Ok. Big confession here. When I first tested this dish, I forgot to buy the Marsala wine.
So I winged it, and tested a few more times, and now I prefer it without Marsala wine.
That said, feel free to use Marsala wine with this recipe. Most of the alcohol cooks off pretty quickly, but it does leave behind a great flavor. I’ve added instructions in the headnotes if you decide to add it.
I also forgot to add the parsley to the dish while I was photographing it, so imagine green specks in the skillet shots. Then again, the parsley is optional as well. So, totally up to you.
A relatively new technique I’m introducing in this recipe is using creamed cauliflower to thicken the juices and create a sauce. It’s great for making sauces and gravies. And if you’re roasting a cauliflower, get 2 and use the remaining cauliflower to make cauliflower rice to serve with this dish.
Chicken Marsala {dairy-free, grain-free}
I didn’t use Marsala wine for this recipe, as noted above. If you’d like to, add 1/2 cup of Marsala wine in step 10. If you add the wine, cook it a few more minutes to let all the alcohol cook off.
If you would like to coat the chicken in flour, you can lightly dredge the chicken about 1/4 cup of almond flour and then brown it in the pan.
Roast more than 1 head of cauliflower if you want to serve this dish with cauliflower rice. Also, prepare the cauliflower ahead of time to make this dish quick and easy to pull together. If you’re in a rush, you can steam or microwave the cauliflower.
I haven’t tried it yet, but I imagine you can use gelatin in place of cauliflower puree to thicken the sauce.
For the chicken, it’s best to use very thin slices of chicken breasts, or pound them out to make them thinner, or do both. This allows them to cook quickly and absorb more of the flavor in the sauce.
If you don’t have chicken stock, water will work.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (120 g) roasted cauliflower pieces
- 1 cup chicken stock (or water)
- 4 chicken breasts, about 2 pounds (900 g)
- about 1/4 cup olive oil
- salt and pepper for the chicken
- 8 ounces (225 g) mushrooms, thinly sliced
- 3 ounces shallots (85 g), peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 to 2 teaspoons salt for the final steps
- handful of fresh parsley, chopped
Method
- Add the cauliflower pieces and 1 cup of chicken stock (or water) to a high-speed blender and blend until the cauliflower is smooth and creamy. Set aside.
- Place the chicken breasts on a cutting board, and cover with with parchment paper. Use a mallet or a rolling pin to pound the chicken until it’s about 1/4 inch thick.
- Generously salt and pepper both sides of each chicken breast.
- Preheat a large skillet on a medium heat and add about 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
- Briefly cook the chicken in the skillet, on each side. Add more olive oil as needed. Set the chicken aside.
- Add the mushrooms to the skillet with about 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil. Cook them for 5 to 10 minutes, or until they have released their juices and are browned.
- Add the shallots to the skillet and cook for a few minutes. Add more olive oil as needed.
- Add the garlic and cook for another minute.
- Lower the heat and add the cauliflower puree to the skillet and stir to combine.
- Add lemon juice and stir to combine.
- Add the chicken and parsley and cook for another minute or so.
- Season with more salt, to taste.
- Serve hot. Store leftovers in the refrigerator for a few days.
Serves 4
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