I don’t make Chicken Marsala very often, mainly because I rarely have Marsala wine on hand but, every time I make this I tell myself that I should always keep a bottle of Marsala within arm’s reach.  The sauce that the wine produces is rich and smooth.  A good Marsala sauce results in a beautiful balance of sweet and savory flavors.  Heavy cream can be added to the sauce to make it luxurious, to the point of decadent. 

Note: Most recipes for Chicken Marsala call for some cooking sherry to be added, along with the Marsala wine.  Cooking sherry is another thing that I rarely keep in stock, so I skipped it.  Marsala and sherry are both sweet wines and I didn’t think I would lose any significant flavor by omitting the sherry. 

Ingredients:

¼ cup flour

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp black pepper

½ tsp dried oregano

4 chicken breasts, sliced ¼“ thick

4 Tbs butter

4 Tbs olive oil

1 cup thinly sliced shallots

1 ½  cup sliced mushrooms (an 8 oz package)

½ cup Marsala wine

Directions:

Slice the chicken breasts horizontally into ¼”slices.

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Mix the flour, salt, pepper and oregano together in a bowl.  Coat the chicken in the flour mixture and set aside for several minutes.

In a skillet, melt the butter and oil over at medium/low heat. 

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Add the shallots and simmer for 1 minute.  Remove the shallots and reserve. 

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Place the coated chicken in the pan, and brown, slightly.  Do not crowd the chicken.  You will probably need to make two batches.  Turn the chicken after a minute, or so, and then once again to lightly brown the other side. 

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Set the first batch of chicken aside to a warm area.  Add the second batch of coated chicken to the pan.

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Once the second batch of chicken is done, add the first batch back to the pan. Add the mushrooms and shallots to the pan.  Finally, add the Marsala wine.  Cover and simmer for 10 minutes, turning the chicken one more time during the process.

A wonderful brown sauce forms in a matter of a few minutes.