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Prep time
5 minutes
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Cook time
20 minutes
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Serves
4
Author Notes
When I was in graduate school, my colleagues would often try to get invited over to the elaborate dinners I cooked for friends. One night our workshop on avant-garde poetry went long, and I found myself entertaining four friends with no real plan for dinner. I ended up chopping up some leeks and deglazing them in a pan I had sautéed chicken in with plain whole milk -- and this recipe was born. Everyone I've ever made this for has swooned over my "famous leek chicken." Now you too can quickly elevate weeknight boneless chicken breast with creamy leeks. This is a maximum flavor recipe with minimal effort -- you may only have time to pull a simple salad together on the side since it comes together so quickly. —ortolan
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Ingredients
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4
Boneless chicken breasts halves, filleted to maximize surface area
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2
Leeks, rinsed, white to light green parts sliced into 1/4 inch rounds
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1 tablespoon
Olive oil for cooking (or fat of your choice)
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1 tablespoon
Flour, for sprinkling over chicken and leeks
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3 tablespoons
Unsalted butter
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1/2 cup
Whole milk
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Salt & pepper for seasoning chicken, leeks, & finishing to taste
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Parsley (or herb of choice) & good olive oil for finishing
Directions
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Prepare the chicken: Open up the breasts on the thicker side to maximize surface area of the chicken breast and create an even thickness of the chicken. Flatten the chicken fillets with a pan or a spatula. This allows the chicken to cook evenly.
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Heat the oil over med-high heat in a sauté pan or skillet until minimally smoking.
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While the oil is heating up, season the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides. Sprinkle flour over the chicken to coat lightly.
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Sauté chicken on one side without moving for 4-6 minutes, depending on thickness. The skin should be a deep golden and crispy. Then sauté the other side until chicken is done inside (typically another 3 minutes).
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Remove chicken from the pan & set aside to rest. Add the butter to the pan. In the meantime, place leeks in a bowl with a few sprinkles of salt and flour and combine. You want to very lightly coat the leeks with some flour.
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When butter foam subsides, add the leeks and stir to combine. Sauté the leeks for about 5 minutes, until golden, crispy, and even some parts will be a nutty brown. Make sure they are all fully cooked.
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Deglaze the pan with the milk, scraping up the brown bits from the pan. After about a minute, when the sauce turns a light ochre color and thickens slightly, you are done. Stir in the juice from the rested chicken.
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Pile the creamy leeks on the chicken, top with some fresh herbs and some great olive oil, and enjoy!
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