Chicken
Serves 4-6
4-5 lbs. chicken pieces
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 Tblsp / 15ml olive oil
1 Tblsp / 15ml butter
8 whole shallots, peeled
12-18 large mushrooms, trimmed and quartered
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tsp / 5g sugar
4 carrots, scraped and cut into 1 inch pieces
2 Tblsp / plain ( all purpose ) flour
1 (12 oz / 375ml) bottle Belgian beer
8 floz / 250ml beef broth
1 tsp / 5g dried thyme
2 bay leaves
Finely chopped fresh parsley for garnish
Season the chicken pieces generously with the salt and pepper.
Heat the oil and butter in a large, heavy pot over moderate heat, and
brown the chicken pieces on all sides.
Set the chicken pieces aside, and to the same pot add the shallots
and mushrooms.
Saute for about 5 minutes, until lightly browned, and add the garlic and
sugar. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
Add the carrots, and sprinkle the flour over the vegetables.
Stir to incorporate the flour with the butter, making sure there are no lumps.
Add the beef broth, stirring to dissolve the flour and to scrape the
bottom of the pan.
Add the chicken pieces, thyme, and bay leaves, and simmer covered over
low heat for 30 to 40 minutes, until the chicken is tender.
Remove the cover for the last 10 minutes, allowing the sauce to reduce
by about one-third.
Serve sprinkled with chopped parsley.