Carolina Smothered Chicken With Creamy Mustard Sauce Recipes

CHICKEN THIGHS WITH CREAMY MUSTARD SAUCE

Steps:

• Place the chicken thighs on a cutting board, skin side up, and pat them dry with paper towels. Sprinkle the chicken with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 3/4 teaspoon pepper. Turn them over and sprinkle them with one more teaspoon of salt.
• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large (11 to 12-inch) cast-iron skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, place the chicken in the pan in one layer, skin side down. Cook over medium heat for 15 minutes without moving, until the skin is golden brown. (If the skin gets too dark, turn the heat to medium low.) Turn the chicken pieces with tongs, add the onions to the pan, including under the chicken, and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring the onions occasionally, until the thighs are cooked to 155 to 160 degrees and the onions are browned. Transfer the chicken (not the onions) to a plate and allow to rest uncovered while you make the sauce. If the onions aren't browned, cook them for another minute.
• Add the wine, creme fraiche, Dijon mustard, whole-grain mustard, and 1 teaspoon salt to the skillet and stir over medium heat for one minute. Return the chicken, skin side up, and the juices to the skillet, sprinkle with parsley, and serve hot.

PAN-ROASTED CHICKEN WITH CREAMY MUSTARD SAUCE

Steps:

• In a large resealable bag, combine the beef broth, white wine, 1 tablespoon of the mustard powder, Worcestershire sauce, chopped garlic, onions and some salt and pepper. Add the chicken quarters to the bag, seal well, and shake a bit to coat the chicken in the marinade. Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour, or up to overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F
• Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Remove the chicken from the marinade and pat dry with paper towels; reserve the marinade. Add the chicken, skin side down, to the skillet and cook until nicely brown, 5 minutes. Flip, and brown on the reverse side, another 4 minutes. Lower the heat to medium-low and add the butter and the smashed garlic to the pan. Cook for 1 minute, basting the chicken with the melted butter.
• Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 170 degrees F, measured at the thickest part of the thigh, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove the chicken to a plate and let rest, loosely cover, for 5 minutes.
• Heat the half-and-half and rosemary in a small saucepan over low heat. Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons of the oil from the skillet the chicken was cooked in. Place the skillet over medium heat and deglaze the pan with half of the reserved marinade, scraping up any browned bit from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Cook for 2 minutes, to reduce. Strain into the heated half-and-half and remove the rosemary sprig. In a small bowl, mix together the cornstarch and 2 tablespoons cold water. Whisk the cornstarch slurry into the half-and-half, then whisk in the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons mustard powder, the whole-grain mustard and the lemon juice. Season the sauce with a salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Pour some of the sauce over the chicken and serve the rest on the side.