I made the most wonderful version of my chicken and mushroom stew using chardonnay instead of my usual go-to pinot noir over the weekend. My spring break from classes just ended and I knew I would be starting a third class this week. To get ahead, I meal prepped, and completed other class assignments ahead of time. When I know I have a busy week, I like to cook food in large batches. This way, I can meal prep for Kevin and I at the same time. Some of my favorite large batch go-to meals are baked pastas, stir-fried noodles, and braised stews. I love stews. Some of my favorite stews aside from my chicken and mushroom stew include my beef stew and Asian beef stew (a version of my beef stew with an Asian spin). When making a more western style stew, I tend to use red wine. This weekend, I decided to make a white wine version of my chicken stew mostly because I wanted to experiment with a new wine. I was especially craving a warm, comforting stew to offset the cold, harsh winter. We’re halfway through March, but it still feels like winter has not skipped a beat. The best part about winter is being able to stay inside and cook comfort food. I can spend hours upon hours in the kitchen prepping vegetables, preparing meats, and baking treats. Cooking and baking in the kitchen provides me with so much Zen. It became my way of destressing after a long week. The only downside to cooking and baking is having to wash all of the dishes at the end of a meal. For me, this is a small tradeoff for the joy I get when I create a home-cooked meal from scratch. When it comes to washing dishes, I can often delegate the task to my husband and/or the dishwasher. I try to reduce the number of kitchen appliances I use by making easy one pot, one pan, or one baking sheet meals. Whenever I make a pot of stew, I usually cook all of the ingredients right in a Dutch oven pot. This makes for easy cooking, serving, and cleaning. My chicken braised in chardonnay is super simple to whip together. The steps for making my chicken braised in chardonnay is similar to the steps in my chicken and mushroom stew. The only differences are swapping out a couple ingredients, and omitting the chicken bouillon powder (to lighten up the sodium level in the stew). My stew made for the perfect way to end last weekend and start this week.
Chicken braised in chardonnay:
· ½ tablespoon vegetable oil
· 6 pieces of thick cut bacon, diced
· 3 chicken breasts, cut into large chunks
· 6-8 button mushrooms, halved
· 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter
· 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
· 3 carrots, cut into about ¼ inch pieces
· 3 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks
· ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
· ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
· 1 teaspoon dried parsley
· 1½-2 cups chardonnay or white wine of your choice
· ½ cup frozen green peas
Directions:
1) Heat a Dutch oven pot on medium heat. Add the vegetable oil. Let the vegetable oil heat up before adding the bacon. Cook the bacon until crispy, about 2-3 minutes. Remove the bacon pieces to a plate. Set aside.
2) Add the chicken to the pot. Brown the chicken pieces on all sides, about 1-2 minutes per side. Remove the chicken to the plate with the bacon. Set aside.
3) Add the mushrooms to the pot. Cook until the mushrooms are slightly browned, about 1-2 minutes. Scoop the mushrooms to the plate with the bacon and chicken. Set aside.
4) Add the butter to the Dutch oven pot. Add the flour. Cook the butter and flour for about a minute until bubbles start to form. Add the carrots, potatoes, salt, pepper, and ½ a teaspoon of dried parsley to the pot. Cook for five to eight minutes until the vegetables are softened.
5) Add the wine to the pot. Return the bacon, chicken, and mushrooms back to the pot and continue to cook for an additional 20-25 minutes. Add the green peas during the last two minutes of cooking time. Add the remaining ½ of a teaspoon of dried parsley during the last 30 seconds of cooking. Let the stew rest for a couple minutes before serving.
Takeaways: This stew is very versatile. You can pretty much add in any root vegetables or crunchy vegetables you have on hand. You can also use any white wine you have on hand. I added potatoes to my stew because I wanted a more filling stew. Feel free to add or omit any vegetables depending on your taste and preferences.