I came across this recipe by accident. I was trying to find if anyone else had ever posted a recipe for Seafood a la Wando. I never found one so I made my own up. The good one is here, but I had an earlier, somewhat failed attempt, here. Anyway, I found this I guess because Seafood a la Wando must have originated at the same restaurant, at least that is how I read it. The Lee brothers copycat recipe from the Charleston Post and Courier is here: Chicken a la Clinton. The article describes the dish as:

A creamy, Sherry-accented specialty of the former Henry’s restaurant on Market Street, the ne plus ultra of Charleston fine dining from about 1932 until 1985

It sounded old school and unique so I thought I’d give it a try. I made a few tweaks of my own but mostly this is the same as the linked version above. It turned out really good and took about an hour, so good for a week night. I replaced the bacon for pancetta only because the bacon I had was bad and the good bacon was frozen solid. Pancetta worked great though. I added more mushrooms, more paprika and crushed red pepper flake. I also subbed out the cream for lactose free half and half for the wife. I replaced one of the tablespoons of butter for olive oil to lighten it up some.

Ingredients

• 3-4 skinless boneless chicken breasts (about 2 pounds)
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 4 oz pancetta, chopped
• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 10 ounces cremini or button mushroom, quartered or halved
• 1/4 cup chopped shallot (one medium shallot)
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika
• 2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup sherry
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup lactose free half and half
• 1 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
• 4 ounces green onions, sliced thinly crosswise (about 3/4 cup)
• 2 cups brown rice

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Season the chicken breasts all over with 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and black pepper.
2. In a 10-inch skillet, gently cook the pancetta to golden crisp over medium-low heat, turning frequently, about 6-8 minutes. With slotted spoon, set the pancetta aside. Turn off the heat under the skillet and leave the bacon grease in the pan.
3. Mix flour and cornstarch with a fork on a dinner plate and roll each chicken breast in the mixture to coat. Shake off excess.
4. Add the butter and olive oil to the pancetta rendering in the pan and turn heat to medium-high. When butter has frothed, add two chicken breasts to the pan and cook until golden brown on both sides, about 2-4 minutes per side. Transfer the browned chicken to a cutting board and repeat with the remaining chicken breasts. Shallowly slice each breast crosswise into about 5 or 6 pieces without cutting all the way through.
5. Turn the heat under the skillet to low, add the sliced mushrooms and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms have darkened and shrunk, about 5 minutes. Scatter the shallot in the pan, stir, and cook a minute longer. Crank the heat to medium high, add the paprika and pepper flakes, stirring. After the pan is noticeably hotter, almost smoking, pour in the sherry and stir occasionally until the liquid has mostly boiled away. Pour in the broth and continue cooking until the broth has reduced by half, about 4 minutes. Then add the half and half, pancetta, half the parsley and the green onions and stir to combine.
6. Nestle the chicken breasts into the mushrooms and onions in the skillet and add any juices from the cutting board that have run off the chicken. Cover the skillet and place in the upper half of the oven, baking for 6 minutes. Remove the skillet from the oven and spoon some of the mushroom/onion/gravy over the chicken. Return to the oven uncovered and bake for another 5-10 minutes, until the gravy has thickened a bit more and the chicken is cooked through. Garnish with the reserved parsley and serve immediately over rice, spooning some extra gravy over each serving. Any leftovers keep two days, covered, in the refrigerator.