Chicken Breasts (Bone In) with gravy

By kawaibaby

Ingredients

• For the chicken breasts:
• 8-10 large, meaty chicken breasts on bones with skin
• 4-6 tablespoons butter, very thinly sliced
• freshly ground sea salt and peppercorn blend
• For the foolproof chicken gravy:
• 1 14 1/2-ounce can chicken stock + 1 14 1/2-ounce can of water
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
• 1/2-3/4 teaspoon Gravy Master (optional)* (read about Gravy Master below)

Details

Adapted from kitchenencounters.typepad.com

Preparation

Step 1

Step 1. Place a roasting rack in the bottom of a large disposable aluminum roasting pan to which 1, 14 1/2-ounce can of chicken stock and 1 can of water (use the can from the stock to measure the water) has been added.

Arrange 8-10 large, meaty chicken breasts (breasts on bones with skin, NOT boneless, skinless chicken breasts), side by side, overlapping slightly if necessary, skin side up, on rack. Slice some butter, as thinly as possible, and place 3 pats on top of each chicken breast. Liberally season everything with freshly ground sea salt and peppercorn blend.

Real Roasted Chicken Breasts #3 (Chicken Out of Oven) ~ Step 2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Roast the breasts, uncovered, on center rack of preheated oven exactly 1 1/2 hours.

Remove the breasts from the oven, transfer them to a large, warmed serving platter and allow them to rest, about 15 minutes, prior to serving.

While the breasts are resting, prepare the gravy according to the following directions:

Real Roasted Chicken Breasts #4 (Fat-Lean Separator) ~ Step 3. Pour all liquid from the pan into a 1-quart fat/lean separator. You will have about 4 cups of fat-free drippings/liquid.

If you don't own a fat/lean separator, this is an inexpensive kitchen gadget you'll want to get. Mine just happens to be made of glass and is ovenproof, but the plastic ones work just as well. As you can see in the picture, all of the chicken fat has floated to the top, leaving all the flavorful fat-free drippings/liquid to be poured out from the bottom!

Real Roasted Chicken Breasts #5 (Making the Roux) ~ Step 4. In a 3 1/2-quart chef's pan, melt 6 tablespoons of butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in 1/2 cup of all-purpose flour along with 1 1/2 teaspoons of poultry seasoning. Do not add any salt or pepper... your fat-free drippings are seasoned! Whisk constantly, until the mixture (referred to as roux) is thick and smooth. This process will only take about 1-2 minutes.

Real Roasted Chicken Breasts #6 (Gravy Done) ~ Step 5. Whisk in all of the fat-free liquid from the fat/lean separator and discard all of the fat. Adjust heat to medium-high and bring gravy to a gentle simmer. Continue to simmer, whisking constantly, until gravy has thickened to your liking and coats a spoon, 2-3 minutes. The longer you simmer the gravy, the thicker it will get. How quick and easy was that!

*All of this being said, depending on the color of your fat-free liquid that day (and it does vary slightly in color everytime you make it), if you want your gravy to be a little darker in color, just stir in about 1/2-3/4 teaspoon of Gravy Master. Gravy Master is a nifty product that I keep on hand in my pantry and I recommend that you do too. It comes in a small, 2-ounce bottle with an orange label and a little splash goes a very long way. I use a very small amount of this product exclusively for the purpose of adding some color to any pale-looking gravy!

Real Roasted Chicken Breasts #7 (Sliced Chicken) ~ Step 6. For the most part, I like slicing and plating chicken breasts before serving them. This is SO NOT NECESSARY, so if you want to skip this task/step, serve them up just as is.

As you can see from the picture, the chicken is perfectly cooked.

Can you believe this one chicken breast, when thinly sliced, makes a yummy plate of food this size!?!