Do you remember back in the 1980's when everyone was making Chicken Kiev when entertaining. It was considered to be the height of sophistication! I remember making it a few times when we had guests over.
As delicious as it was, it was a LOT of work! Pounding out the chicken, rolling it around garlic butter, breading it and then deep frying it. (We are not going to talk about calories, because this is party fare. 😁)
It is important to note that fresh herbs are best for this. They will look and taste the best. Be judicious with the salt if you are using salted butter. The amount of Tabasco sauce you use depends on how spicy you like your food.
It didn't take long for the food industry to catch on and now Chicken Kiev is pretty common place. You can buy frozen versions of it quite easily and you only need to bake them in the oven.
Most are quite unexciting and none quite come close to the divine taste of Chicken Kiev made from scratch. They are usually made from pre-formed chicken and whether they use real butter in them is questionable. The only plus with them is that they are convenient.
This recipe I am sharing with you today comes by way of Annie Bell, from her book entitled Gorgeous Suppers. Every recipe in the book is gorgeous.
Chicken breasts are cut into thin escalopes, seasoned and then dipped in olive oil and fresh bread crumbs before pan frying them until golden brown. They are served hot and fresh from the pan with slices of a moreish herb and garlic Kiev butter melting on top.
Not quite as satisfying as the original, where you cut into the chicken and that garlic butter gushes out, but still satisfying nonetheless.
Of course the chicken is delicious in its own right and would be fabulous served on its own with simple lemon wedges to squeeze over top. A tiny bit less indulgent, but with fresh clean flavors. Either way this is fabulous.
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE CHICKEN ESCALOPES WITH KIEV BUTTER
Simple ingredients put together in a simple and yet delicious way.
For the chicken:
- 2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts (Make sure they are a nice size as you will be serving two people from each one.)
- fine sea salt and fine black pepper to taste
- 3 1/2 ounces (100g) fine fresh white bread crumbs (about 2 thick slices)
- extra virgin olive oil (for coating and for pan frying)
For the Kiev butter:
- 3 1/2 ounces (100g) butter, softened
- 3 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
- the zest and juice of one lemon (A smallish one)
- dash of Tabasco sauce
- fine sea salt and fresh ground black pepper
- 3 TBS finely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
- 2 TBS finely chopped fresh chives
- 1 tsp finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN ESCALOPES WITH KIEV BUTTER
You are probably wondering what an escalope is. It is merely something which has been cut into thinner slices. You see it with scalloped potatoes and meats/poultry.
Chicken cut in this way cooks very quickly and stays nice and moist. It is also a great way to make a few pieces of chicken go much further.
If you are making your own bread crumbs, make them first. Just tear your bread into pieces and blitz it in a food processor until you have fine bread crumbs. I used about 2 thick slices. I cut the crusts off and gave them to the birds.
Once you have them crumbed, pop the crumbs into a shallow bowl.
Once you have made your crumbs you can make the butter. That way it can be chilling in the refrigerator while you bread and cook the chicken.
Don't be tempted to chop the herbs in the food processor. You will get a much nicer finish by doing them by hand, which is what I do. You want them nice and fine. It is a mindless chore which I enjoy doing.
Place the butter, garlic, lemon zest, juice, tabasco and some seasoning in the bowl of a food processor and blitz at high speed until nice and creamy and everything is mixed well in. Add the chopped herbs and whiz again briefly to incorporate the herbs.
Place onto a strip of plastic wrap and shape into a rough cylinder, then wrap it up tightly, twisting both ends of the plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator to chill.
Cut each chicken breast through the middle horizontally to form two thin escalopes. (I remove the tendon on the bottom side first.) Season them well on both sides with salt and pepper.
Place the bread crumbs into a shallow bowl. Place a couple TBS of olive oil into another bowl. Dip the chicken pieces first into the oil and then into the breadcrumbs, pressing them in to make them stick. Place onto a plate.
Repeat until your chicken has all been breaded. Let stand for 10 minutes.
Heat a couple TBS of olive oil in a large heavy bottomed skillet over medium high heat. Add your chicken pieces in batches, presentation side first, and fry until golden brown on both sides. This should only take a few minutes per side.
Slice the butter into thin pats and place a couple onto each chicken escallop, letting it melt. Serve immediately.
If your butter doesn't melt right away, you could pop it briefly under a hot grill just to speed up the process. It won't take long.
And that's it. It is simple really. The chicken is moist and tender, with a beautifully crisp coating. The butter is flavored beautifully with the herbs, garlic and lemon. There are probably more herbs in the butter than there is butter, so don't worry about it being overly rich, as it is not. Its just the right amount.
I served it with some steamed fresh broccoli and some chips that I warmed up, leftover from a takeaway the night before. (I know. I waste nothing.) This made for a delightfully simple supper that was most enjoyable.
Whilst this would make for a great family meal, I would not hesitate to serve it to company. It is that delicious! Enjoy!
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