I'm a lover of all chicken fried, healthy or not healthy, I'll eat it any chance I get. This version is oven fried, with a Parmesan Cheese and Pine Nut crust that is just heavenly. Crispy, crunchy and crazy delicious!
First, we need to toast some pine nuts. The smell of this happening alone, is to die for. Place pine nuts in a hot pan and lightly roll them around until they turn light golden brown.
In a small food processor, combine, cornmeal and dried minced onions.
Add the toasted pine nuts and pulse to combine.
Pour mixture into a shallow dish and try not to eat too much of it 1st! It's so good!!!
Add some fresh chopped rosemary. I love the smell of rosemary, I like to keep my fresh herbs out on the counter in jars of water, it makes the kitchen smell so good!
Add some all-purpose flour to the mixture.
Ahhhh and a nice pile of fresh grated Parmesan cheese.
And some Cottage Blend, a blend of celery seed, onion, thyme, garlic and rainbow peppercorns, which is great on chicken, fish and veggies. Combine everything together and set aside.
I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts for this, but you could use legs and thighs too. I decided to cut the chicken into smaller pieces, to get more crust coverage. Season chicken with House Blend.
Crack an egg in another shallow bowl and dip chicken into egg.
Then from the egg dip, coat chicken with Parmesan, pine nut mixture.
Place chicken in a hot oven proof pan with just enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan. We're not frying the chicken, just trying to get a nice golden crust before we finish it in the oven. Brown chicken for about 5-6 minutes or until golden brown.
Flip chicken over and brown another 5-6 minutes, then place in 400 degree(f) oven for about 15-20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
Chicken will be crispy and golden brown when you pull it out of the oven. Let it rest for about 5 minutes before serving, so the juices have a chance to redistribute back into the meat.
Served alongside some delicious roasted asparagus, this was an amazing meal. The Parmesan and pine nuts are the stars of this magical crust.
The meat is juicy and moist and the crust is crispy, crunchy and crazy delicious!
RECIPE
PARMESAN & PINE NUT OVEN FRIED CHICKEN
Prep Time: 15 Minutes | Cook Time: 35 Minutes | Difficulty: Easy | Servings: 4 |
Ingredients:
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees(f).
In a small pan, toast the pine nuts. In a small food processor, combine, cornmeal, minced onions and toasted pine nuts. Pulse to combine and add to shallow dish.
In the same shallow dish, add flour, rosemary, Cottage Blend and Parmesan cheese and combine well.
In another shallow dish, beat egg.
To prepare chicken, cut each breast in half and season with House Blend.
Dip chicken into egg first and then coat well with Parmesan, pine nut mixture.
Place in a hot oven-proof pan with just enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan.
Brown chicken on each side until golden brown, about 5 minutes each side.
Place chicken in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
Remove from oven and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Comments will be approved before showing up.