Chicken Suprême: Origins, Tips, and Chicken Suprême with Root Vegetables Recipe
Written by MasterClass
Last updated: Jul 22, 2024 • 5 min read
Though chicken may be one of the trickier proteins to master, Chef Gordon Ramsay’s chicken suprême recipe yields a tender, flavorful chicken breast, every time. Essences of thyme, rosemary, and parsley infuse roasted root vegetables that cook themselves. Gordon also demonstrates how the brown bits left in your chicken pan provide the perfect base for a delicious pan sauce, resulting in a true comfort food.
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What Is Chicken Suprême?
Many chicken dishes have claimed the title of “Chicken Suprême,” from restaurant-quality meals to shortcut chicken recipes that use cream of chicken soup or cream of mushroom soup as a key ingredient. In reality, however, chicken suprême is not a singular dish: in traditional French cooking, chicken suprême (suprême de volaille in French) refers to a specific cut of chicken—specifically, a boneless skinless chicken breast. The term “suprême” can also be applied to other poultry, including duck suprême (suprême de canard).
For his recipe, Chef Ramsay chooses to leaves the skin on his boneless chicken breasts. The crispy, seared skin adds significant flavor to the chicken while sealing in its natural juices, resulting in a more tender and flavorful chicken breast.
What Is Suprême Sauce?
Suprême sauce (or sauce suprême) is a classic sauce in French cuisine. Suprême sauce derives from velouté sauce, a “mother sauce” traditionally made from roux (a mixture of butter and flour) and meat stock—in this case, chicken stock or chicken broth. The sauce is reduced with heavy cream or crème fraîche, strained through a fine sieve or strainer, and often finished with lemon juice.
Rather than a traditional suprême sauce for his chicken suprême recipe, Chef Ramsay deglazes his chicken pan with brandy and adds shallots, garlic, and herbs to create a simple, delicious pan sauce.
Chef Gordon Ramsay’s Tips for Cooking Chicken Suprême
Here are some tips for getting the best results with Chicken Suprême.
- Bring your chicken to room temperature. Unlike fattier cuts like chicken thighs, chicken breast often goes dry, making it one of the most difficult cuts of chicken to get right. Chef Ramsay’s advice for making moist chicken breast every time? Never cook it cold. Always let it come to room temperature before cooking.
- Wait until the pan is hot. For a proper sear, don’t add the chicken to the pan until it’s sizzling hot. Before dropping the chicken to your sauté pan or skillet, test the pan for heat by lightly touching the chicken down—if you hear it sizzle, it’s ready.
- Don’t move the chicken around. Equally important for developing a good crust is to let your chicken cook undisturbed. Once you’ve added your chicken to the pan, don’t touch it until chicken until skin releases and browns on the edges.
- Practice good hygiene. Make sure your hands are thoroughly washed with warm, soapy water before and after handling raw chicken. It’s also crucial that you wash knives and cutting boards after they have been in contact with raw chicken. Good hygiene practices in the kitchen will reduce the risk of foodborne illnesses.
Chicken Suprême with Root Vegetables Recipe
makes
prep time
20 mintotal time
1 hr 5 mincook time
45 minIngredients
For the chicken:
For the root vegetables:
Equipment:
- 1
Remove chicken from the refrigerator. Allow your chicken to come to room temperature. Season well with salt and black pepper and let it rest.
- 2
Prepare the root vegetables. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Wash all vegetables thoroughly and dry. Form a bed of rosemary, thyme and parsley in a roasting pan. Lay the vegetables on top, season with salt and seal tightly with aluminum foil, shiny side up.
- 3
Cook the root vegetables. Place roasting pan over medium heat on the stove top. Let the vegetables heat up, about 1 minute, until you hear crackling, then transfer pan to oven. Cook the vegetables until they are knife-tender, 30 to 40 minutes depending on size.
- 4
Sear the chicken. Place a large skillet over high heat and add grapeseed oil. When the oil in the pan is hot, lay the chicken skin-side down into the pan. Dump the garlic and thyme on top of the chicken in the pan and reduce to medium heat. Allow to cook, undisturbed, until skin releases and browns on the edges, about 4 minutes. To sear the sides, tilt the chicken to the edge of the pan, about 10 seconds per side.
- 5
Flip the chicken. Turn your chicken and add 6 tablespoons butter. As the butter melts, carefully and continuously spoon it over the chicken, basting the skin until golden, about 3 minutes. Flip the chicken back over so that the skin side is down again, and baste that side of the chicken.
- 6
Put the chicken in the oven. With the chicken skin-side down, put the entire pan into the oven for 8-10 minutes, until golden brown and juices run clear. Remove from oven and transfer the chicken to a plate to rest. Drain the excess fat from the pan to a small bowl.
- 7
Cook shallots and garlic. Place the skillet back over medium heat on the stove top. Add shallots and remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Transfer garlic and thyme back into pan. Stirring frequently, continue to cook until shallots caramelize, about 4 minutes.
- 8
Deglaze the pan. Lower the heat and carefully pour brandy or splash of apple juice into the pan. If using brandy, be cautious of the flambé caused by the alcohol burning off. Scrape the bottom of the pan clean. Add demi-glace, stir, and season with salt and pepper.
- 9
Strain the sauce. Let the sauce cook a few minutes, then pass through a strainer into a small sauce pot. Push the shallots and garlic into the strainer. Place back over heat and cook until reduced, about 5 minutes.
- 10
Plate the dish. Halve the cooked vegetables and arrange on plates. Separate the chicken tender from each breast and slice breasts, then transfer all chicken pieces to plates. Drizzle sauce around chicken, careful not to moisten crispy skin. Grate truffle over the plates, if using.
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