Poulet au Poivre

I've been craving pepper lately. Not bell peppers or other chilis, I'm talking black pepper. And yes, I use it on everything, but sometimes you have to go a bit further. Using a very common grocery store item, chicken thighs, I adapted this Duck au Poivre recipe into Poulet au Poivre. The only substitute was chicken thighs for duck breasts. I added about a tablespoon of flour to the crushed black pepper to help with the coloring and coating of the chicken.

Poulet au Poivre

So, as mentioned, I added a little flour to the chicken to help the pepper stick, give a little protection to the chicken from the heat and to assist the sauce in thickening a tiny extra bit. Sear until golden on both sides and then cover and cook over medium for about 10 minutes.

Remove the chicken and add 1 minced shallot and a pat of butter.

Now the fun! Remove the pan from the stove and pour in a quarter cup of liquor, I used a Greek brandy, as it's what I had. Tilt the pan to the flame and FLAME ON! Becareful. Keep the liquor bottle away from the stove and make sure your fire extinguisher is nearby. The flame will go away on its own then the alcohol burns off.

Which will leave you with a beautiful, caramel colored, richly flavored sauce. Stir in some broth and a drizzle of cream (optional).

Our pantry is empty. Drizzle the sauce over the chicken. I would have loved this more with a rice pilaf or wild rice, but plain old white rice was good. Oh...risotto would have been decadent! I need to go buy some vegetables...