CHICKEN SCALOPPINE WITH MUSHROOMS AND SPINACH

 Chicken Scaloppine (notice my Italian spelling of the American Scallopine, how’s that?  lol).  There’s no “recipe” for Scaloppine because it refers to the way the meat/poultry is cut.  Thin Slices of meat/poulty in Italian are called SCALOPPA, and thinner ones are called SCALOPPINE.  In Olde English Collops meant slices of meat so somewhere in Europe this word originated.  Scaloppine in Italy generally means a veal dish as the chicken and turkey scaloppine in the US is an ItalianAmerican creation.  Chicken Scaloppine could be the most popular of all, but any thin sliced meat or poultry can be used.  Ok, enough with the food history. How and why am I blogging this version?  Audience request!  I made this one night for dinner after work using items in the fridge and then posted it on social media and…..WHERE’S THE RECIPE ??? comments started poking me with notifications.  So..here’s how I made this Chicken Scaloppine with Mushrooms and Spinach.  I served it over plain steamed white rice.

8 thin sliced and pounded Chicken Breast cutlets (boneless)

1/2 cup sifted flour

1/2 tsp Kosher Salt

1/2 tsp Granulated Garlic

1/2 tsp Hungarian Sweet Paprika

1/8 tsp Ground Black Pepper

1 1/4 cup Chicken Stock

Olive Oil

1 1/4 cups sliced button or Cremini Mushrooms

3 sliced cloves of garlic

1/4 cup white wine

2 cups rinsed and dried baby spinach leaves

2 tbs. unsalted butter

 

Use your heaviest and largest skillet/pan for this.  Add 2 tbs of Olive oil.  Heat to medium.  Mix together the flour, salt, pepper, paprika, granulated garlic.  Dredge the cutlets in the flour on both sides, gently shaking off the excess.  In batches saute’ the chicken for about 5 minutes per side.  remove them to a platter loosely covered with foil when they are all done  Do not stack, lay them out flat.  Add the mushrooms and 1 more tbs. of olive oil to the pan.  Raise the heat to medium high.  Sprinkle the mushrooms with a little salt and pepper…Toss making sure all the mushrooms have been coated with the hot oil. Now saute’ the mushrooms till they start to take on color and are soft.  Add the garlic.  Saute for 2 minutes and then add the wine.  Bring this to a boil and let it cook for 2 minutes. Now add the Stock and bring that to the boil. Stir well to combine all the pan ingredients.  Let this boil for 3 minutes then lower to a simmer.  In a cup or container add 2 tbs of the flour and then add , stirring while you add about 1/4 cup of the pan liquid.  Keep stirring until all lumps are dissolved and you have a nice slurry.  Stir the liquid in the pan and swirl in the slurry,  keep stirring and gently bring the pan back to the boil THEN reduce to a simmer.  It should be lightly thickened by now.  Add the chicken back and top with the spinach.  Cover the pan for 5 minutes.  The spinach should have wilted and gently stir that into the chicken and mushrooms.  Your chicken should be tender now and the sauce well blended and seasoned.  Of course, check for seasoning at this point.  Add any extra salt or pepper you think it needs, if any.  Now add 2 tbs of unsalted butter to the pan and blend it into the pan.  This adds a nice finish to the pan and extra flavor.  Serve over Steamed rice.  Happy Cooking!!!!

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