Chicken Chasseur (French Hunter’s Chicken)

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Edyta

Author at Eating European

Recipe developer, photographer and the writer behind the Eating European food blog of European and Mediterranean healthy and delicious recipes

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• Chicken Kiev (Classic Eastern European Recipe) - May 17, 2020
• Olive Oil Chicken Thighs Mediterranean Style - April 25, 2020
• Spring Green Asparagus Soup - March 15, 2020

Chicken Chasseur or Hunter’s Chicken is one of the most popular French chicken recipes. It contains simple ingredients like bone-in chicken, mushrooms, tomatoes, wine, and herbs. It’s very easy to make and looks as amazing as it tastes. Serve it to your guests or family, tell them that it’s Chicken Chasseur and you’ll impress everybody. But once they’ve actually sunken their teeth into it, I guarantee they’ll be speechless (that happened in my house). How does that sound?

Ever since I made this Chicken Provencal with Shallots and Garlic I thought it was my favorite French chicken recipe; now we have a debate. Make both and weigh in on this debate.

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What is Chicken Chasseur

Chicken Chasseur is a classic French chicken recipe. It’s also known as Hunter’s Chicken. As a matter of fact, the direct translation of “Chasseur” is “Hunter.” So, at time of inception what would happen is the hunters would bring home game meat, along with any mushrooms that they’d found on the way, and they’d cook this amazing dish with the ingredients they’d collected. Even though the name sounds fancy, this dish is very rustic and comforting.

The list of ingredients in this hunters chicken is short, but there is no shortage of taste. The combination of mushrooms, tomatoes with cognac, wine and herbs (like tarragon and parsley) makes for a very complex and beautiful flavor profile.

What ingredients are needed to make French Chicken Chasseur?

Here is your grocery list:

• Chicken pieces, on the bone (I prefer chicken thighs);
• White button, or Baby Bella mushrooms;
• Shallots;
• Chopped tomatoes, or tomato paste;
• Cognac (optional: it will elevate the taste but if you don’t have it or simply don’t want to use it, the chicken will still come out delicious);
• White wine;
• Chicken stock (the French would use “brown chicken stock,” which is one enhanced with some veal stock, but you could use a combination of chicken and beef stock in 2:1 ratio);
• Butter – a critical ingredient in all French cooking.
• Fresh herbs – tarragon and parsley (note: tarragon has a nice, anise type of flavor and it really compliments this hunters chicken, but if you cannot find it, skip it).

How do you make Chicken Chasseur?

There are a couple of different techniques that can be used to prepare this dish. One of them is that everything is done in a single pot; meaning that the chicken is braising with the sauce on a stove top.

Another is that you sear the chicken in a pan on both sides and then cover it and move it to the oven to finish cooking. Then you’d prepare the chasseur sauce separately.

Yet another one and my favorite, is to sear the chicken on both sides, move it to a sheet pan and finish roasting in the oven. This guarantees a crispy skin! While the chicken is roasting you then prepare the hunters sauce.

Some other variations include dusting your chicken with flour. I decided not to do this as I really wanted a nice sear and crispy skin from the oven. Instead, I added some flour to the sauce at the end to thicken it up a bit.

Without further ado here are the easy steps to make French Chicken Chasseur with Crispy Skin…

Step 1: Heat up your oven to 375 F. In order to make Chicken Chasseur with a crispy skin, heat up clarified butter (or a combination of butter with cooking oil) in a cast iron skillet.  Season the chicken with salt and pepper and once your pan is hot, add chicken (skin side down) and cook undisturbed for 6-7 minutes, until the skin is nicely browned. Turned the chicken over and cook for another 4-5 minutes. Transfer the chicken onto a baking sheet and place in the oven for about 15-20 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the internal temperature shows 165F.

Step 2. Start working on your Chasseur sauce.  Once you’ve moved your chicken to the oven, discard all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the skillet. Add sliced mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and cook for a couple of minutes. Then add chopped shallots and let them sweat for another few minutes. 

Step 3: If using, add cognac and either flambe it or let it almost entirely cook off. Add wine and deglaze the pan.

Step 4: Add tomatoes or tomato paste, chicken stock, and let cook for about 10-15 minutes.

Step 5: If your sauce is too liquidy, combine 1-2 tablespoons of either Wondra flour or all-purpose flour with a 1/2 cup of water, mix well (until smooth) and add to the sauce to thicken it up.

Step 6: Adjust seasoning, add salt and pepper as needed. Once the sauce has the right consistency, turn it off and add 2 tablespoons of cold butter and let it melt into the sauce (Tip: once you’ve added butter, then you cannot reduce the sauce more as the butter would break);

Step 7: Chop tarragon and parsley. Remove the chicken from the oven. Then for serving, you can either put the chicken back into the pan and sprinkle everything with herbs and serve it family style, or you plate the chicken and drench in your sauce, then sprinkle with herbs. See below for suggestions on what to serve the hunter’s chicken with.

