I am truthfully speechless after making this for dinner…
Words cannot describe the AWESOMENESS that I partook in. It was as if the God’s anointed this dish!
Go make this…
THIS was PURE HEAVEN in every single way!
Spinach Pepper Chicken in a Wild Mushroom Béchamel Sauce
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Ingredients
- 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp white pepper
- 2 tsp thyme
- 1 red, yellow or orange pepper seeded and cut into 1/4” strips
- 4 cups fresh spinach, rinsed
- 1 Tbl extra virgin olive oil
- 5 Tbl butter
- 2 cups dried wild mushrooms, re-hydrated (See Note!)
- 4 Tbl flour
- 3 cups whole milk
- 2 Tbl grated onion
- 1 tsp grated garlic
- 1/8 tsp fresh grated nutmeg (THIS is the secret to AMAZING béchamel sauce!)
Instructions
- In a deep skillet over medium-high heat, add the olive oil and 1Tbl butter.
- When melted add in the peppers and sauté for 5-7 minutes or until just soft.
- Pat dry the chicken and season both sides with 1 tsp of salt, 1 tsp black pepper and 1 1/2 tsp thyme.
- Remove the peppers from the pan and set aside.
- Add in the chicken and sear on one side for 5-7 minutes or until golden brown.
- Flip the chicken over and cook for 3 minutes or just enough to get a light golden brown color.
- Reduce the heat to low.
- In a sauce pan over medium-high heat, add the remaining butter.
- Once it’s melted, add in the drained mushrooms and thyme.
- Sauté for ~5 minutes.
- Add in the onions and garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Sprinkle in the flour and stir to combine. Here is where you cook the roux for about ~2 minutes. You will ‘smell’ the flour cooking.
- Whisk in the milk until no lumps remain.
- Add in the 1/2 tsp salt, white pepper and remaining thyme.
- Reduce to low.
- Remove the chicken from the pan and pour the béchamel sauce in.
- Add in the spinach and peppers; stirring gently.
- Place the chicken into the sauce and cook until the chicken’s internal temperature is 165F.
- Adjust seasoning to taste.
Notes
Re-hydrating wild mushrooms
Boil some water and pour into a bowl, add the quantity you require, but remember that dried mushrooms increase in volume to 3 to 4 times. Soak your mushrooms in the hot (not boiling) water for about 20 – 30 minutes or until fully re-hydrated stirring occasionally (please do not use the mushrooms before re-hydrating)
Just wow…
Okay, I am going to fess up something about this dish. When you go to clean out the pan, you WILL want to lick the pan clean. This sauce is just sinfully good. It’s so good it hurts!
Well…I got around to making this dish. I was hesitant since I am not a big fan of thyme but…I will always give a recipe a fair shot if it comes with rave reviews.
I was good…the first flavor that jumped out at me was the yellow pepper which was good but here came the thyme flavor. My husband thought it was wonderful. I served it with wild rice and for me, that helped cut the thyme taste a little so…I got through it. I may try it again someday but I will use a different herb. Just have to think on that one for awhile.
Thank you though for the recipe!!!
Hi Sue 🙂
You are most welcome! Yes, thyme is one of those herbs you either love or hate. Kind of like rosemary is for me. If you’re not a big thyme fan, I would suggest perhaps sage. Sage marries VERY well with chicken, peppers and mushrooms. I would use only a few sage leaves as to me, sage is potent. If you’re not a sage fan, tarragon works wonderfully too.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
★★★★★