This fricassée chicken, morels, and wine is already a winner; add the cream, and things get seriously delicious. The sherry’s nutty kick dances with the earthy morels, creating a flavor combination that feels both indulgent and deeply satisfying.
This recipe is all about building rich, delicious layers of flavor. Each layer of flavor is gently curated by allowing it to be reduced before adding the next layer. This layering cannot be achieved by adding all the liquids at once. It is the boldness of each layer that created this fantastic classic French dish, a sought-after recipe.
I wish all of you were in my kitchen when I was preparing this classic French dish. The aroma coming from the skillet was inebriating. Do not be intimidated by the length of the instructions; I love sharing every little detail to set you up for success.
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The traditional au vin French recipe is prepared with Vin Jaune, a distinctive wine from the Jura region of France crafted from the Savagnin grape. This wine’s uniqueness comes from its lengthy aging process, in which, after the initial fermentation, it is transferred to oak casks and aged for at least six years.
During this time, a natural yeast layer forms on the wine surface, shielding it from oxidation. The result is a golden-hued wine with nutty, spicy, and savory notes, similar to sherry.
However, I could not find it at my local store, so I chose the dry sherry wine. White wine is also used.
In this Article
- Why you will love this recipe
- What is chicken fricassee?
- Ingredients needed to make this recipe
- Equipment Needed
- Step by step on how to make this delicious chicken fricassee with morels
- Pro Tips
- What to serve with a chicken fricassee recipe?
- Variations and Substitutions
- Chicken Tips
- Storing and Reheating
- Frequently Asked Questions
- If you enjoy this chicken fricassee, you may want to try my other recipes.
- Fricassee Chicken, Morels, and Wine
Why you will love this recipe
Easy chicken recipe – this is the easiest recipe to make and absolutely delicious, if I may say so myself. Do give it a try and let me know how much you love it too.
A show stopper – indulge your family and friends with this classic French dish. it can be served from the skillet to the table for a family style dinner.
Most ingredients are already in your pantry – easy ingredients that are a staple on most pantry.
Crowd pleaser – my favorite part of this dinner is that you can multiply it and serve it for a large crowd and it will satisfy everyone appetite.
What is chicken fricassee?
Chicken Fricassee is a classic French chicken stew that combines tender chicken pieces in a creamy wine sauce infused with mushrooms’ earthy essence.
It is rich in flavor yet refined, making it a go-to favorite when you want to have an elegant meal and indulge in every delectable bite.
Ingredients needed to make this recipe
This is a short introduction. The ingredient list is also brief. It includes essential items that you may already have in your pantry. Please read the recipe for complete instructions.
Leg quarters – better known as chicken thighs attached to the drumstick. Skin on and bone-in so they will not overcook and dry out
Dry morel mushrooms—If you can find fresh, by all means, use them. Clean them with a gentle brush and remove the base that may contain dirt. If using dry, save the water in which you let your morel mushrooms rehydrate. This will give your chicken a deep layer of flavor. DO save the water that you will have your morel mushrooms in. Filter it with a fine mesh to remove all residues. You will be amazed at how savory your sauce will become.
Unsalted butter – I always use unsalted butter in my cooking or baking to control the amount of sodium. Salted butter not only adds too much salt to your dish, but it changes the flavor. Used to cook the chicken as well as to saute the shallots.
Olive oil – used to crisp up the chicken.
Garlic clove—this is optional. I have added it to my chicken because I love its tender flavor. One garlic clove will do; do not add more, as it will take away from the delicate flavor of the morels.
Shallots – gentler flavor than onions and sweeter when cooked. Shallots are a must in every French kitchen.
Chicken broth or stock – intensifies the chicken flavor, enhances the morels, and creates the sauce with the wine and heavy cream.
Dry sherry or dry white wine – I used dry sherry for this recipe. Its intense flavor balances well with all the ingredients.
Heavy cream – creates the velvety sauce once it is cooked and reduced. Do not substitute, as none will replace the fantastic flavor it gives this.
Salt and black pepper – the seasoning needed for seasoning
Fresh sprigs thyme – optional but a great addition to your chicken fricassee
Equipment Needed
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Step by step on how to make this delicious chicken fricassee with morels
With all my recipes, please assemble all the ingredients before starting cooking and baking. As I mentioned earlier, this recipe requires that each layer of liquid be reduced before the other liquid is added. Those steps cannot be rushed as they make this chicken fricassee so deliciously amazing.
Let’s start with soaking the morel mushrooms
- In warm water for about 20 to 30 minutes. Add enough water to collect one cup of the soaking liquid that you will use to create the sauce. Once done, DO save the liquid.
Meanwhile
- Season the leg quarters generously with salt and black pepper.
- Heat the butter and oil in a large skillet. Add the chicken, skin-side down, and cook until the skin is crispy. Do not touch until it moves freely, about 10 minutes. Turn over and cook another five minutes. Remove the chicken from the skillet and set it aside.
- Remove any cooking fat; do not clean, but leave any bits on the bottom of the pan.
- Return to the stove and add butter.
- Add the shallots, cook until translucent, add the garlic, and stir.
Start to build the sauce flavor layers.
- Add the chicken stock to the skillet, and deglaze any browned bits left from the chicken with a wooden spoon.
- Return the chicken to the skillet, cover, and cook over low heat for 10 minutes. The stock needs to be reduced by half.
- Add the reserved morels soaking liquid, simmer, cover, and reduce for another 10 minutes.
