*Photo Updated October 2012*

Inspiration: Learning to love mustard is one of my culinary projects right now. There’s always something out there that you’ve never had a taste for, have never quite appreciated, or have never even tried, right? I’ve been working on brown mustard for several months now, and I’m happy to say that I’m finally beginning to identify it as a food that I enjoy. The true test? Cooking with it and using it as a main ingredient, versus dolloping a touch on a slice of cheese or sausage.

What We Loved: I was more than hesitant to eat this meal. I knew that Brandon would love it (he really loves mustard), but I figured that I would probably feel pretty “meh” about the whole thing. But what a surprise. This one instantly became one of our favorite chicken breast recipes (yes, mine too!). Since the chicken is simply cooked in some butter, salt, and pepper, the pan sauce is really the star. It’s creamy, rich, and has some great herbal undertones – all of the things that we love about pan sauces. We used an organic brown mustard made with apple cider vinegar, and those tangy and rich mustard flavors were really the backbone of the sauce and the main flavors of the dish.

Tips:I would say to make sure that you use a really good mustard for this sauce, since it’s the dominating flavor in the dish. That said, the sauce is really very versatile. It’s also good on pork chops, and I’m sure that it would be good on cubed or shredded chicken as well. The smaller pieces of chicken would provide a lot more surface area to soak up all of that delicious flavor.

Chicken with Mustard Cream Sauce
Source: Let’s Dish, originally from Martha Stewart’s Everyday Food

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied and then cut in half
Butter
Kosher salt and black pepper
1/4 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons brown mustard
1 teaspoon dried oregano

1. Add a good pat of butter to a saute pan over medium high heat. Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper, and add them to the pan. Saute until cooked through, turning once, about 10 minutes. Remove to a plate and keep warm.

2. Add the chicken stock into the pan. Whisk in the cream, mustard, and oregano. Cook and stir for about two minutes, until thickened. Pour the sauce over the chicken and serve.