This single serving chicken recipe flavored with tarragon and mushrooms will make you think you’ve gone to a fine French restaurant (without the big bill at the end of the meal).
I adapted the recipe from Pierre Franey’s 60 Minute Gourmet cookbook. Its official name translates to Fricassé of Chicken with Tarragon. My friends and family used to call it “cholesterol chicken.”
The original recipe called for three tablespoons of butter and an entire cup of cream! Much as I love butter and cream, that’s a bit…much.
So, I decided to make it a bit lighter, while also adapting the recipe to make it a single serving chicken recipe instead of the original four. I reduced the amount of butter and used canola oil instead. Then, I replaced the cream with a mixture of Greek yogurt and milk.
It’s still a quick and easy chicken recipe and it still tastes great (though it’s certainly not low fat) and I haven’t sacrificed one bit of flavor.
Let’s call it Tarragon Chicken with Mushrooms for One Person instead.
It’s also pretty forgiving. I made a larger recipe for my parents, with a few variations, since mom had different ingredients and onions bothered dad’s stomach. I used “better than bullion” concentrate, garlic powder instead of fresh garlic, and dried shiitake mushrooms. My dad was not a big fan of chicken, but he certainly liked this recipe. He licked his plate clean! Mom insisted that I write down exactly what I did so I could repeat it.
Single Serving Chicken Recipe with Tarragon and Mushrooms
Chicken fricasee with tarragon and mushrooms, cooked with with butter, Greek yogurt, and milk. Or, indulge yourself and use cream instead.
Ingredients
- 1 chicken thigh, bone-in
- 1T canola oil
- 1 tsp butter
- 1/2 C onion, chopped
- 1 small clove garlic, chopped
- 1/8 tsp dried tarragon
- 1 C mushrooms, sliced
- 1/2 tsp flour
- 1/4 C chicken broth
- 1/4 C mixture of Greek yogurt and milk (use two thirds yogurt and one third milk; the idea is to get the consistency of cream); or just go for it and use the cream
Instructions
- Wash the chicken and pat dry. Season it with salt and pepper.
- Get a medium skillet and heat on a medium flame. Add the oil. Then add the butter. Once the butter melts, add the chicken. Cook the chicken, turning it every once in a while, for about 5 minutes total. Add the onion, garlic, and tarragon
- Sprinkle the flour over the chicken and mushroom mixture, and stir it all around to make sure it's spread evenly around the pan.
- Add the chicken broth and the mushrooms to the pan. Cover the pot and let it simmer for 15 to 20 minutes (depending on the size of the piece of chicken).
- Remove the chicken from the pan with tongs and put it on your plate while you finish making the rest of the sauce. Cover the chicken with the lid of the pot to keep it warm.
- Cook the sauce, and keep stirring it, for 5 minutes.
- Add the cream (or yogurt mixture). If you use the yogurt, spoon some of the sauce from the pan into the yogurt and mix it together before adding it to the pan. This will keep it from separating.
- Simmer for three minutes. Then, put the chicken back in the pan and spoon the sauce over it.
Tarragon Chicken with Mushrooms Recipe Substitutions and Variations
- If you don’t have the yogurt/milk use the cream, or mix butter and milk together and melt it before adding it to the sauce (since butter is essentially solidified cream)
- The original recipe called for fresh tarragon. I bought some and found it tasted like licorice. Since I don’t particularly like licorice, I wasn’t too happy about that! On the other hand, if you do like licorice, or fresh tarragon, use one small sprig.
- Try using wild mushrooms, like shiitake or chanterelle instead of white button mushrooms; this also works well with dried mushrooms (reconstitute them with hot water to cover and let them sit for five or ten minutes)
More Chicken Recipes
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Crispy Lemon Chicken Thigh Recipe for One
Great hot or cold, with a crispy, slightly sweet flavor, and three kinds of lemon. Think fried chicken with less mess.
Chicken Mushroom Skillet Recipe 
Pan fry the chicken, cut the mushrooms and veggies, and simmer. It makes its own sauce right in the pan.
A classic Italian meal, that’s really not Italian at all. Minimal cleanup, one pan and a tangy sauce you don’t have to cook separately.
I spend most of my time with serious food snobs, and have had a chance to learn to really appreciate good food. Dinner for one is usually disappointing, but this was really, truly delicious! (One caveat, the time to add the mushrooms varies, so you have to make your best guess)
Hi Melanie,
Thank you! I’m so glad you enjoyed it.
After my grandpa died, my grandma kept cooking the way she had before. She said, “I’m a person too!” I try to be inspired by her example.