This recipe appears in Un-Wine’d, which airs Saturdays at 1:00 p.m. on VPM PBS. Watch past seasons and current episodes on the PBS app or PBS website. Check the broadcast schedule for local listings. Discover more recipes here.

What You’ll Need:

• 4 thick chicken breast halves, deboned and skinless
  
• Salt and pepper
  
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
  
• 1 ½ c. verjus or apple juice, divided
  
• 2 T. butter
  
• 2 T. olive oil
  
• 4 thyme sprigs
  
• 1 large or 2 small tarragon sprigs
  
• 1 c. chicken stock
  

• 3 T. cornstarch in 1 ½ T. water

Directions:

Step 1: Clean the chicken of any bits of skin or fat and season each with salt and pepper. Cut the cloves of garlic into slivers. Make deep incisions throughout the chicken breasts and put the garlic slivers deep into the chicken. Place the breast halves into a sealable plastic bag. Add ½ c. verjus and seal. Marinate from 1 hour to overnight.

Step 2: Preheat the oven to 400.

Step 3: Remove the chicken from the marinade. Reserve the marinade. Pat the chicken breasts dry.
 

Step 4: In an ovenproof sauté pan, melt the butter in the oil. Heat over medium high and sear the chicken breasts on all sides. Place the sprigs of thyme and tarragon in the pan then pour the remaining marinade, remaining verjus, and the chicken stock into the pan. Heat to simmering then move the pan to the oven. Bake for 30 minutes turning the chicken once midway through the process.

Step 5: Temp the chicken to be sure it has reached 165 degrees then remove from the oven. Place the chicken on a platter and heat the pan juices to a simmer. Add the cornstarch slurry and simmer until slightly thickened. Serve over chicken.