This simple tarragon chicken with roasted vegetables is a wonderful weeknight dinner option and is loaded with fresh herbs, like thyme, sage, and tarragon.
We poured our tarragon sauce through a sieve to discard the solids (garlic and onion), but you can leave them in, if you want to save yourself the step; just be sure to mince the garlic instead of crushing it.
You’re going to love this beautiful, classic tarragon chicken with roasted vegetables.
The broth is flavorful and rich without being overly decadent and it pairs well with perfectly roasted, juicy chicken legs. It’s such a classic combination of flavors that makes for a perfect weeknight dinner recipe.
How to Make this Simple Tarragon Chicken with Roasted Vegetables
The concept of this recipe is simple but the flavor payoff is huge! You’ll arrange all your vegetables on a sheet pan. Then, you’ll fry up your chicken thighs to crisp up the skin a touch.
Next, you’ll prepare the sauce in the same braising pot you used to fry the sauce. Throw the chicken on top of the sauce and pop both the chicken and the veggies in the oven until the chicken reaches 165ºF. From there, it’s just a matter of straining the sauce (if you like) and then cooking it with a bit of butter and cream on the stovetop right before serving to give you a luxuriously, velvety sauce!
To serve it up, all you’ll do is divide the roasted vegetables between shallow bowls, place a chicken leg on top, and spoon that delicious sauce all over!
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Simple Tarragon Chicken with Roasted Vegetables
Ingredients
Tarragon Chicken:
- 4 chicken leg quarters
- 1 tablespoon neutral cooking oil
- 1 small yellow onion peeled and diced
- 5 cloves garlic peeled and crushed
- 2 teaspoons tarragon leaves chopped
- 4 sprigs thyme
- 5 sage leaves torn
- 1 and 1/2 cups chicken stock
- 3 tablespoons butter
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- Salt and pepper to taste
Roasted Vegetables:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound baby red potatoes quartered
- 10 ounces cremini mushrooms trimmed and sliced
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes
- 5 sprigs thyme
- 10 sage leaves
- Salt and pepper to taste
For Serving:
- A few fresh tarragon leaves
Instructions
Prepare the Vegetables:
- Preheat oven to 400ºF. On one half of the baking sheet, combine the quartered baby red potatoes and the cherry tomatoes. On the other half of the baking sheet, arrange the sliced mushrooms, avoiding overlap as much as possible. Drizzle the vegetables with the oil and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the thyme sprigs and sage leaves on top. Set the baking sheet aside as you fry the chicken.
Fry the Chicken:
- In a wide sauté pan or braising pot, heat the neutral cooking oil over medium-high heat. Pat the chicken dry and season all over with salt and pepper. Once the oil is hot, place the chicken, skin-side down, into the pan. Cook without moving for 5-7 minutes or until the skin is crispy and golden brown. Flip and cook 1-2 minutes more. Transfer to a plate.
Prepare the Tarragon Sauce:
- Keeping the pan on medium heat, add the diced onion and cook for 4-5 minutes or until it just begins to soften. Add the crushed garlic, thyme sprigs, chopped tarragon, and torn sage leaves and cook for 2-3 minutes more.
- Pour in the chicken stock and scrape up any browned bits stuck to the bottom. Bring to a boil and then turn off the heat.
Bake the Chicken and Vegetables:
- Place the chicken on top, skin-side up. Transfer the pan to the oven and immediately add the baking sheet of vegetables to the unused rack in the oven. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until the chicken reaches 165ºF on an instant-read thermometer.
Strain the Sauce (Optional):
- After baking, remove the vegetables from the oven and keep warm. Return the chicken to the stove top. Transfer the chicken to a plate and cover with foil.
- Pour the sauce through a sieve into a saucepan.
Finish the Sauce:
- Transfer the saucepan to the stove over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and boil for 5 minutes until reduced slightly.
- Add the butter and reduce heat. Pour in the heavy cream and simmer for 5 minutes more until thickened slightly. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
To Serve the Tarragon Chicken with Roasted Vegetables:
- Divide the roasted vegetables between rimmed plates or shallow bowls. Place a chicken leg on top of each each dish and spoon the creamy tarragon sauce over each plate. Arrange a few tarragon leaves on top of the chicken for garnish. Enjoy!