How to serve Chicken Chasseur

This classic French chicken pairs really well with:

• Mashed potatoes;
• Egg noodles;
• Rice;
• Crusty Bread or Rolls;
• Potato Cutlets;
• Potato Leek Casserole

It can also be accompanied by some vegetables:

• Best Green Salad;
• Steamed Artichokes;
• Parmesan Roasted Asparagus;
• Carrots and Apple Slaw

How to store Chicken Chasseur

If you make a big batch of this Chicken Chasseur and you’d like to store it, there is no problem there. This chicken can be placed in an airtight container and stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days OR you could freeze for up to 2 months. When you’re ready to eat it, then remove from the freezer the night before and let it thaw in a fridge overnight.

Equipment Needed to Make French Hunter’s Chicken

• Cast Iron Skillet;
• Sheet Pans;
• Cutting Board;
• Set of Knives;

Other Chicken Recipes to Try:

• Olive Oil Chicken Thighs Mediterranean Style
• Oven Roasted Chicken Legs (Thighs and Drumsticks) 
• Baked Mustard Chicken with Clementines
• Tuscan Chicken with Potatoes
• Fennel Chicken Mediterranean Style
• Jacques Peppin Chicken with Garlic and Parsley
• Garlic Parmesan Chicken Wings
• One Pot Saffron Chicken and Rice

Chicken Chasseur or Hunter's Chicken

Chicken Chasseur or Hunter's Chicken is one of the most popular French chicken recipes. It contains simple ingredients like bone-in chicken, mushrooms, tomatoes, wine, and herbs. It's very easy to make and looks as amazing as it tastes. Serve it to your guests or family, tell them that it's Chicken Chasseur and you'll impress everybody. But once they've actually sunken their teeth into it, I guarantee they'll be speechless (that happened in my house). 

5 from 6 votes

Print Pin Rate

Servings: 4

Calories: 431kcal

Author: Edyta

Ingredients

• 8 Chicken Thighs Bone-In, Skin on
• 2 tbsp Clarified Butter or Light Cooking Oil
• 8 oz Mushrooms White Button or Baby Bella, sliced
• 2 Shallots Medium, chopped
• 1/4 cup Cognac Optional
• 1/2 cup White Wine Dry
• 1/2 cup Chopped Tomatoes Or 2 tbsp Tomato Paste
• 2 cups Chicken Stock Or combination of chicken and beef stock in 2:1 ratio
• 2 tbsp Wondra Flour Or All-Purpose Flour - optional if the sauce is not thick enough
• 1 tbsp Fresh Tarragon Chopped
• 1 tbsp Fresh Parsley Chopped

Instructions

• Heat up your oven to 375 F. In order to make Chicken Chasseur with a crispy skin, heat up clarified butter (or a combination of butter with cooking oil) in a cast iron skillet on medium heat.  Season the chicken with salt and pepper and once your pan is hot, add chicken (skin side down) and cook undisturbed for 6-7 minutes, until the skin is nicely browned. 
• Turned the chicken over and cook for another 4-5 minutes. Transfer the chicken onto a baking sheet and place in the oven for about 15-20 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the internal temperature shows 165F.
• Once you've moved your chicken to the oven, discard all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the skillet. Add sliced mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and cook for about 5 minutes. Then add chopped shallots and let them sweat for another few minutes. 
• If using, add cognac and either flambe it or let it almost entirely cook-off. Add wine and deglaze the pan. Cook until about 1 tablespoon of liquid is left.
• Add tomatoes or tomato paste, chicken stock, and let cook for about 10-15 minutes.
• If your sauce is too liquidy, combine 1-2 tablespoons of either Wondra flour or all-purpose flour with a 1/2 cup of water, mix well (until smooth) and add to the sauce to thicken it up. Cook for another 2 minutes.
• Adjust seasoning, add salt and pepper as needed. Once the sauce has the right consistency, turn it off and add 2 tablespoons of cold butter and let it melt into the sauce (Tip: once you've added butter, then you cannot reduce the sauce more as the butter would break);
• Chop tarragon and parsley. Remove the chicken from the oven. Then for serving, you can either put the chicken back into the pan and sprinkle everything with herbs and serve it family style, or you plate the chicken and drench in your sauce, then sprinkle with herbs. Serve with mashed potatoes or egg noodles. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 431kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 49g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 218mg | Sodium: 424mg | Potassium: 985mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 190IU | Vitamin C: 5.5mg | Calcium: 46mg | Iron: 3.3mg

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