Chicken with creamy mushroom sauce and mashed potato

Enjoy chicken in rich cream sauce in less time than you might imagine. A simple, yet classy way to feed your guests.

Ingredients

For the chicken

75ml/2½fl oz rapeseed oil
1 large chicken, jointed into eight pieces
salt and freshly ground black pepper
200g/7oz pancetta, diced
200g/7oz shallots, peeled and cut in half
1 bulb of garlic, cut in half
500g/1lb 2oz wild mushrooms (chanterelles, girolles, ceps, button mushrooms morelles), cleaned
50g/1¾oz unsalted butter
50ml/2fl oz Madeira
500ml/18fl oz dark chicken stock
300ml/10½fl oz double cream
1 bunch fresh tarragon

For the mashed potato and green beans

For the chicken with a creamy mushroom sauce, heat a large pan and add half of the oil. Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Once the oil is hot, cook the chicken until golden-brown all over. Remove from the pan and set aside.
Add the pancetta to the pan the chicken was cooked in, and fry until crisp, then add the shallots, garlic and mushrooms and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Return the chicken to the pan and cook for two minutes.
Add the butter, Madeira, stock, cream and tarragon and simmer for 15-20 minutes. Remove the head of garlic before serving.
For the mashed potato, place the potatoes in a large pan of salted water and bring to the boil. Cook for 15-20 minutes, or until soft when tested with the point of a knife.
Drain the potatoes and place back into the pan to let the steam off. Mash and add the milk, cream and butter and mix until smooth.
Heat a pan of boiling water and blanch the beans, refresh in ice-cold water.
Heat a small frying pan and add a few knobs of butter, once melted add the beans and cook for a couple of minutes until the beans are coated in butter and tender.
To serve, place the mash into serving bowls with the chicken, sauce and green beans.