Poultry Essentials Creamy Mushroom Chicken Thighs Recipes

CREAMY GARLIC AND MUSHROOM CHICKEN THIGHS

Steps:

• Heat vegetable oil over medium-heat in a large skillet. Season chicken thighs on both sides with thyme, oregano, salt, and pepper. Place thighs, skin-side down, into the hot skillet and cook until browned, about 8 minutes. Flip thighs over and brown other side, an additional 8 minutes. Remove thighs from skillet onto a large plate, and set aside. Reduce heat to medium-low.
• Add mushrooms to skillet and cook until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in onion and garlic; cook, stirring frequently, for an additional 2 to 3 minutes. Pour in white wine and scrape browned bits off the bottom of the skillet. Simmer until wine is reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Stir in chicken broth and allow mixture to come back to a simmer.
• Return chicken thighs to the skillet, and cook, covered, until chicken is no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, about 15 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted near the bone should read 165 degrees F (74 degrees C). Stir in heavy cream and cook until just heated through, about 1 more minute. Adjust salt and pepper and sprinkle with fresh parsley just before serving.

POULTRY ESSENTIALS: CREAMY MUSHROOM CHICKEN THIGHS

Steps:

• PREP/PREPARE
• For this recipe, you will need an ovenproof skillet that is big enough to hold all the chicken.
• When I was working on this recipe, I tried several variations, so I only cooked 2 chicken thighs at a time (as the photos indicate). However, the ingredient list is proportioned to accommodate 4 thighs.
• On my third attempt at this recipe, I felt the sauce was missing something, so, I decided to add some sautéed shiitake mushrooms to the sauce, and that made all the difference.
• If you want to make the sauce a bit more decadent, you could use cream, in place of the milk; however, I found that whole milk did the job quite nicely.
• If your chicken thighs have large flaps of skin hanging down, then cut them off. They will only sit in the sauce and become soggy. YUK!
• Gather your Ingredients (mise en place).
• Place a rack in the middle position, and preheat the oven to 300f (150c).
• Add the butter and grapeseed oil to a skillet over medium heat.
• Pat the chicken thighs with a paper towel, season with a bit of salt and pepper, and add to the pan, skin-side-down, and cook until the skin is crispy, about 4 - 6 minutes.
• Chef's Tip: If you have a small pan, you might need to sear the chicken thighs in two batches. If you crowd the pan, the chicken will steam, not sear, and you will be left with steamed, pale, tasteless chicken. I HATE it when that happens. When you properly sear the chicken, you will have crispy, flavorful chicken.
• Flip the chicken, and cook for an additional 4 - 6 minutes.
• Remove the chicken, reserve, and then remove all but 2 tablespoons of the grease, then add the mushrooms to the pan; along with the white wine.
• Chef's Note: If you do not wish to use wine, then use 3 tablespoons of chicken stock, and 1 tablespoon of freshly-squeezed lemon juice.
• Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms soften, and release their moisture, and the wine or stock is cooked down, about 5 - 7 minutes.
• Add the garlic, and stir until fragrant, 60 seconds.
• Add the sun-dried tomatoes, and the sun-dried tomato oil, and stir for 2 minutes.
• Combine the remaining ingredients (except the chicken), to the skillet
• Stir to combine the ingredients, while slowly bringing up to a simmer, about 2 - 3 minutes.
• Chef's Note: While the sauce is coming up to the simmer, taste and season with salt and pepper.
• Return the chicken to the pan, skin side up.
• Place, uncovered, in the pre-heated oven, and bake for 25 minutes.
• Raise the heat to 375f (190c), and bake an additional 10 minutes.
• PLATE/PRESENT
• Serve with pasta, rice, mash potatoes, veggies... whatever you choose, and do not forget that yummy sauce. Enjoy.
• Keep the faith, and keep cooking.

POULTRY ESSENTIALS: CRISPY CHICKEN THIGHS

Steps:

• PREP/PREPARE
• If you are doing the optional brine, then add all the ingredients to the water, and whisk until the sugar and salt are completely dissolved. Add the chicken thighs, and place in the fridge for 3 - 4 hours. I like how the tamari flavors the chicken; however, if you are not too sure about it, just leave it out.
• The reason I do not include any salt in the spice mix, is because I am brining the thighs. If you choose not to brine, then add about a teaspoon of salt, or to taste.
• Gather your Ingredients (mise en place).
• Combine all of the spice mixture ingredients into a small bowl, and reserve.
• Take the chicken (after the brine), and pat dry. Then place on a plate or small sheet pan, and sprinkle with the potato starch.
• Chef's Note: The purpose of the potato starch is to help dry out the skin. It will not impart any flavor of its own. You could use salt, or baking soda, but both of those methods make the chicken taste a bit too salty for my palate.
• I like to remove the bone from the thighs before baking. The only reason for this is the final presentation; plus, without the bone, it makes it easier for my guests to slice. If you leave the bone in, no worries.
• Stick them in the fridge, uncovered, for 2 - 3 hours.
• Remove from the fridge, place on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet, fitted with a wire rack (if you have one). They should be skin-side up.
• Lightly brush the skins with the olive oil.
• Sprinkle with the reserved spice mixture, then let sit on the counter for 20 minutes.
• Place a rack in the middle position, and preheat the oven to 425f (220c).
• Add the chicken thighs to the oven, and bake for 15 minutes.
• Lower the heat to 400f (205c), and cook until the internal temperature of the thighs reaches 165f (75c), about an additional 15 minutes.
• PLATE/PRESENT
• One of my favorite ways to serve these is on a plate of homemade pasta, and a nice spicy tomato sauce. But, how you serve them, is totally up to you.
• Keep the faith, and keep cooking.

DAIRY-FREE CREAMY CHICKEN THIGHS AND MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Place bacon in a large, oven-proof skillet and cook over medium-high heat, turning occasionally, until all the fat is rendered and the bacon is crispy and evenly browned, about 10 minutes. Remove bacon from the skillet and set aside. Drain bacon slices on paper towels. Carefully pour out all the fat, except for 2 tablespoons.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Pat chicken thighs dry, and lightly sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper to taste.
• Add seasoned chicken thighs in a single layer into the same skillet and sprinkle with Italian seasoning blend. Cook over medium-high heat until brown, about 3 minutes per side. Remove to a plate and keep warm.
• Add sliced mushrooms to the skillet and cook until they are soft. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
• Pour in almond milk, and adjust seasonings, if necessary. Return chicken thighs to the skillet, nestling them in and partially covering with the sauce.
• Place in the preheated oven and bake, uncovered, until internal temperature of chicken is 165 degrees F (74 degrees C), about 20 minutes.
• Combine cornstarch and cold water in a small bowl, stirring quickly, until all the lumps are gone. Stir into the sauce while it is still hot and allow the sauce to thicken slightly.
• Transfer chicken and sauce to a serving dish, crumble reserved bacon over all, and sprinkle with parsley.