Not Your Nana’s Chicken Marsala

A quick Google search suggests that Chicken Marsala is a dish which originated from English families who lived in western Sicily in the 19th century, where Marsala wine is produced.  Chicken breasts are coated in flour, briefly sauteed in a pan and removed. Then, Marsala wine is added to the pan drippings and reduced to make a syrupy-like consistency. A gravy, if you will.  Garlic and mushrooms are added, and the sauce is spooned over the chicken.

This, or a similar version, is likely what your Italian-American grandmother made for Sunday dinner.

Another “classic” version consists of chicken being braised in Marsala wine and butter and then served with potatoes.

My version of Chicken Marsala is not that.

The first time I ate Chicken Marsala, it was from a recipe found in the 1971 cookbook titled 365 Ways to Cook Chicken and republished in the Times Picayune on August 1, 2012.  And in this version, Chicken Marsala was not made with a gravy based sauce.  It was made with a cream sauce.  Evidently, Cheryl Sedeker who wrote the 365 Ways to Cook Chicken, was a trailblazer.  Who is this brave woman who bucked tradition, developing, in my opinion, a superior dish than the classic?  Honestly, all I know about her is that she ruined me for the dish any other way.  In fact, the first time I ordered Chicken Marsala at a restaurant, it was from Vincent’s Italian Cuisine, one of my favorite local restaurants, by the way. Imagine my surprise when the server brought me chicken in gravy instead of a cream sauce.

In my version of Chicken Marsala, which moves even further away from tradition than Cheryl Sdedeker’s, I marinate the chicken breasts in Italian dressing for at least 2 hours before cooking and boil bow tie pasta to toss with the sauce.  I also use canola oil in place of some of the butter in Ms. Sedeker’s recipe, given canola oil’s high smoke point.  Using this oil instead of olive oil or just butter (both of which have a lower smoke point) allows me to get a good brown on the chicken without leaving burnt remnants of chicken in the skillet to be picked up when I add the Marsala wine.

Here’s the recipe for my version of Chicken Marsala.

Chicken Marsala

Adapted from the recipe in 365 Ways to Cook Chicken by Cheryl Sdedeker and republished in the Times Picayune on August 1, 2012.

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Ingredients

  

• 3 tablespoons butter divided
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 3 large chicken breasts
• 1 pound farfalle pasta
• 4 shallots finely chopped
• ½ pound mushrooms sliced
• ½ cup Marsala wine I use Taylor brand, which is considered “medium sweet”
• 1 cup heavy cream
• Juice of one lemon
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

 

• Melt one tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon canola oil in a skillet over medium heat.
• Sauté chicken until lightly browned on both sides, about 4-5 minutes per side.
• Remove chicken from skillet and set aside.
• Meanwhile, boil water in a separate pot and cook pasta according to package directions.
• Melt remaining butter in pan and sauté mushrooms for 2-3 minutes.
• Add shallots to the pan and sauté another 1-2 minutes, until mushrooms have lightly browned.
• Add Marsala wine and bring to a boil, scraping up brown bits that have accumulated in the pan.
• Add cream and lemon juice and return to a boil to allow the sauce to thicken.
• Slice chicken breasts and return to the pan, turning in the sauce, until reheated.
• Taste and add salt and pepper as needed.
• Add pasta to the pan and toss to combine.