Sherried Chicken

My teen years were spent in the Washington D.C. suburbs.  One of my good friends went to the Holton Arms School and since I went to another school, our “play dates” tended to be late in the day and often included dinner.  My memory of my friend’s mother is that she was an amazing cook and served a braised chicken recipe that I was lucky enough to have a couple of times when I went to their home.  I loved the salty sweetness of this very moist and tender braise.  I lost track of my friend when their family left Washington for a diplomatic post in Afghanistan—left only with my memory of her mom’s Sherried Chicken.  Years later, when I started to cook, I decided to recreate that dish.   So here is my version of the lemony, salty, gingery, buttery dish that has become one of my family’s favorites.  This is good with any rice or potato–today I served it with corn, simply sauteed in a little bit of butter—and asparagus or broccoli completes the meal.

Sherried Chicken

Serves 4
Preparation Time:  20 minutes
Cook Time:  1 hour
Total Time:  1 hour, 20 minutes

Ingredients:

½ cup flour
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons of olive oil
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
4 tablespoons butter
½ cup dry sherry
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger

Preparation:

Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper, and then roll them in the flour.  Heat the olive oil in a skillet, add the chicken pieces and brown them on all sides.  Remove the chicken breasts to a baking dish.  In a saucepan, place the melt the butter, and add the sherry, soy sauce, lemon juice and ginger.  Pour the mixture over the chicken breasts, cover and bake for 1 hour or until tender.