This is a quick skillet dinner for anyone to make. I made this last night and decided to post it here for all to enjoy. There’s nothing gourmet about the ingredient list here—it’s just pantry staples and a few herbs I had lying around, including two sprigs of fresh dill. If you only have dried dill, thyme, rosemary, or Herbs de Provence, that’s fine. This recipe is flexible and forgiving. The result is a silky Parmesan cream sauce wrapped around tender chicken and mushrooms. It tastes like comfort, but it cooks like a weeknight.
Ingredients
1 to 1.25 lbs chicken breast or thighs, cut into cubes, dried with a paper towel
8 oz mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1 shallot, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup chicken broth
¾ cup half-and-half
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
2–3 tablespoons butter, divided
1 tablespoon flour for thickening
2 sprigs fresh dill (or about ½ teaspoon dried; add more to taste)
Salt and pepper to taste
Fresh parsley for garnish
Seasoning for browning the chicken: ½ teaspoon dried thyme, ¼ teaspoon dried rosemary, ½ teaspoon Herbs de Provence (whatever you have)
Instructions
Season the cubed chicken with thyme, rosemary, and Herbs de Provence. In a hot cast iron or HexClad pan, melt 2 tablespoons of butter and brown the chicken on all sides. Remove and set aside.
Add the remaining butter to the pan and sauté the shallot and garlic until fragrant and translucent. Add the mushrooms and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until they soften and release a little liquid.
Pour in the chicken broth, half-and-half, and parmesan cheese. Stir and bring to a gentle simmer so the cheese melts smoothly. Add the fresh dill sprigs (or dried dill) right into the sauce. The flavor will infuse as it simmers.
Sprinkle in the flour and stir to thicken the sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Once the sauce coats the back of a spoon, return the browned chicken to the pan, nestle it into the sauce, and let everything simmer together for another minute or two. Finish with fresh parsley. This is wonderful over buttered egg noodles, mashed potatoes, or rice. A squeeze of lemon lifts the flavor if it feels a little rich, and if you like heat, a pinch of red pepper flakes works perfectly.
Suzy Cohen, has been a licensed pharmacist for over 30 years and believes the best approach to chronic illness is a combination of natural medicine and conventional. She founded her own dietary supplement company specializing in custom-formulas, some of which have patents. With a special focus on functional medicine, thyroid health and drug nutrient depletion, Suzy is the author of several related books including Thyroid Healthy, Drug Muggers, Diabetes Without Drugs, and a nationally syndicated column.
