Pan Sauces
These sauces are made in the same pan used to cook the meat so they can utilize the fond (all the tasty bits left in the pan). The basic formula is to use about 1/2 cup of liquid, some flavoring component and a bit of fat for enrichment. It's important to have your sauce ingredients ready to use immediately after the meat is done cooking so that the pan is still hot but the fond has not yet burned.
Abbreviations:
Liquid (L), Flavoring (F), Enrichment (E)
Red Wine & Dijon Sauce
(L) ¼ C Low-salt chicken stock
(L) ¼ C Full-bodied red wine
(F) 1 tsp Dijon mustard
(E) 1 Tbs Butter
Orange-Dijon with Rosemary Sauce
(L) ½ C Orange juice
(F) 2 Tbs Dijon mustard
(F) ½ tsp Minced rosemary
(F) Optional: 1Tbs Brown sugar
(E) 1 Tbs Butter
Curried Chutney Sauce
(L) 6 Tbs Low-salt chicken stock
(L) 2 Tbs Rice-wine vinegar
(F) 2 Tbs Prepared chutney such as Major Grey's
(F) ¼ tsp Curry powder
(E) 1 Tbs Butter
Balsamic Pan Sauce
(L) ¼ C Balsamic vinegar
(L) ¼ C Low-salt chicken stock
(F) None
(E) 1 Tbs Butter
Marsala Wine Sauce
(L) ½ C Port wine
(F) None
(E) 1 Tbs Butter
Port Wine Pan Sauce With dried cherries (or dried cranberries)
(L) ½ C Port wine
(F) 2 Tbs dried cherries (or dried cranberries)
(F) 2 tsp seedless raspberry jam or red currant jelly
(E) 1 Tbs Butter
Lemon-Caper Sauce
(L) 6 Tbs Low-salt chicken stock
(L) 2 Tbs Lemon juice
(F) 2 tsp Drained capers
(E) 1 Tbs Butter
Sweet Vermouth or Cream Sherry with Prunes Sauce
(L) 6 Tbs Sweet vermouth or Cream sherry
(L) 1 Tbs Cider vinegar
(F) ¼ C Chopped prunes
(E) 1 Tbs Butter
Mustard Cream Sauce
(L) ½ C Low-salt chicken stock
(F) 2 Tbs Coarse-grained mustard
(E) 2 Tbs Heavy cream
Simple Sauce with Green Grapes
(L) ½ C Low-salt chicken stock
(F) 1 C Green grapes, halved
(F) ½ tsp Minced fresh rosemary
(E) 2 Tbs heavy cream
To make a pan sauce, measure liquids and flavoring into a measuring cup before sautéing your cutlets or boneless chops. When your cutlets are done cooking, remove them and pour the contents of the measuring cup into the hot skillet; boil until the liquid reduces by half. Tilt the skillet so that the reduced liquid is at one side of the pan and whisk in the enrichment until the sauce is smooth and glossy. Take the pan off the heat and spoon a portion of the sauce over each cutlet or chop and serve immediately. These pan sauces are designed to yield 1 to 1 ½ tablespoons per cutlet. If you decide you want a bit more, raise the total measurement of your liquid ingredients to 2/3 cup, and if you like a richer sauce, whisk in an extra tablespoon of butter.
From: Fine Cooking Magazine