Easy to make, creamy-rich and comforting, yet completely company-worthy, no wonder Chicken Fricassee was Abraham Lincoln’s favorite! This classic dish is soon to be your family’s favorite, too!
Well, hello there! Glad you stopped by! And to my faithful followers, no, I didn’t fall off the planet! Ha! My hubby and I have made a huge move halfway across the country in search of a better, more stable life.
We gave the east coast our best shot, and things were wonderful in the beginning. But life changes and the roller coaster never ends! So, we’re back in the heartland and already much happier!
So, time for a good ol’ comfort food recipe, a classic actually, that really needs to come back in style!
This was Abraham Lincoln’s favorite dish, and it was said, that he ate more of the rich gravy than everyone else at the table combined, he liked it that much!
And I’m sure you’ll agree with Abe and my hubby, that this dish is every bit as good as it’s acclaim! Comforting “guy food”, yet fantastic enough for company!
So let’s make this tonight!
You start by simply dredging the cut-up chicken in seasoned flour,…
…making sure that you coat it very well and evenly on all sides. This is important, because it will help to thicken the sauce later!
Then fry it on all sides in hot oil and butter until just the skin is golden browned on the outside.
Remove the pieces from the pan,….
…and add all kinds of wonderful things to it, and simmer it down to condense the flavors.
Then add the chicken back to the pan along with a bay leaf, and pop it into the oven to bake until done inside.
You’ll then take the pieces back out of the pan,….
…and simmer the juices and wine down again.
Next, you’ll add the cream and the mushrooms, and simmer, simmer, simmer again. This does take a little time to make, but it’s super easy and so well worth making! So stay with me, because we’re almost done!
Just place the chicken back into the now-reduced and luscious sauce, and simmer one last time to finish thickening and reheat the chicken.
Lastly, serve the chicken over rice, biscuits, or mashed potatoes and….
…ladle lots of that incredible, rich and creamy sauce over the top!
And that’s all there is to it! The only time consuming part is baking and simmering. No biggie at all.
And, fair warning, your entire house is going to smell AMAZING!! You really, REALLY need to make this!
Just ask my hubby how good this classic, simple yet beautiful dish is. He raved and raved for days on end over this one!
And I’m sure that Abraham Lincoln’s Favorite Chicken Fricassee will be a show-stopper at your house, too! Be sure to Pin this recipe to your favorite boards for safe-keeping! Because it really is a classic that your entire family is sure to love! Enjoy!
Abraham Lincoln's Favorite Chicken Fricassee
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken cut-up: 2 breasts, 2 legs, 2 thighs, 2 wings, (*my package weighed about 5 lbs.)
- 1 cup flour
- 1 Tbl. Kosher salt
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. ground black pepper
- 1 tsp. paprika
- 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
- 3 Tb. Minerva Dairy Butter, regular or with Sea Salt
- 2 Tbl. olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion or 2 shallots, chopped
- 8 oz. fresh whole button mushrooms, cleaned and stems trimmed, or jarred (drained)
- 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 3/4 cup dry white wine
- 1 bay leaf
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- 1 Tbl. fresh parsley finely chopped, optional
Instructions
Rinse and pat dry chicken pieces.
Combine the flour, salt, pepper, garlic powder, nutmeg and paprika in a shallow bowl or glass pie dish. Dredge each piece of chicken in the seasoned flour coating evenly.
Heat butter and olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat on the stovetop. Place the chicken pieces in a single layer and cook until brown and crispy on all sides. Transfer the browned chicken to a plate and set aside.
Add onions or shallots to the pan, and cook until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms, and cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms start to brown, about 5 minutes. (*If using jarred mushrooms, do not add at this point.) Add garlic, and cook one more minute. Take the pan off the flame and add wine to deglaze. Return to flame, and bring to a boil. Add chicken stock and stir to combine. Add bay leaf. Bring to a simmer, and simmer 5 minutes.
Place chicken, skin side up, in a single layer in the pan. *The liquid should not cover the chicken entirely. (Add any juices that have accumulated on the plate to the pan.) Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover with lid tilted. Cook until internal temperature of thickest part of chicken registers 165º F, about 50 minutes to 1 hour. Transfer chicken to a clean plate and set aside.
*Alternatively, you can bake this in the oven, uncovered, for about 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes at 350º F. Check internal temperature to make sure it's 165º F or if meat easily pulls away from the bone. (*I like this method the best!)
Then, simmer liquid, uncovered, until reduced quite a bit, about 10 - 15 minutes. Add cream and parsley (if adding). (*Add drained jarred mushrooms if using.) Continue simmering and gently stirring about another 15 minutes until sauce is thickening and reduced even more.
Return chicken pieces to the pan, crispy skin side up, and gently cook over medium-low heat another 3-5 minutes until the chicken is rewarmed and the sauce is nicely thickened.
Serve immediately over rice or mashed potatoes, with homemade biscuits, rolls or bread and butter. Enjoy!
