Pollo al
Marsala
Italian-American chicken with Marsala & mushrooms
Golden chicken cutlets meet browned mushrooms in a savory Marsala-wine pan sauce, finished with butter and chopped parsley.
Chicken, mushrooms & Marsala sauceBrowned mushrooms,
a splash of Marsala.
Pollo al Marsala is chicken cooked with mushrooms and a sauce made from Marsala wine. Thin, lightly floured cutlets brown quickly, leaving pan juices that flavor the sauce. The wine brings a rounded sweetness, balanced here by broth, browned mushrooms and a small amount of butter.
The chicken-and-mushroom preparation is familiar on Italian-American menus. Marsala is a Sicilian wine, but using it does not make every preparation a regional Sicilian specialty. Versions differ in their use of cream; this home recipe keeps a reduced wine-and-broth sauce around the chicken.
Explore by food: Meat
Let’s make pollo al Marsala.
Brown the chicken and mushrooms separately, then reduce the wine and broth in the same pan.
Four chicken cutlets with mushroom sauce; side dishes are separate.
What you’ll need
- 700 gskinless chicken breast, cut into 4 thin cutlets
- 40 gplain flour
- 30 mlolive oil, divided
- 40 gunsalted butter, divided
- 250 gchestnut or button mushrooms, sliced
- 1 smallshallot, about 50 g, finely chopped
- 1 clovegarlic, finely chopped
- 150 mldry Marsala wine
- 250 mllow-sodium chicken broth
- 1 tbspchopped parsley
- to tastefine salt and black pepper
Choose dry Marsala rather than a sweet dessert version. This recipe uses no cream; reduce the sauce before returning the cooked chicken so the meat is not simmered throughout the reduction.
How to make it
- 01
Coat the cutlets
Pound the chicken to an even 6 mm. Season, coat lightly with flour and shake off the excess. Discard flour that has touched the raw chicken.
- 02
Brown the chicken
In a wide skillet over medium heat, heat 15 ml oil and 10 g butter. Cook two cutlets for about 3 minutes per side until golden and 74°C/165°F at the thickest point; lift onto a clean plate. Repeat with the remaining oil, 10 g more butter and the other cutlets.
- 03
Brown the mushrooms
Add 10 g butter and the mushrooms to the pan. Cook over medium-high heat for 7–8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until their moisture evaporates and edges brown. Add the shallot and garlic; cook for 2 minutes.
- 04
Make the wine sauce
Pour in the Marsala and scrape the base of the pan. Simmer for 3 minutes, then add the broth. Reduce for 7–8 minutes until the sauce lightly coats a spoon.
- 05
Bring the plate together
Return the chicken and its juices to the pan and warm gently for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and swirl in the remaining 10 g butter. Taste for seasoning and scatter over the parsley.
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