Chicken Scaloppini with a Mushroom and Cipollini Onion Ragout

A wonderful and easy dish to serve any time! The ragout can be made a day ahead of time too. I am using 3 different kinds of mushrooms that I was able to find fresh. I was hoping to find porcini, but no such luck. You can use one kind or mix it up with different kinds. Also, if you can’t find cipollini onions, use shallots instead. For removing thyme from the stem, hold stem at the top and run your hands down it and it should fall off. No need to mince – it is small enough. You can easily replace the chicken with turkey or veal scaloppini. The ingredient amounts will serve 4 light appetites or 2 heavier appetites. 

Ingredients

Mushroom and Cipollini Onion Ragout
3 tablespoons of olive oil
3 tablespoons of butter or olive oil
1 cup of cipollini onions thinly sliced
1 cup of fresh button mushrooms cleaned and quartered
1 cup of fresh shitake mushrooms cleaned and any hard stems removed cut larger ones
1 cup of fresh cremini mushrooms cleaned and quartered
2 tablespoons of fresh thyme, stems removed
2 garlic cloves pressed through a garlic press
1 cup of white wine
1 cup of chicken broth
1 tablespoon of white balsamic vinegar
Kosher salt and fresh pepper
Chicken Scaloppini
4 pieces of chicken scaloppini, or thinly sliced chicken – 4 pieces
1 cup of fine unseasoned bread crumbs
2 tablespoons of thyme
Kosher salt and pepper
½ cup of Egg Beaters or 2 eggs beaten

Technique

In a large skillet add butter and melt over medium high heat. Add onions and sauté until they are beginning to brown, stirring often. Add all of the mushrooms and stir until they began to release their liquid. Add more butter or olive oil if pan is getting dry. Add thyme and garlic and sauté for about 30 seconds. Add wine, broth and vinegar and reduce by ¾ stirring often. Add about 1 teaspoon each of kosher salt and fresh pepper. Remove from burner, cover, set aside and make chicken.

Mix bread crumb, thyme and salt and pepper in a large shallow dish. Add egg beaters or beaten eggs to a separate large shallow dish. Dip chicken into the egg mixture, then into dry mixture and place in a large preheated skillet with olive oil over medium high heat. Sear on first side until brown turn and cook on the second side until brown. This takes about 5 – 6 minutes total cooking time, because scaloppini is so thin. Serve family style or plated with sauce and enjoy!

Suggested Beverage

Try Healdsburg Ranches Appellation Series Pinot Noir (Russian River Valley,  Beringer Third Century Central Coast Pinot Noir (California) or Pedroncelli Pinot Noir (Russian River Valley, California).