I made a few, ahem, alterations to the recipe, but the result was great and got rave reviews from our guests. I used half the number of chicken breasts, but the same amount of sauce. Other changes are: 4 large black plums in place of italian plums, white vinegar instead of rice or wine vinegar, 1 tbsp butter instead of 4, and water in place of the white wine. The plum sauce only thickened up a little bit after a bit of extra cooking time. It’s good served hot or cold. According to Sable & Rosenfeld Cookbook, dress up with a single yellow oncicium orchid on a dark dinner platter, or a mauve dendrobium if using a dark platter.
Ingredients
Chicken Breasts
8 half chicken breasts, skinless and boneless
1/4 c (50 ml) all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp (2 ml) paprika
1/2 tsp (2 ml) salt
1/4 tsp (1 ml) freshly ground black pepper
pinch cayenne
1/4 c (50 ml) sweet butter*
1/2 c (125 ml) dry white wine*
Plum Sauce
8 (1 cup/250 ml) blue Italian plums, pitted*
2 slices fresh ginger root, finely chopped
2 tbsp (25 ml) brown sugar
2 tbsp (25 ml) rice or wine vinegar*
2 tbsp (25 ml) soy sauce
1/2 c (125 ml) cold water
1 tbsp (15 ml) cornstarch
1/2 tsp (2 mL) cinnamon
Directions:
Bone and skin chicken breasts
In a shallow dish, combine flour, paprika, salt, pepper and cayenne. Roll each breast half in flour mixture to coat it completely.
In a large skillet, heat butter. Add chicken breasts. Cook, turning once or twice, for about 5 minutes, until lightly browned on all sides. Add wine, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes
Transfer chicken pieces to a casserole. Pour pan juices over chicken. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 350°F (180° C).
In a food processor, finely chop plums and ginger. In a 4 cup-cup (1 l) saucepan, comgine chopped plum mixture, brown sugar, vinegar and soysauce. Cook, stirring, over medium heat, about 5 minutes, until soft.
Combine water, cornstarch and cinnamon;stir until smooth. Stir into plum mixture. Cook, stirring constantly, about 2 minutes, until thick.
Pour over chicken in casserole. Cover and bake in oven for 20 and 25 minutes, or until chicken in tender or no longer pink.
From “The Sable & Rosenfeld Cookbook, Our Favorite Recipes”, by Myra Sable and Colleen Mathieu, Published by Little, Brown and company (Canada) Ltd., 1995