Chicken Florentine: perfectly roasted chicken breast served with a simple yet delicious white wine, spinach and oyster mushroom sauce.
This delicious recipe features very simple and classic cooking techniques to create a wonderful meal in around 40 minutes.
Creamy Spinach and Mushroom Chicken Breast
Chicken breast with a simple sauce is a well-trodden path on my website: dishes like baked mango chutney chicken breast, chicken breast in peppercorn sauce, and chicken breast in a spicy tomato sauce are all firm favourites.
I tend to buy whole chickens and break them down, which means I've typically got some chicken breasts available, and this style of dish is perfect for them.
This dish is my take on a fairly "modern" classic dish, chicken Florentine in a creamy spinach, white wine and mushroom sauce.
It's a dish that has changed throughout the years, with questionable links to 16th-century France, and Escofier had a fish dish bearing the same name in the early 20th century.
Most early variants feature a mornay sauce, but many modern variants use a cream-based sauce, as do I.
Rather than thin chicken escalops, I prefer to roast whole skin-on chicken breasts, and then make a super quick creamy pan sauce whilst the chicken is resting.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use skinless chicken breast?
It will work, but you will be missing out on a huge punch of chicken flavour.
Yes, you will be saving a few calories, but given the profusion of cream and butter in this recipe, you may as well treat yourself!
Do I have to use oyster mushrooms?
No, regular mushrooms work just as well. I prefer oyster mushrooms in this recipe because they are a little sweeter and less earthy than field or button mushrooms.
The texture is also a little nicer in this sauce.
Do I have to use wine?
No, if you want to skip the alcohol, you can skip step 9 and add a little more stock. However, you will want to add a little acidity. A splash of white wine vinegar or lemon juice will work fine.
If you want to change up the alcohol, consider either dry vermouth or dry sherry; both work wonderfully in this recipe.
Can I make this in advance?
This dish is not best suited to being cooked, cooled and reheated, because the chicken will overcook, the mushrooms will become soggy, and the spinach risks becoming bitter.
Serving Suggestions
I've served my take on chicken Florentine with some simply cooked green vegetables that I sauteed in a little butter. Fine beans, peas, sugar snap peas and tenderstem broccoli, basically stuff I have knocking around in the fridge.
But there are plenty of options; if you want some potatoes, consider my take on Parmentier potatoes; they work wonderfully with the creamy sauce.
Mash is a popular option, and I would recommend celeriac mash; the flavour works very well with this dish.
When it comes to greens, roast tenderstem broccoli, or green beans amandine are perfect partners for this recipe.
Equipment Used
I only mention specific brands of equipment if I think that they make a material difference to a recipe. But if you have any questions, feel free to ask them in the comments section below the recipe.
- Hob/stovetop.
- Oven.
- 28cm or 11" frying pan. Not non-stick if possible.
- Kitchen tongs.
- Chopping board.
- Kitchen knife.
- Kitchen foil.
- A combination of weighing scales, a measuring jug, measuring cups and spoons.
- Stirring and serving spoons.
- Quick-read meat thermometer (optional).
Creamy Chicken and Spinach Florentine Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 Large Chicken Breasts 500g Total
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Black Pepper
- 2 tablespoon Butter
- 1 Tsp Olive Oil
- 1 Small-Medium Echalion or Banana Shallot 35g
- 3 Garlic Cloves
- 175 ml Dry White Wine ¾ Cup
- 75 ml Chicken Stock ⅓ Cup
- 150 g Baby Spinach 2½ Packed Cups
- 175 ml Double Cream ¾ Cup (Heavy Cream in the US)
- 1 Pinch Nutmeg
- 125 g Oyster Mushrooms 1-1½ Cups
Instructions
- Heat a 28cm or 11" frying pan (not non-stick if possible) over a medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add half of the butter and olive oil.
- Season the chicken breasts with half of the salt and all of the black pepper, then add them to the foaming butter, skin side down and brown for 3-4 minutes.Then flip and transfer to the oven and cook for 15-18 minutes at 180°C or 350°F; you are looking for the internal temperature to reach 70°C or 158°F.
- Whilst the chicken is roasting, peel and finely chop the garlic.
- Cut the shallot in half, peel it and dice it as finely as you can.
- Pick through the spinach, clean it and drain it as well as you can.
- Tear/chop the oyster mushrooms into strips.
- Remove the chicken from the pan, cover it with foil and allow it to rest, then return the pan to the hob over a medium-high heat.
- Add the chopped shallots and garlic to the pan and cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring regularly.
- Pour in the white wine into the shallot pan and reduce it by two-thirds.
- Heat a second frying pan (25cm or 10") over a medium-high heat, and when it is hot, add the remaining butter, followed by the mushrooms and remaining salt. Then saute for 5-6 minutes.
- Pour the chicken stock into the pan with the reduced wine, then add the spinach, cover with a lid and cook until wilted, which will take 3-4 minutes.
- When the spinach has wilted, remove the lid, reduce the heat to medium, add the sauteed mushrooms, a pinch of nutmeg and the cream, stir and cook for a final minute or two.
- Serve the rested chicken on a bed of spinach and mushrooms and spoon over the sauce.
