Chicken Marengo Recipe

This easy chicken marengo recipe is bursting with vibrant and robust flavors that you can’t help but fall in love with. Made with tender, juicy chicken simmered in a tomato sauce and served over your favorite pasta for the ultimate weeknight meal.

This marengo is so hearty and delicious. The wine deepens the flavor of the vegetable rich sauce as well as enhances the taste of the chicken. It’s pure comfort food that you’ll want to eat every month.

Dip a butter laden piece of crusty bread in the gravy and you’ll be in heaven.

The history of chicken marengo

My mom used to make this delicious recipe. I always thought it was her own creation. Little did I know that it is a French dish. Napoleon Bonaparte’s chef who, after scrounging in a village for whatever ingredients he could get his hands on, came up with this recipe.

I’m pretty sure this isn’t the original recipe because rumor has it there were crayfish or crawfish, and eggs in that first iteration. The chef later perfected the recipe by adding mushrooms instead of the the crayfish. He also added wine.

It is said that this dish was named such because it was first eaten by Napoleon after the Battle of Marengo. He liked the dish so much that he requested it be served after every battle.

Notice I said, “requested”. I’m sure Napoleon asked most politely.

During my research, I also learned that everything I just told you might be a myth; that perhaps a random chef in a restaurant somewhere made this to honor Napoleon’s victory. We will probably never know.

I think I’ll go back to believe my mom made it up!

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Helpful tips

• Use a heavy large Dutch oven as I feel it cooks more evenly than cooked in a metal stock pot.
• Try to buy organic chicken as it’s tastier and antibiotic and hormone free.
• I make this dish with chicken thighs and legs, but would be equally as delicious made with chicken breasts.
• Remember that the current practice is NOT to wash your chicken before cooking. What I do is open the package and dry the chicken with a paper towel to get the moisture off.
• Brown the chicken in two phases because it’s a lot of chicken and you won’t be able to fit it all in the pan at once. Don’t sauté the chicken more than 8 minutes total.
• While you are sautéing the chicken, chop the vegetables to save time.
• Use a dry white wine like a Sauvignon Blanc and NOT a sweet one like Cabernet.
• Use diced tomatoes instead of crushed as it makes for a hearty chunky dish.
• I prefer to use red bell peppers, Vidalia onion and portobello mushrooms but you can use green peppers, yellow onion and/or white button muffins.
• My go-to herb when I cook chicken is tarragon, but if you don’t have any in your pantry, you can use thyme, oregano, or basil.

How to make chicken marengo

Pre-step

Get a Dutch oven or stockpot.

Step one

Pat the chicken with a paper towel and add flour to a shallow bowl.

Step two

Dredge each piece of chicken in the flour and set aside. Heat your pan on medium-high heat. (A)

Step three

Gather the red bell pepper, onion and sliced mushrooms. (B)

Step four

Once the pan heats up, turn the heat down to medium heat, add a few tablespoons of olive oil in the pan and once that heats up – it should shimmer, add as many drumsticks as you can and brown the chicken for 8 minutes.

You will have to do this in two batches. Brown the thighs next for 8 minutes.

Set aside. (C)

Step five

As the chicken is browning, cut the red bell peppers and onions in chunks. (D)

Step six

In the same pan that you browned the chicken, add red bell pepper and onion and sauté for 6 minutes. Add mushrooms, garlic, and salt and sauté for 4 minutes. (E)

Step seven

Gather the herbs, diced tomatoes and white wine. (F)

Step eight

Add the wine, tarragon, and parsley (G) and stir to mix together. (H)

Cook for 2 minutes.

Step nine

Add chicken to the pan (I) along with the diced tomatoes. (J)

Step ten

Bring to a slight boil, then lower the heat to a simmer and cook it for 50 – 55 minutes.

See how luscious it looks with all the ingredients melded together?

When I was growing up, we had this chicken Marengo recipe on mashed potatoes. I choose to serve it on pasta.

Time to dig in. Christopher is one happy dude right now.

Let’s cut into a chicken thigh.

Yum. Just like mom used to make. And maybe just like Napoleon used to eat! 🙂

I hope you enjoyed this chicken marengo recipe.

Other much loved chicken dishes

• Ginny’s Swiss chicken
• Baked chicken thighs
• Maple mustard chicken
• Cacciatore
• Pressure cooker chicken wings

If you’ve tried this recipe, I’d love the know what you thought about it in the comments below. I love hearing from you! You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST to see more of my delicious food and delightful cocktails!