Chicken is a very versatile meat, but it often gets short shrift. For most people, it’s considered a meal to make when you’re not feeling creative or are on a diet. But actually you can create many tasty dishes with chicken, and it will be anything but sad. Like a chicken stew, for example, which we propose here in 5 versions.
How to cut the chicken
Often in the butcher shop you’ll find the chicken already cut for the stew, but you can easily do it at home with a whole breast. Just remove the ribs and cartilage, then cut everything into cubes of the same size so they’ll cook evenly. Use a very sharp knife and divide the breast first in half and then into several pieces. The meat is very tender and easy to cut.
Creamy is better
Chicken stew always risks being a bit bland, so it needs a little seasoning to be enhance the flavor. You can use tomato sauce or give it some creaminess by coating the pieces of chicken in flour, preferably rice flour. Once the meat is browned, add wine, broth or some other liquid and it will combine with the starch of the flour to turn into a delicious cream. As always with any stew, keep some bread handy to sop up what’s left.
What should you use to reduce?
It seems like a useless step, and yet when you add liquid to the chicken and reduce it, the scent and flavor remains. With white wine you can never go wrong, while with red you will not only color the meat, but you’ll also add an intense aftertaste. A light beer is fine, especially with spices such as paprika and chili. And if you want a more enveloping and soft scent, use brandy or cognac. If you don’t want to use alcohol, opt for vegetable broth or citrus juice. The stew most loved by children, however, is one in milk, accompanied by mashed potatoes.
5 Recipes for chicken stew
Here are some recipes to prepare simple stews, but to great effect.
Asian chicken with peppers
This is another ethnic recipe we’ve come to know as almond chicken. It’s the sweet-and-sour chicken with peppers traditionally prepared in Chinese cuisine. Bread the chicken with the rice flour and then cook it in a pan with the oil (preferably a delicate seed oil) and shake it with a little broth. Then add some peppers cut into strips, a teaspoon of sugar and white wine vinegar and continue cooking until the peppers have become soft. Salt and add whole or flaked almonds and serve with fresh parsley (or cilantro).
Baked chicken stew with vegetables
This is the simplest recipe because you just put all the ingredients in a baking sheet and bake. You can choose from several mixed vegetables or even just potatoes and be creative with herbs and spices. One idea would be to have the chicken stew baked in a pan with potatoes and chunks, carrots and zucchini in rounds and a sliced onion. You can also add chopped cauliflower or Brussels sprouts. Salt, pepper and season with olive oil and a mix of parsley, oregano, thyme, marjoram and sage. Sprinkle with white wine or beer and cook at 390°F for about 30 minutes.
Creamy chicken stew with mushrooms
This recipe is enriched with some fresh cream to create a creamy sauce for chicken that goes particularly well with mushrooms. First of all, cook mixed mushrooms or only mushrooms in a pan with oil, garlic and parsley. In another pan cook the chicken with a drizzle of oil and a knob of butter, lightly floured, and then add the broth. Add the mushrooms and a little fresh cream and cook over moderate heat until you have obtained a thick salt. Salt and pepper.
Chicken with tomato sauce
A stew with Mediterranean colors and flavors with tomato, capers and olives. You can prepare it with tomatoes cooked with onion and a clove of garlic, or with tomato purée. Cook the meat only with a little oil and add the broth, then add the cherry tomato sauce or puree, a handful of desalted capers and stoned black olives. Complete the cooking with oregano, salt and pepper.
Chicken curry stew
A classic that everyone always likes. You can also prepare it with turkey, and instead of the traditional curry you can also use the green one in paste, which is more difficult but to find. Of course, chicken curry should always be served with a portion of basmati rice.