Another French-inspired dish with deep country influences from the Burgundy region.
(Photo: Carlos Sarmiento)
La Bourgogne, or Burgundy, is one of France‘s most renowned regions for wine. Its first vineyards can be traced as far back as the 1st and 2nd centuries AD, under the Gallo-Roman influence of that that era.
One of the most prestigious wines in the world come form this beautiful region where reds are made exclusively from Pinot Noir grapes and whites from Chardonnay grapes.
(Photo: Efran Parhizi)
In fact, 61% of Burgundy wine is white, 30% red, 8% is the sparkling wine of Burgundy, Crémant de Bourgogne and 1% rosé.
The true essence of Burgundy is its terroir, which is the characteristic taste and flavor imparted to a wine by the environment in which it is produced.
Burgundy’s terroir can best be described as the perfect recipe of key ingredients resulting from millions of years of geological evolution, comprising of top soil, elevation, angle in which the vines are planted, micro-climate and lastly, but most importantly, the underlying subsoil and rock with its varied layers.
(Photo: Baudouin Wisselmann)
A fine wine from this renowned region deserves a food pairing that properly compliments each other. What better way to do so than by accentuating those flavors with region-inspired dishes, using another celebrated product from Burgundy?
La moutarde, mustard, of course, and from Dijon, the capital of the Burgundy region. Dijon mustard originated in 1856, when Jean Naigeon of Dijon substituted vertjus, the acidic "green" juice of not-quite-ripe grapes, for vinegar in the traditional mustard recipe.
(Photo: Michael Held)
This key ingredient will serve as the anchor element in a simple, yet highly flavorful sauce for our chicken dish. A light but refreshingly robust salad will complement this dish and allow for the wine to share co-star billing in this new savory production. Burgundy country style.
(Photo: Emmanuel Martin)
À la cuisine! Allons cuisiner. To the kitchen! Let’s get cooking.
Menu:
Herbed-brown sugar baked chicken, mushroom-Dijon sauce & watercress salad with raspberry vinaigrette
Wine pairing:
2019 Louis Jadot Chardonnay Bourgogne (Burgundy, France)
Serves 4
Ingredients
Chicken:
4 chicken breasts
2 tablespoons of extra Virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons of brown sugar
1 tsp of paprika
1 tsp of dried oregano
1/2 tsp each of sea salt and cracked pepper
Sauce:
4 teaspoons extra Virgin olive oil
3/4 cups of sliced baby portobello mushrooms
1/4 cup of minced shallots
1/3 cup of white wine
1 1/4 cups of heavy cream
2 tablespoons of Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon of unsalted butter
Pinch of sea salt and cracked pepper
Salad:
one package of fresh watercress
1/2 cup of sliced baby roma tomatoes
1/2 cup of freshly cut (cubes) apples
1/2 cup of roasted whole pecans
Salad vinaigrette:
1/2 cup of puréed (blended) fresh raspberries, then strained
2 tablespoon of simple syrup made with raw sugar
1/4 cup of extra Virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons of Balsamic vinegar from Modena
Pinch of sea salt and cracked pepper
Directions
Chicken:
Preheat oven to 425°F.
In a mixing bowl, mix dry ingredients (seasoning).
Line tray with foil and baking / parchment paper. Place chicken upside down on tray. Drizzle chicken with about 1 tsp oil. Rub over with fingers. Sprinkle with mixed seasoning.
Flip chicken. Drizzle with 1 tsp oil, rub with fingers, sprinkle with seasoning, covering as much of the surface area.
Bake 18 minutes, or until surface is golden, or internal temperature is 165°F.
Remove from oven and immediately transfer chicken to serving plates.
Sauce:
Add two tablespoons of olive oil to a medium-sized skillet set over medium-low heat and cook 2-3 minutes or until mushrooms have cooked through. Remove mushrooms and liquid from pan and set aside.
Add two tablespoons of olive oil to the same pan, still on medium-low heat and cook shallots for 2-3 minutes.
Remove from the heat and add the white wine, stir.
Return the pan to the heat and continue stirring to deglaze the pan. Cook an additional 2-3 minutes or until the liquor evaporates.
Add the cream, reduce heat to low, and simmer 5-6 minutes or until the mixture has thickened a bit.
Stir in mustard, mushroom and butter. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Salad & vinaigrette:
Mix all vinaigrette ingredients in a large jar with lid and shake well. Set aside.
In a large bowl, gently mix watercress, tomatoes, apples and pecans. Shake vinaigrette jar again and lightly drizzle salad bowl with vinaigrette (don’t pour all the vinaigrette, it’s only a light drizzle). Gently toss until evenly coated.
Serve it up!
On each individual plate, arrange one chicken breast on one side of the plate.
Spoon mushroom-Dijon sauce on top and around the chicken.
Next to the chicken place a good heap of the salad mix. Serve.
Bon appetit! Enjoy!
(Photo: Carlos Sarmiento)
(Photo: Carlos Sarmiento)
(Photo: Carlos Sarmiento)
About the wine...
Special thanks to my friends at Kobrand Wines & Spirits and Louis Jadot USA for their wonderful contribution of this notable Chardonnay.
2019 Louis Jadot Chardonnay Bourgogne
(Photo: Carlos Sarmiento)
Chardonnay Bourgogne is vinified and blended from 100% Chardonnay grapes selected from quality wine growers in the Mâconnais and Côte Chalonnaise. This wine is a "step-up" from the traditional Mâcon wines and is aged in stainless steel for 12 months.
Grapes: 100% Chardonnay
Taste: Along with a lovely pale color, this wine has an expressive nose of medium intensity green apple, pear and crushed stone with floral notes. The palate brings forth bright, fresh, citrus fruits with slight tropical notes of apricots and pineapples. Expect balanced, fesh acidity and stony minerality that stems from its sunny southern birthplace.
Food pairing: Pairs with most white fish and poultry.
For more information on Louis Jadot wines, visit: https://lovejadot.com and https://m.kobrandwineandspirits.com
(Photo: Tim Mossholder)