
Lager Beer Braised Chicken with Pasta
Braising meat with beer just sounds like a fantastic idea to me. People braise meat with wine, so why not beer, right? That is how this lager beer braised chicken with pasta was inspired. And I am thankful for the inspiration because this dish was amazing, if you don’t mind me tooting my own horn. Obviously I love my own cooking and love sharing all the recipes that work (yes I have a lot of failures I don’t share!) but this recipe took the win. I was expecting it to be good but not this good! Trust me. Try it out and see for yourself. You will be amazed with yourself too after making this!
Lager Beer Braised Chicken and Pasta
I am going to start off with a mini beer lesson. There are two types of beers. Yes, only two. I know what you are thinking. When you walk into your liquor store, you see so many cases and bottles of beer – porters, stouts, ambers, blondes, wits, and more – but they are all either a lager or an ale. Lager and ale. That’s the two types of beers out there. Every beer is a lager or an ale. Moosehead is a Canadian lager and is the lager I am using in this lager beer braised chicken.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Heat a large oven-proof frying pan over medium heat. Season the chicken generously with salt and pepper and set aside.
In the heated frying pan, add in the chopped pancetta and cook while stirring occasionally, until slightly crispy and fat starts to render, about 15 minutes. Remove from pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Add the seasoned chicken, skin side down, to the pan with bacon fat and cook until chicken starts to brown and is crispy. Flip and brown the other side. Remove from pan and set aside.
Add some olive oil now if the pan is getting a little dry. Add in chopped onion, carrot and minced garlic and sauté for 5 minutes. Add in the chopped mushrooms and continue to cook and stir for about 7 – 10 minutes.
Pour in the lager beer, the cream and grated nutmeg and bring mixture to a boil. Add back the chicken and pancetta and sprinkle everything with a pinch of salt. Bring mixture with chicken and pancetta to a slight boil and then put into the oven and let it cook there for about 30 – 40 minutes, until chicken is cooked through and is a nice brown colour. While chicken is in the oven boil your pasta choice and set aside.
Serve lager beer braised chicken on your favourite pasta and with your favourite brew.
Lager Beer Braised Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 chicken legs with backs attached
- 1/2 inch thick chunk pancetta diced
- salt and pepper
- 1/2 medium red onion
- 2 carrots peeled and diced
- 6 clove garlic sliced
- 1 cup mushrooms slided
- 1 cup lager beer*
- 1/2 tsp grated or ground nutmeg
- 1/2 cup cream
- Pasta
Instructions
-
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Heat a large oven-proof frying pan over medium heat. Season the chicken generously with salt and pepper and set aside.
-
In the heated frying pan, add in the chopped pancetta and cook while stirring occasionally, until slightly crispy and fat starts to render, about 15 minutes. Remove from pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.
-
Add the seasoned chicken, skin side down, to the pan with bacon fat and cook until chicken starts to brown and is crispy. Flip and brown the other side. Remove from pan and set aside.
-
Add some olive oil if the pan is getting a little dry. Add in chopped onion, carrot and minced garlic and saute for 5 minutes. Add in the chopped mushrooms and continue to cook and stir for about 7-10 minutes.
-
Pour in the lager beer, the cream, and grated nutmeg and bring mixture to a boil. Add back the chicken and pancetta and sprinkle everything with a pinch of salt. Bring mixture with chicken and pancetta to a slight boil and then put into the oven and let it cook there for about 30-40 minutes, until chicken is cooked through and is a nice brown colour. While chicken is in the oven boil your pasta choice and set aside.
-
Serve lager braised chicken on your favourite pasta and with your favourite brew.
Recipe Notes
* I used Moosehead Lager
