Creamy French Dijon Chicken

with roasted red grapes

When I begin testing a recipe, there are several key factors I consider before even shopping for ingredients. The first being the season and how the dish will reflect or enhance the time of year. Secondly, the flavor and texture elements that will bring the dish together and how to achieve them. Third being where the ingredients shall be sourced. And lastly, how I want the presentation of the final dish to reflect each characteristic while instilling a yearning to taste.

Wandering through the Marché des Capucins (or any farmer’s market) to see what the vendors have available, is how I tempt recipe inspiration to strike. It rains quite often in Bordeaux and though its January, there won’t be many days close to freezing for a true winter experience. Nevertheless, the theme for a while is still grey, cold, and wet, which signifies to my stomach the need for hearty meat dishes. Not successful on finding dried chillis for a beef stew, I settled on chicken to be the star of my comforting mid-winter dinner.

Just coming off the holidays with roasted turkeys with cranberries, a whole bird was not in the cards. Instead I wanted a more convenient chicken dinner with a savory sauce. I settled on creating a version of tarragon chicken with dijon, white wine, heavy cream, and roasted red grapes. A recipe inspired by Chicken Veronique, a spinoff from the French Sole Veronique recipe, a dish consisting of fish cooked in a tarragon cream sauce with white grapes.