken Fricassée. Although cauliflower mash is a low-carb alternative to regular mashed potatoes, I found it interesting to read that rice is also a common ingredient. Also perfect would be short pastas such as ziti, macaroni, or penne. Anything that allows you to savor the exquisite creamy mushroom sauce to the fullest! - Interim Salad. In this Chicken Fricassée, we skimp on the veggies a little. A side of greens will be the perfect way to finish off your dinner. Salads with roasted asparagus, garlic sautéed spinach, a large bowl of greens dressed with a French vinaigrette, or a bowl of fresh French bistro salads are all good options.
Leave a comment telling us what you paired this Chicken Fricassée with if you give it a go. People are curious!
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