CHICKEN MARSALA

SERVES: 4 to 6

TOTAL TIME: 1 hour 30 minutes

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS Beloved for its silky, winey, mushroomy sauce, chicken Marsala is an Italian-American restaurant favorite that we wanted to make more approachable—and more delicious—for the home cook. White mushrooms are often used in restaurants, but here we use more flavorful cremini, along with even more intensely flavored dried porcini. To make identically sized pieces of chicken that could easily be pounded into cutlets, we first cut each chicken breast in half crosswise. Then, we cut the thicker half in half horizontally to make three pieces. We salted the cutlets briefly and then dredged them in flour, which helped accelerate browning and prevented the meat from overcooking. For the sauce, we used reduced dry Marsala and chicken broth for rich flavor and a little powdered gelatin to create a silky, full-bodied texture. Use a good-quality dry Marsala for this recipe.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2¼ cups dry Marsala
• 4 teaspoons unflavored gelatin
• 1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms, rinsed
• 4 (6-to 8-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed Salt and pepper
• 2 cups chicken broth
• ¾ cup all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup plus 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 3 ounces pancetta, cut into ½-inch pieces
• 1 pound cremini mushrooms, trimmed and sliced thin
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh oregano
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh parsley

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Bring 2 cups Marsala, gelatin, and porcini mushrooms to boil in a medium saucepan, then reduce heat to medium-high and simmer vigorously until reduced by half, 6 to 8 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, cut each chicken breast in half crosswise, then cut thick end in half horizontally, creating 3 cutlets per breast of about same thickness. Pound cutlets between 2 sheets of plastic wrap to uniform ½-inch thickness. Toss cutlets with 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper in bowl and set aside for 15 minutes.
3. Strain Marsala reduction through fine-mesh strainer, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible; discard solids. Return Marsala reduction to saucepan, add broth, and return to boil. Reduce heat to medium-high and simmer until reduced to 1½ cups, 10 to 12 minutes; set aside.
4. Spread flour in shallow dish. Working with 1 cutlet at a time, dredge in flour, shaking gently to remove excess, then place on wire rack set in rimmed baking sheet. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Place 6 cutlets in skillet and reduce heat to medium. Cook until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Return cutlets to wire rack. Repeat with 2 tablespoons oil and remaining 6 cutlets.
5. Cook pancetta in now-empty skillet over medium-low heat, stirring and scraping pan bottom to loosen any browned bits, until brown and crisp, about 4 minutes. Stir in cremini mushrooms, increase heat to medium-high, and cook until mushrooms begin to brown, about 8 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer cremini mushrooms and pancetta to bowl. Add remaining 1 teaspoon oil and shallot to fat left in pan and cook until softened, 1 minute. Add tomato paste and garlic and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds. Stir in lemon juice, oregano, reduced Marsala mixture, and remaining ¼ cup Marsala and bring to simmer.
6. Nestle cutlets into sauce and simmer for 3 minutes, flipping halfway through simmering. Transfer cutlets to serving platter. Off heat, whisk butter into sauce in skillet. Stir in parsley and cremini mushroom mixture and season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon sauce over chicken and serve.