Quick and Easy Chicken Marengo

Wine Sauce, Mushrooms and Cognac

Chicken Marengo is a simple dish featuring a white wine suace, mushrooms, tomatoes and Cognac.

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This dish was supposedly first concocted in Italy after the battle of Marengo on June 14, 1800. It was an important battle for Napoleon leading the French forces to victory over the Austrians, and effectively driving them out of Italy. According to the legend, Napoleon refused to eat before fighting and would come off the battlefield with a ferocious hunger.

Louis-François Lejeune, Bataille de Marengo

Batille de Marengo
Louis-François Lejeune

One version of the story has his chef, Dunand, creating chicken Marengo from the only ingredients he was able to procure: a chicken, bread, oil, garlic, tomatoes, eggs and crayfish. Napoleon wolves this down, and the battle then turns in his favor. Being a superstitious sort of fellow, Napoleon came to associate this dish with victory, and supposedly insisted on having it prepared whenever he went into battle thereafter.

Napoleon was well known to have bad digestion and generally inhaled his food, apparently having little time for such nonsense. He thought nothing of eating this easy chicken recipe served on a bed of grilled bread and topped with a fried egg. These days you are just as likely to find it without the egg and bread and many times, to simplify things the crayfish is not included either.

The easy chicken Marengo recipe given here does not include these ingredients, but it does come with lots of great sauce, so serve it over rice to get every drop. Of course nothing is to stop you from trying this French recipe the way it was first served to Napoleon. Simply place some grilled French bread in a shallow bowl, ladle the chicken and sauce on top, and finally top with a fried egg.

Poulet à la Marengo

Prep time: 15 min - Cook time: 1 hour 15 min

8 pieces chicken, skinned
salt and pepper
1/4 cup flour
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced or pressed
1 cup dry white wine
1 14-1/2 ounce can diced tomatoes
1 chicken bouillon cube
1 teaspoon dried thyme
12 ounces mushrooms, washed, dried and sliced
1 tablespoon Cognac (optional)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parley or basil

Sprinkle the skinned chicken pieces with salt and pepper, then dredge in the flour.
Melt the butter with the olive oil in a heavy skillet on medium heat and gradually add the chicken pieces. Brown the chicken on all sides and remove from the skillet.
When all the chicken has been browned, add the onions and garlic to the skillet and cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally for five minutes.
Add the white wine and scrape any bits clinging to the bottom and sides of the skillet into the wine. Add the tomatoes, bouillon cube, and dried thyme, then the browned chicken pieces. Cover the skillet and simmer on low heat for 30 minutes.
Add the mushrooms and continue cooking for 15 minutes.
Stir in the Cognac 5 minutes before the end of the cooking time. Stir in the chopped herb just before serving.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

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