Chicken Marsala is a wonderful dish. It’s easy, flavorful and comforting. A number of my friends count chicken Marsala among their favorite foods. If you have friends or family like that, then make this for them and then sit back and watch their delight.
There isn’t much to this dish in the way of effort. Once the ingredients are prepped, it’s just a matter of letting them cook. The one mildly inconvenient thing about this meal is the pounding of the chicken breast. It’s worth it, but if you feel like using chicken tenderloins instead, you might be able to avoid the pounding.
If you are trying to flatten your breasts, try to pound your chicken down to about 1/4″ thick. It might even help to cut the breasts in half length-wise through the middle. This will ensure faster and more even cooking because you don’t want a seared outside and raw inside. This can also happen if your chicken comes directly out of the fridge and goes into the pan. Try to let it reach room temp before tossing the breasts in the pan.
With the breasts flattened, the next step is to coat them liberally with flour. Toss some in a plate and role and coat the chicken.
You can set the chicken aside for a bit while you get everything else set. Next prep your mushrooms and shallots. As an aside, I enjoy the nuanced flavor shallots add, but you can also substitute red onion or pretty much any onion you like.
With your chicken floured, your mushrooms and onion cut, it’s time to cook! You will want everything set to go. Another hint: measure out all the vinegar and Marsala in a single measuring cup and add a couple tablespoons of flour. Just before pouring them in the pan give them a good whisking. This makes for a thicker sauce. Plus you will avoid clumpy lumps of flour.
The main idea is that you want to avoid overcooking the chicken, so time management is important. That’s why we prep everything first. It make the process SO much easier.
I used one skillet for the whole meal. Though, I did have a plate on the counter so you can set aside the chicken as it finishes. This means clean up isn’t bad. Another comfort this dish provides.
Depending on the amount of chicken you are cooking and the size of your pan, do the cooking in batches. You don’t want to just lump 5 or 6 breasts in the pan and hope for the best.
Once all the breasts are mostly cooked, golden brown and set aside, you are ready to add the mushrooms and butter. And yes, use butter. This is a comforting and delicious meal, not a time to worry about the fat. Just don’t eat it every night, haha!
Sear the mushrooms for about 8 minutes, then put them on the plate with the chicken. When removing the mushrooms, use a slotted spoon or the like so you can leave as much liquid/butter in the pan as you can. If you need to, just add another pad or two butter before adding the shallots.
Saute the shallots for a few minutes (2-3) then add your vinegars and Marsala wine. Simmer and reduce. It might take 10 or 15 minutes, but you are going to end up with a thicker and more concentrated sauce. Well worth it.
After the sauce has reduced by about half, you can add back your chicken and mushrooms. Cook for 4-5 more minutes to finish the chicken and to warm everything up. Toss a few times to ensure the chicken and mushrooms are coated and then it’s time to garnish and serve.
You might also want to try different brands or styles of Marsala. There are many types that are the result of aging or flavoring additions.
I didn’t add a side this go around, but you can certainly put this over a plate of pasta or rice. You might even have some vegetable side ideas. Go for it! Either way you serve it, just enjoy this most tasty of vittles.
Chicken Marsala with baby portabella mushrooms, red wine vinegar, chicken stock and Marsala wine.
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1.5lbs)
8oz baby portabella mushrooms, sliced
1 shallot, small diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 Tbsp butter, unsalted
⅓ cup chicken stock
⅓ cup red wine vinegar
⅔ cup Marsala wine
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
Olive oil for pan
Combine vinegars, Marsala and flour; mix until flour is incorporated.
Pound chicken to ¼in thickness; dredge pieces in flour to coat and sear (approx. 3 min per side). Remove chicken from the pan and set aside.
Add butter to pan, melt and sautee mushrooms until golden brown (about 6-8 minutes). Remove mushrooms and set aside with the chicken.
Add shallots and garlic to pan and sautee for about 1-2 minutes.
Add stock, vinegars and Marsala; scrape pan to loosen fond; then reduce 10-15 minutes to thicken.
Add back the chicken and mushrooms; cook for 4-5 minutes to finish cooking the chicken.
Serve and garnish.
