chicken ragout with mushrooms and sun-dried tomatoes

This recipe is definitely a keeper; moreover, it held up very well in the oven with a very early shabbat. and its from our own Brian Mailman; its from the Nov recipe on the Empire calendar. First: rehydrate mushrooms. To do this, simply chop the 'shrooms a bit, put them in a bowl and pour the hot chicken stock over them. After about a half-hour, strain (not drain, strain) the stock through a triple-layer of cheesecloth, flour-sack towel, or even a _very_ strong paper towel. This is because the 'shrooms can be sandy and gritty. Then take the rehydrated 'shrooms out of the strainer and rinse carefully under running water. Same reason--get the grit out. Set them aside. In a heavy pan that can be covered, heat olive oil and brown chicken with medium-high heat (too hot and the oil will start to smoke). Some pieces may brown before others, remove them. In the same pan, fry the onions until limp, translucent, but not brown. Add garlic and whush it around with the onions for another minute. Add the stock, the tomato paste, the herbs, the wine, and the chicken. Chicken should be partially covered by the sauce. Yes, you just made a sauce. Scary, wasn't it? Ladle a bit of the sauce over the chicken, then scatter tomato and mushroom pieces over the stew, and cover pan. Cook on low heat for about 30 minutes, sauce should be simmering gently, just below the boiling point. Add quartered mushrooms to stew, and cook for another fifteen minutes. BTW, this was really good; the husband commented several times that I could definitely make it again. The rest of the menu turned out good too; nothing "died" in the oven even tho it was in there for about two hours. I also served a cauliflower/tomato dish, an apple kugel and roasted sage potatoes. Recipes to follow (altho maybe not all today) Posted to JEWISH-FOOD digest by MUFFYMOM@... on Nov 8, 1998, converted by MM_Buster v2.0l.