For dinner, I had chicken marsala, with snow peas and a glass of viognier.
The chicken marsala came from Trader Joe's prepared foods area. Considering our complete apathy toward cooking lately, this was a godsend. And it wasn't bad, exactly. It was just sort of sub-par.
Chicken marsala is not very hard to make. I actually make a mean chicken marsala, and my father-in-law makes an equally delicious, albeit completely different, chicken marsala. Maybe that's the problem; I have an image of chicken marsala in my head: basic, immutable elements of chicken marsala, regardless of specific ingredients, and TJ's just didn't meet it. In my world, it involves Maillard. Theirs reminded me of a very soupy schnitzel, especially the egg-heavy batter that separated from the meat. Jon thought the chicken breasts still had skin on them, the crust was so bizarre and thick. It was edible, but not anything I'd call marsala. I'm surprised they don't at least try to get a little caramelization on their chicken, or reduce their sauce further and compartmentalize it separately from the chicken. They also sell a balsamic-glazed chicken prepared meal, and it somehow manages to have a little sear and a good, not-soupy texture. Maybe TJ's likes soupy chicken marsala. Next time, I'll make my own.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment