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I rarely make use of this technique because, well, I dunno ... maybe I'm just lazy.

But I did it last night to great effect!

After giving some well-seasoned chicken a sear in the pan, I transferred them to the oven to finish. I then used a healthy portion of Gran Marnier to deglaze. Once that was completed and the remains were well mixed, I tossed in some sliced mushrooms. Perfect topping to the chicken!

I know most chefs have their own preference as to what to use to deglaze. Anyone have a favorite? The Gran Marnier worked well, because it had a nice sweetness to it. I was toying with using limoncello, but I'm not so sure. Might work well with lemon chicken (which I've done in the past), but I'm wondering if the liquer might be too dead sweet for this purpose. I've also heard chefs say that the liquor should really just help loosen the remnants on the pan and NOT be used to add flavor. I've seen white wine and sherry used, too, for that reason.

For some reason I have never made a decent pan sauce, so any time that you're happy with the results try it again with a little modification.

I use whatever I have which is liquid. I normally grab one of the boxes of stock I have in the fridge. Your chef's advice is not really accurate because your sauce will impart the flavor of the deglazing liquid.

Wine is always great. Use a little bit of the wine your going to serve and the experience will be heady.

Vinegar. I've been dying to try my ancho=rosemary vinegar for some deglazing.

When you get the bits of fond off of the bottom of the pan, make sure to life the sauce with some fat (butter being a favorite). You can also use yogurt, light sour cream, or creme.

Traditional pan sauces start with about a tbspn of minced shallots, deglazing liquid, then a spice (mustard), then lift with butter.

RUIT:

Thanks for the tips! I did add a good dab of butter to the operation, so I guess my instincts were good, in that regard.

I'm really interested in testing some other options. I like the shallots idea; I wonder if minced fresh ginger would work in an Asian-inspired dish, perhaps with some mirin...