Sautéed chicken breasts with tarragon and mustard sauce

Ingredients

• 2 chicken breasts (not too big)
• 10g unsalted butter
• 1 tsp olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• 75ml dry vermouth
• 75ml chicken stock
• 75ml cream
• About ¼ tsp Dijon mustard
• Leaves from 4 sprigs tarragon, chopped

Method

This creamy tarragon and mustard sauce with sautéed chicken breasts is stand-by in my house ever since I’ve had my own house! It’s very quick but really rather luxurious

Put the chicken breasts between two pieces of greaseproof paper or cling film. Bash them to flatten them a bit. This helps them to cook more quickly.

Heat the butter and oil in a frying pan and add the chicken. Cook the chicken over a medium heat. You want, first, to get a little colour on both sides. They don’t have to be dark, just pale gold. 

Be careful not to burn the butter and keep flipping the chicken over from one side to the other and moving it round the pan (frying pans heat unevenly so moving the chicken helps combat that problem). Add the vermouth, cover the pan and let the chicken cook gently until it is cooked through (check by sticking the point of a knife into the flesh to ensure it runs clear). 

Remove to a warm plate, cover and keep warm.

Increase the heat and let the vermouth and cooking juices boil down to about 1 tbsp. Add the chicken stock and boil until it reduces by 1/3, then add the cream and boil until the mixture will coat the back of a spoon. 

Add the tarragon and mustard and mix well together. Put the chicken – and any juices that have come out of it – back into the pan and heat through. Serve immediately with little baby potatoes and green beans.

Cooking tip

This chicken recipe can be made with thyme or rosemary, or with just Dijon mustard, if you can’t get tarragon in time for supper.

For more cooking ideas visit our page for chicken recipes