FRENCH
EASY TARRAGON CHICKEN BAKED IN PARCHMENT PAPER (EN PAPILLOTE)
- Timescale In A Hurry
- Serves 2
- Difficulty Simple
Cooking ‘en papillote’ (in parchment paper) is one of those kitchen secrets that sounds fancy but is actually seriously foolproof. The method is brilliantly hands-off, as the steam inside the parcel does all the work, keeping everything tender and infused with flavour. You can’t really overcook it, there’s almost no washing up, and it’s endlessly versatile.
Case in point with this Tarragon Chicken en Papillote: a classic French flavour pairing of chicken, tarragon, and crème fraîche, gently baked in parchment with leeks, shallots, and garlic. The result is juicy chicken and a fragrant tarragon sauce that comes together in the easiest possible way!
Ingredients
THE CHICKEN
2 Chicken Breasts, skinless
50ml Dry White Wine,
Generous Pinch of Salt & Pepper
THE PAPILLOTE
1 Leek, finely sliced
1 Shallot, finely sliced
2 Garlic Cloves, finely sliced
3–4 Tarragon Sprigs, roughly chopped
2 Heaped Tablespoons of Creme Fraiche,
20g Salted Butter, cubed
Generous Pinch of Salt & Pepper
TO COOK
Olive Oil
METHOD
MARINATING THE CHICKEN
- Season the chicken generously with salt and pepper.
- Add the white wine to the chicken breasts and mix together.
- Leave the chicken to marinate for between 1-24 hours. The longer the better.
TIP – Re-sealable zip-lock bags work extremely well for this and will allow the chicken to be more easily manipulated and coated in the marinade.
PREPARING THE CHICKEN PAPILLOTE
- Cut 2 even squares of baking parchment – about 40cm x 40cm.
TIP – you can also buy pre-prepared papillote bags if desired.
- Lay a square of parchment paper and drizzle each with some olive oil, about a tablespoon. Add half of the sliced leeks, shallot, garlic and a quarter of the chopped tarragon. Season gently with salt and then mix together. Dot half of the cubed butter over the leek mixture.
- Add one of the marinated chicken breasts on top of the leeks, adding some of the wine marinade as well if possible. Top with another quarter of the chopped tarragon and a heaped tablespoon of crème fraîche.
- Now, lift up the two long edges of your parchment paper until they meet, closing together a bit like closing a book. Pinch and fold the edges together all the way along the length of the parchment and then fold a few more times to ensure it’s well sealed. You should be left with an open ended tube of sorts, which should not be touching the chicken much.
- Then, twist the two open ends of the parchment paper shut, and you should be left with something similar to a Christmas cracker. Make sure these parcels are sealed well, but not too tight against the filling – you want the parcels to have some space inside.
TIP – This can be a little fiddly – persevere with it and try and make sure the crimped edges are really tight or else steam will escape and your chicken will dry out in the oven.
- Preheat the oven to 200ºC/390ºF (fan oven).
- Place the papillote parcels onto a large baking tray. Transfer to the oven and bake for 20 minutes until the chicken is entirely cooked through.
- Leave to rest for 5 minutes before serving with salad, a nice of chunk of baguette and a glass of white wine. Enjoy.
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