Tarragon Chicken Recipe

This tarragon chicken recipe is an absolute delight, with tarragon's subtle hint of aniseed making it the perfect flavour partner for both chicken and English mustard.

Try free-range or organic chicken
breasts for this recipe.




Tarragon chicken recipe: -

Prep time: 5 minutes - Cooking time: 27 minutes

Serves 2

2 Skinless chicken breasts
2 medium shallots, chopped
2 fl-oz(60ml) of dry vermouth
1 tbsp of cider vinegar
1 tsp of English mustard
3 tbsp of reduced-fat crème fraîche
3 sprigs of chopped Fresh tarragon, leaves only
1 tbsp of olive oil
Juice of half a lemon
Lemon wedges, for garnish


First preheat your oven at 200˚C/400˚F/Gas 6, then take a non stick frying pan and place it over a medium heat; add the olive oil and heat it through.

Season the chicken breasts and add them to the pan, colour them lightly for about 3-4 minutes on either side; turning once. Then place the chicken breasts on a baking sheet in the oven for 20-23 minutes until cooked through.

Meanwhile prepare your other ingredients. After the chicken breasts have been in the oven for 12-15 minutes take the pan which was used to cook the chicken in and place it over a low heat. Then add the shallots and sauté them for 4-5 minutes until soft; add a touch more olive oil if the pan is too dry.

Next add the cider vinegar & vermouth to the pan and increase the heat a touch, simmer for 2 minutes to reduce & evaporate the alcohol.

When the chicken breasts are cooked remove them from the oven and set aside to rest. To test if they're cooked stick a skewer in the thickest part of the breast, if the juices are clear then they're ready: if they're pink they need a little longer.

Next reduce the heat to low and add the mustard & crème fraîche to the pan, season and combine; simmer on a low heat for 2-3 minutes to reduce the sauce stirring constantly.

Then add the chopped tarragon & chicken breasts to the pan, combine in the sauce and simmer for a further 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and add a couple of squeezes of lemon to lift the flavours and add some sharpness.

Then serve simply serve your tarragon chicken and garnish with some wedges of lemon.




Serving Suggestions:

This tarragon chicken recipe serves well with the jersey royals and wilted spinach, as pictured above.

As does Saffron mash

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