This is the time of year when I really, really, REALLY miss my trusty whiskey barrels of herbs that are outside my kitchen door. They are still there, but currently they are under a good 18 inches or so of mean-looking frozen snow, and the lovely friendly basil, rosemary, parsley, sage, mint, thyme and tarragon that live in them during the summer are just misty memories. So every once in a while I fork over the money to buy a handful of whatever herb I am craving, just to remind me that one day I will be able to just run outside and snip myself a handful. This time I was jonesing for sweet anise-tasting tarragon, with some brown butter braised chicken.
This is one of those dishes that I love so much, because you get all the goodness of chicken that has been browned in butter over high heat on the stove, and all the tenderness of chicken that has been braised over low heat until it is the pinnacle of tender. When the chicken is done, you add a little white wine and chopped onion and oh yes, tarragon to the butter and chicken drippings to make an easy and fabulous sauce. Save a little tarragon to use as a cheery green garnish.
I served mine with a side of my current vegetable passion, which is whipped cauliflower, but this would of course go fabulously with mashed potatoes or rice or pasta. Anything that will help you get every speck of the butter and tarragon sauce.
Here’s to the eventual return of our herb gardens everyone…it WILL happen.
Print
Buttered Tarragon Chicken
Prep Time: 5 minutes- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 2 servings 1x
Category: Dinner
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: American
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
Chicken cooks gently in a buttery tarragon sauce in this easy herb-infused recipe.
Ingredients
- 2 large bone-in chicken breasts, cut in half to make quarters
- 5 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 cup white wine
- 1/2 onion, chopped into small pieces
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh tarragon, plus extra for garnish
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Melt 4 tablespoons butter over medium high heat in a heavy deep skillet. Add chicken and cook for 4 minutes on each side until browned.
- Reduce heat to medium low and cover the skillet. Cook until chicken is done, about 20 minutes (I like to check with an instant read thermometer, which should read 165 degrees).
- Remove chicken and add wine and onion. Turn the heat up to medium high and cook the sauce for about five minutes. Whisk in the remaining tablespoon of butter until melted.
- Stir in the chopped tarragon and return the chicken to the skillet. Simmer over medium low heat until the chicken is warmed and covered with sauce. Taste the sauce and add salt and pepper as needed.
- Place the chicken on warmed plates or a platter and drizzle the pan sauce on top. Garnish with tarragon leaves and serve at once.
Hi there! I’m Kate, and I’m a recipe writer, food photographer and devoted bacon lover. I started Framed Cooks in 2009, and my mission is to create and share family-friendly recipes that make cooking both easy and fun…yes, I said FUN! My kitchen is my happy place, and I want yours to be that place too. And if you make this recipe, I would love you to tag @FramedCooks on Instagram so I can see the deliciousness!
No more AeroGarden indoor herb growing “kit”, looked like such a sweet machine to have on your counter in the winter? Love this recipe, thanks.
Hi Shelly! We are mixing it up a little these days – now we have an Aquafarm, which grows plants on the top in water, and has a fish on the bottom! Variety in the kitchen. :) Here’s a link if you want to take a look – it’s pretty cool. https://www.backtotheroots.com/shop/aquafarm
Chicken and tarragon, to me, is like peanut butter and jelly. They were meant for each other.
I couldn’t have said it better myself, Mindy!