Bistro Cooking At Home

Gordon Hamersley trained with Wolfgang Puck at Ma Maison. After a year in France, he went to Boston and opened Hamersley’s Bistro. Bistro Cooking at Home offers the home cook a way to re-create the earthy, simple food found in dark bistros with crisp white tablecloths. There is a good mix of traditional offerings with new and delightful takes on old classics. The directions are written to be painfully simple, often repeating themselves to insure the reader understands. If you are a good cook, this detailed repetition, might get a bit old, but if you have never seared foie gras, or pounded paillards, this book will guide you through the process easily.

Chicken Paillards with Lemon and Capers

2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
About 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, for dusting
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 tablespoon capers, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup chicken broth
2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley

Place each chicken breast half between 2 pieces of plastic wrap on a work surface. Leave some room for the breasts to increase in size by half again. Using the flat side of a kitchen mallet or a meat mallet, pound the chicken until it’s about 1/4 inch thick.

Put the flour on a plate near the stove. Heat the oil and about 1/2 tablespoon of the butter in a large sauté pan until very hot. Sprinkle the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Coat both sides if the breasts with flour, shake off any excess flour and immediately put the chicken in the hot pan.

Cook the chicken for about 2 minutes, increasing the heat if necessary to brown nicely. Turn the chicken over and cook until done, about another minute or two. Transfer the chicken to serving plates and keep it warm.

Add the shallot to the pan and cook it for about 1 minute. Add the capers, lemon juice, and chicken broth. Cook over high heat until slightly thickened. Add the other 1/2 tablespoon butter for a slightly richer sauce. Add the chopped parsley to the sauce and pour the sauce over the chicken breasts.

Capers can come in a brine or packed in salt, either method does require rinsing. Otherwise the sauce will be way to salty. If you don't have a mallet, try using a rolling pin to pound the breasts into paillards.