Chicken fricassee with asparagus and mushrooms

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 1 chicken
• 1 bunch of soup vegetables
• 1 tbsp vegetable stock powder
• 1 jar asparagus, or fresh, already cooked
• 1 jar mushrooms, small
• 1 small jar of capers
• salt and pepper
• nutmeg
• 1 dashes lemon juice, optional
• Crème fraîche or cooking cream
• e.g. butter
• n. B. Flour

Instructions

Working time approx. 35 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 1 hour 15 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour 50 minutes

First of all: I always make soup at the same time! Wash the chicken (preferably a good meat chicken, e.g., corn-fed chicken). Trim and chop the soup vegetables (2 leeks, 1 piece of celery, 3 carrots), and place them in a large stockpot. Then place the chicken on top of the vegetables. Now add about 2-2.5 liters of water to the pot and add a tablespoon of vegetable stock powder. The chicken will cook for about an hour, then remove and let cool. Then cut into small pieces and set aside. Now make a classic roux: Melt about 2 tablespoons of butter in a sufficiently large pot and then dust with flour. Stir the mixture over high heat with a whisk until it forms clumps. Then gradually add the stock from the stockpot, stirring vigorously. You’ll need about half a liter of stock. Stir and add more until the sauce is nice and creamy. Now season with salt, nutmeg, and pepper and add the small jar of capers to the sauce. This gives it a nice tart flavor (instead of lemon). If you don’t like capers, you can of course use the juice of half a lemon. Once the sauce is ready, add the mushrooms, finely chopped asparagus, and the meat, stir, and you’re done! Rice goes best with this. We also love boiled potatoes. Tip: The remaining broth makes excellent chicken soup. Add small noodles, roll small meatballs, prepare egg custard, and add everything to the soup…