Prep Time  12minutes
Cook Time  25minutes
Total Time  37minutes

Chicken Marsala

Dave Beaulieu March 19th, 2012

I’ve got another great recipe, to add to your (hopefully growing) list of great boneless, skinless chicken breast recipes.  This one an Italian Classic - Chicken Marsala.  I just started making this dish a few years ago, and it’s developed in a pretty consist hit in my house.  And frankly, once you learn the cooking techniques…out will come pork marsala, veal marsala, scallop marsala…and at least a few marsalas I'm sure you can come up with..  The combination of mushrooms and the marsala wine, makes the dish earthy, rich and wonderful.  Add to that, the fact that it’s easy to make and you got a winner.  Hope you enjoy this chicken marsala recipe as much as I do.

Recipe Overview & Keys to Success

To make the best Chicken Marasala, just follow these few cooking techniques:

  1. Start by cooking the mushrooms, as they take the longest.  And cook them thoroughly.  My preference it to brown them well, where the are slightly crispy on the edges, most of the internal water is evaporated out and the flavors concentrated
  2. As with any chicken breast recipe, you need to cook the chicken breast well.  Check out my tips for cooking chicken here.
  3. The sauce needs to be balanced between the marsala wine and the stock.  Ideally you’ve got good homemade stock to use, but even if you don’t, use a 50/50 ratio, or even a bit less marsala.  And allow the wine to cook down by about half before adding the stock
  4. In this recipe, you cook several things in the same pan, at different stages (1st mushrooms, 2nd chicken, 3rd sauce).  You need to watch and regulate the heat in the pan to prevent the brown bits on the bottom from burning, so keep an eye on things, and don’t be afraid to cool things off with a little splash of water if needed

RECIPE FOR CHICKEN MARSALA

Ingredients for Chicken Marsala (for 2)

  • 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • 1/2 cup dry marsala wine
  • 1/2 cup chicken or beef stock
  • 1 diced shallot
  • 1 minced garlic clove
  • Flour to coat the chicken
  • 1 cup diced button or crimini mushrooms

Chicken Marsala

  • Heat a large sauté pan over high heat, coat the bottom with olive oil and add the diced mushrooms
  • Season with salt and pepper and toss to coat
  • After a few minutes turn the heat down to medium and cook the mushrooms until well browned all over, with slightly crispy outsides (once cooked, remove to a holding bowl)
  • While the mushrooms sauté, season the chicken breasts on both sides with salt and pepper
  • Coat both sides of the chicken with flour (it’s easiest to lay the flour on a clean plate, and then lay each breast down in the flour, coating each side
  • Bring the pan in which you cooked the mushrooms back up to temperature over medium high heat, add olive oil to coat and lay both chicken breasts down to sear
  • Allow them to cook on one side, without touching for 3 – 5 minutes.
  • Once browned on that side, flip them over to brown the other side
  • Remove the chicken from the pan (put on a holding plate) and add the cooked mushrooms, shallot and garlic, and allow both to sauté for about a minute
  • Add the marsala wine & reduce it by half, while deglazing the pan
  • Once reduced, add the stock and again reduce by half
  • Now add the chicken back to the sauce and simmer for about a minute, then flip and simmer for another minute
  • The sauce should be at a nice consistency.  If it’s too thick, remove the chicken and add a bit of water or stock to thin it. If it’s thin, remove the chicken and turn up the heat to reduce it further
  • Plate up the chicken and spoon some of that delicious marsala sauce right over the top

This chicken marsala recipe is one of my favorites (try it served over some freshly cooked polenta), and I hope you love it too.

Wine Recommendation:  With mushrooms, my wine pairing choice is frequently a Pinot Noir...and absolutely perfect match. The marsala wine, which is a bit spicy and rich will also pair quite well.  I'd go for a spicy/bold Pinot which are pretty frequent pick in California Pinots.  Hope you enjoy it!

Chicken Marsala Recipe

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