Chicken and pumpkin in a creamy sauce
Prep:
25 mins
Cook:
60 mins
This creamy chicken dish can be prepared a day in advance and popped into the oven just as your guests arrive.
20g pack dried porcini
1 free-range chicken, about 1½ kg/ jointed into 8 pieces (ask your butcher to do this for you)
1 lemon, halved
2 tbsp olive oil
25g unsalted butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
300g pumpkin, peeled, seeded and cut into 2cm cubes
200g chestnut mushrooms, roughly chopped
284ml carton double cream
Sage leaves, for garnish (optional)
Soak porcini in 300ml hot water for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F / Gas mark 4.
In a pan large enough to hold the chicken in one layer brown both sides. Or do this step in batches.
Squeeze lemon juice over the chicken and transfer to a casserole dish and set aside.
Melt the butter in a medium pan.
When it stops foaming, add the onion and 1 teaspoon of salt, then sauté until it turns light gold.
Meanwhile, remove the porcini from the water and rinse well. Pat dry and finely chop.
Strain the water through a sieve, and retain the mushroom water.
Add the porcini and pumpkin pieces to the onion and sauté for 5 minutes.
Add the chestnut mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes more, stirring frequently.
Stir in the cream, 4-5 tablespoons of the porcini water and season with salt and pepper if necessary.
Simmer uncovered for 10-12 minutes until reduced slightly, then pour over the chicken.
Cover and cook in the oven for 30-40 minutes, turning the chicken once adding a few tablespoons of the mushroom water if the sauce becomes a little dry.
Use tap water if you don’t have any of the mushroom water.
Allow to cool fully before placing foil over and putting into the fridge until the next day.
Serve in the cooking dish for appearance, dotted with a few fresh sage leaves if using and serve directly to guests at the table.
Serves
6
Preparation Time
25 minutes
Cooking Time
60 minutes
Main ingredients
Dairy, Chicken, Vegetables
Recipe Type
Dinner, Entertaining
Level of Difficulty
Easy
Simply allow this entire dish to heat thoroughly in a preheated oven prior to serving.
