This is a labour of love, but well worth it (and not the longest preparation time for a dish I have made). Fortunately a number of the components lend themselves to being prepared ahead which allows easy planning and more flexibility. If your guests are not big eaters and you think an entire chicken breast per person is too much (which could easily be the case if you are serving three courses) reduce the number from 4 to 3 and just before serving, slice thickly and apportion evenly between the plates.
Ingredients
4 corn fed chicken breasts skin on
¼ cup coarsely chopped French tarragon
¼ cup seasoned flour
¼ cup olive oil
1 onion thinly sliced
2 cups chicken stock
50 gm butter coarsely chopped
Ratatouille
½ cup olive oil
1 small eggplant cut into 2 cm dice
1 green zucchini cut into 2cm dice
1 large red capsicum cut into 2cm dice
1 small onion coarsely chopped
400gm tin chopped tomatoes
50gm tomato paste
1 tsp sugar
Lyonnaise potatoes
500gm kipfler potatoes, boiled peeled and cut into 1cm thick rounds
20gm butter
¼ cup olive oil
1 small onion finely sliced
¼ cup coarsely chooped flat-leaf parsley
2 tsp red wine vinegar
Method
Heat some of the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat, add the eggplant and cook for 15 minutes or until tender. Remove and transfer to a bowl. Now do the same for the zucchini and then the capsicum. It does take a while to do it this way but cooking each vegie individually assures you of a perfect outcome. The amount of oil you use will depend on the vegie. Eggplant will take more than the other two. You don’t want to brown the vegies so you will need to watch the heat. With the three vegies done, heat some more olive oil and cook the onion and garlic over a medium heat until translucent and tender. Add the chopped tomatoes, tomato paste and sugar and simmer for 10 minutes or until sauce thickens. Add the vegies and season to taste. Keep warm. You can do this well ahead and just heat when ready to serve. Or you can do the vegies ahead and just do the sauce at the time.
For the potatoes
Okay, so you are not going to win the Biggest Loser if you eat too many of these! But that is why it is a dinner party dish, not an everyday dish. Heat the butter and olive oil in a large frying pan over medium high heat. Add potatoes and cook for 2-3 minutes each side or until golden. Add onion and cook for another 5 minutes or until onion is tender, then add the parsley and season to taste. Remove from the heat and drizzle red wine vinegar over the potatoes to taste. Make sure to toss them to combine.
For the chicken
Using your fingers, lift the skin from each of the breasts to form a pocket and spread half the tarragon under the skin. Lightly dust each with seasoned flour. Heat olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat and cook, skin side down, for 3 minutes or until golden, then turn over, add onion and cook for another 3 minutes or until onion is soft. Add chicken stock and remaining tarragon, bring to simmer and cook for 15 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Remove chicken and keep warm. Return pan to medium heat, bring sauce to a simmer and gradually whisk in butter one piece at a time and cook until thickened, then season to taste
To serve
On a shallow bowl, or deep plate, arrange the potatoes in a single layer. Put the ratatouille as the next layer in a slightly smaller circle, then place the chicken on top and spoon the sauce over.
To drink
If you are making something as lovely as this I hope that your guests are good enough to bring a drop to drink! I would suggest a Chablis. The dryness will cut through the richness of the food and it is a big enough wine to cope with the rich flavours. The minerality of a French Chablis is a good match with the tarragon.
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