I Tried Elizabeth Taylor’s Favorite Chicken Dinner, and Would Honestly Eat the Sauce By the Spoonful

Published on November 17, 2025

As the star of movies like Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Cleopatra, it’s clear that Elizabeth Taylor felt comfortable on screen. Turns out, she also adored being at the table—especially when she was able to savor the pasta she fell in love with in Portofino or her favorite chili recipe. (Taylor adored a West Hollywood restaurant’s twist on that cozy stew so much, she asked for 10 quarts to be shipped to her on a film set!) But Taylor didn’t just takeout. She was also quite the cook herself. Archive photos show Taylor meal prepping with her mom circa 1947, and her 1988 book, Elizabeth Takes Off, was part memoir, part cookbook.

I stumbled upon a Taylor-made recipe in an unexpected place: The Roanoke Times. In 1993, around the time of the debut of a R.J. Caldwell’s cookbook Celebrity Chefs, the author dished up the recipe for one of Taylor’s best chicken dinner ideas. Already a fan of her choice chili, I knew I had to give this a try, too.

How to Make Elizabeth Taylor’s Chicken with Avocado and Mushrooms

To make Taylor’s dressed-up chicken recipe:

1. Cook the chicken. Season two chickens-worth of pieces (breasts, thighs, wings, and drumsticks) with salt and pepper. In a large skillet over low heat, melt butter. Add the chicken and cook on all sides until the juices run yellow, which should take about 40 minutes.
2. Keep the bird warm. Use tongs to carefully transfer the chicken pieces to a baking dish. Cover the pan with foil, and pop it into a 300°F oven for 15 minutes to keep the meat warm.
3. Make the pan sauce. In the same skillet with the chicken drippings, add finely chopped shallots, turn the heat to medium, then stir in cognac and white wine. Bring the mixture to a boil and allow it to reduce, then pour in heavy cream and boil for 5 minutes more. Stir in chicken stock. Cook over medium heat until thick. As that reduces, in a separate skillet, sauté sliced mushrooms in butter. Once the ‘shrooms are evenly browned and have released their juices, add them to the cream sauce, and finish with a splash of cognac and lemon juice-sprinkled avocado cubes.
4. Garnish and serve. Pour the sauce over the chicken, garnish with a handful of chopped parsley, and enjoy.

Tips for Making Chicken with Avocado and Mushrooms

Taylor’s chicken recipe does take some time and more ingredients than I might typically use for a weeknight dinner (that’s when these 5-ingredient meals come in handy!). But the effort required isn’t too intense. If you decide to give this dish a starring role on your meal plan this week, here are a few pointers.

• Invest in the perfect avocado. Taylor calls for a small avocado. The “perfect” avocado at the supermarket will vary based on the timespan between when you buy it and when you plan to prepare this recipe. Two days ahead, choose an avocado that yields slightly when squeezed. One day ahead, the fruit should be slightly more tender. And the day of, it should yield easily when you gently press on the skin. If you happen to pick up an underripe avocado, try one of these tricks to soften an avocado quickly.
• Shop smartly for your spirits. This recipe includes both cognac and dry white white. The cognac comes in clutch to help deglaze the pan, the wine adds a burst of acidity, and both of these alcohols lend a subtly sweet and complex element to the sauce—especially as they reduce. If you can’t find or don’t dig cognac, try brandy, sherry, bourbon, or pear juice. As for the white wine, Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris are great options. For a non-alcoholic alternative, use N/A wine or more chicken stock.
• Multitask. Although they’re delicious and economical, bone-in chicken pieces take about 10 minutes longer to cook than their boneless counterparts. This means that sautéing two whole chickens-worth of pieces can take a while. Next time I make this chicken recipe, I’ll use two separate skillets to allow the pieces to spread out more. And as the chicken thighs, wings, breasts, and drumsticks cook, I plan to gather, slice, dice, and measure everything I’ll need for the pan sauce. This way, I can combine the pan juices into one and dive into the sauce-making part of the process swiftly. 

The Verdict on Elizabeth Taylor’s Best Chicken Recipe

The chicken might get billing rights here, but the sauce is the star. The cream, reduced cognac, and wine gives it ample flavor and a luxuriously silky texture that’s almost reminiscent of Taylor’s iconic satin wedding dress in Father of the Bride. And the mushrooms join the party, offering a bonus savory element and chewy bite.

Initially, I was skeptical of the avocado addition, and I can’t say that I feel like it added a lot. Perhaps this is because I’m more used to enjoying the buttery fruit atop toast or in guacamole, but I think I prefer avocado in its raw state. Next time—and there will be a next time—I think I’ll try this recipe with boneless skinless chicken thighs to trim down on the prep time, and might skip the avocado to save to use as a topping for this Huevos Ranchero Skillet or to feature in Ina Garten’s Tomato and Avocado Salad.

Regardless of whether you follow this to a “T” or take some liberties like I plan to in the future, I recommend pairing it with a supporting cast to help soak up every last drop of that sauce. Warm slices of sourdough bread, a bed of mashed potatoes, or a scoop of rice would all be terrific teammates—as would the rest of that bottle of wine.