- Add the dry sherry or wine, simmer covered, and reduce for about 5 minutes.
- Lastly, add the heavy cream and the morels to the skillet.
- Cover the chicken with the morels and cook for about twenty minutes until the chicken is fully cooked. Season with salt and pepper to taste
The above steps will go relatively fast, and the only thing you will have to do is enjoy the aroma that is lingering in your kitchen.
Once the chicken is ready, season with salt and pepper to taste.
Pro Tips
- The success of crispy chicken skin is that once you place it on your skillet to brown, do not touch it. Leave alone for at least five to seven minutes. Then, gently push it with your cooking tongs. If you still feel resistance, do not think to turn it over, as the skin will be stuck to the skillet, not the chicken piece.
- Adding each liquid one at the time and reduce thereafter is the key success for this recipe. You are building flavor and each liquids brings that layer of flavor. Do not add all the liquids at once, you will not achieve that amazing flavor.
What to serve with a chicken fricassee recipe?
With such a fantastic sauce, you can either go with buttermilk mashed potatoes or smashed potatoes, where you can enjoy the flavor or both and have the potatoes help with the sauce.
With a crispy green salad or roasted rainbow carrots and broccolini, you have a delightful contrast in flavors that do not overpower your dish.
As I have it here, Butter Rice is the perfect neutral side dish that emphasizes the chicken.
Variations and Substitutions
This dish is just as impressive as it is. You can make a few minor additions.
- You can omit or add one garlic clove as per the recipe. Please do not add more; the flavor will be overpowering and interfere with the delicate cream sauce and the sherry/morel flavors.
- A touch of grated nutmeg at the finishing stage.
Chicken Tips
I am a huge fan of chicken quarters, thighs, and drumsticks, so I always gravitate towards them. For this dish, you can utilize a whole chicken and ask your butcher to cut it into 12 pieces. That will give you four pieces of breast, each cut in half.
Due to the nature of the white meat, it will cook faster; therefore, you will need to make a small change in the cooking process.
When you are ready to add all the chicken pieces back into your skillet with the chicken stock (see the recipe below), hold the breasts back until the stock and morels soaking liquid are reduced by half.
Add them back to the skillet while you add the wine, and proceed with the recipe.
Use white wine, dry sherry, or Vin Jaune if you can find some.
Storing and Reheating
Store: transfer any leftovers into a glass airtight container and store them in the refrigerator for up to four days.
Reheat: Return to room temperature and warm up in a skillet until the chicken is warmed.
Freeze: You can freeze your leftover chicken fricassee with morels for up to three months. Allow it to defrost in the refrigerator overnight and warm up as above.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does fricassee mean in cooking?
Fricassee means a dish of meat, chicken, or vegetable pieces stewed in a white sauce.
What is the difference between chicken stew and fricassee?
The main difference between chicken stew and chicken fricassee is in the preparation. The chicken is cooked in liquid and simmered until soft in the stew. Meanwhile, the fricassee method required that the chicken first be seared or pan-fried before being braised in a sauce
What is the technique of the fricassee?
The fricassee technique incorporates both wet and dry heat. The dry part is the sautee part, which crisps the chicken, and the stew part, which adds liquids. Chicken fricassee is a traditional French dish with a creamy white sauce.
If you enjoy this chicken fricassee, you may want to try my other recipes.
Fricassee Chicken, Morels, and Wine
Ingredients
For The Chicken
- 4 leg quarters skin on
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
For The Sauce
- 10 dry morel mushrooms
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 garlic clove, peeled and smashed
- 2 small shallots, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 cup chicken stock
- ½ cup dry sherry, or white wine
- 1 cup of the morels soaking juice
- 1 cup heavy cream
- salt and black pepper, to taste
- fresh thyme, optional
Instructions
- Soak your morel mushrooms in warm water for 20–30 minutes until rehydrated. Drain, strain the soaking liquid through a fine sieve, and reserve. Set the rehydrated morels aside. Make sure you remove any liquid from the cavity of the morels.
- Season your leg quarters with salt and pepper.
- Heat the two tablespoons of unsalted butter and oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the leg quarters, skin-side down, and cook until golden and crispy (about 10 minutes). Turn and cook for another 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the chicken and set aside.
- Remove all cooking fat from the skillet and return to the stove. Reduce the heat to medium and add the remaining butter. Once melted, add the shallots and sauté until translucent, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the crushed garlic if using it.
- Add the chicken stock and deglaze any bits from the chicken that may have stuck to the skillet. Return the chicken to the skillet. Cover and simmer over low heat, reducing the stock by half, about 10 minutes. Add the reserved morel soaking liquid and reduce again, covered for about another 10 minutes.
- Add the dry sherry or wine to the skillet. Reduce the liquid for 5 minutes, then add the cream and morels.
- Cover and simmer until all the chicken is fully cooked, about 20 minutes. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
- The success of crispy chicken skin is that once you place it on your skillet to brown, do not touch it. Leave alone for at least five to seven minutes. Then, gently push it with your cooking tongs. If you still feel resistance, do not think to turn it over, as the skin will be stuck to the skillet, not the chicken piece.
- The key to success for this recipe is adding each liquid one at a time and reducing thereafter. You are building flavor, and each liquid adds a layer of flavor. Do not add all the liquids simultaneously; you will not achieve that amazing flavor.
Nutrition
Giangi’s Kitchen provides nutritional information, but these figures should be considered estimates, as a registered dietician does not calculate them.
Did you make this?
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