Crusty Chicken Breasts Topped With Chopped Salad Food

PARMESAN CRUSTED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Set up three large shallow bowls in an assembly line. Put the flour in the first bowl; beat the eggs in the second bowl; and mix the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and chopped fresh herbs in the third bowl.
• Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Dredge the first chicken breast in the flour and shake off the excess until just a light coating remains. Next, dip the chicken in the egg mixture and turn to coat evenly, letting any excess egg drip off. Finally, dredge the chicken in the bread crumb mixture, turning a few times to coat well. Set breaded chicken on a plate and repeat until all of the chicken breasts are breaded.
• Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the chicken breasts to the pan and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the first side is golden brown. Flip and continue cooking until done, 2 to 3 minutes longer. Serve immediately with lemon wedges.
• Note: If chicken breasts are large (8 or more ounces), it's best to cut them in half once they are pounded out. Alternatively, you can cut them in half horizontally before pounding.

CHICKEN CHOPPED SALAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425F (use convection if you have it) and line a baking sheet with foil (optional but highly recommended, see Notes below)) for easier cleanup.
• Place the chicken on the baking sheet, and pound to an even thickness. I use an empty wine bottle, but a meat pounder or tenderizing tool, a rolling pin, or a heavy frying pan all work. The chicken doesn't need to be pounded 'thin', but it needs to be of pounded to a uniform thickness so it all cooks through at the same time.
• Evenly drizzle the chicken with olive oil and generously season with salt and pepper; set aside.
• To a small bowl, add the remaining ingredients, stir to combine, and evenly spoon the dry rub over the chicken on both sides. I add a bit more to the side that's facing up than the side that's on the bottom in contact with the baking sheet.
• Bake for about 15 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through (165F) and done.
• Allow chicken to rest for 5 to 10 minutes before slicing into it (cover with foil if desired to keep it warmer). Resting the chicken really helps lock in the juices and moisture so don't skip this step.
• While chicken bakes, to a large platter or bowl, add the lettuce, and chop the vegetables and add them to the bowl, and optionally add the croutons.
• When chicken is done resting, slice it and add it to the bowl. Make sure to get any run off juices from the sheet pan into the salad bowl because there is a ton of flavor in the juices.
• To a small jar or container with a lid (a canning jar works great), add all ingredients, put the lid on and shake vigorously until combined; taste vinaigrette and tweak as necessary to taste. If it is at all flat, it likely needs more salt. Alternatively, use your favorite store bought vinaigrette or dressing.
• Drizzle the vinaigrette over the salad as desired (you may not need all of it), toss to combine, and serve immediately.

CHICKEN BREASTS WITH SALAD TOPPING

Steps:

• Select a glass, ceramic or stainless steel dish that will hold the chicken breasts in a single layer. Combine the garlic with the lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and the rosemary. Pour this mixture over the chicken, turning the chicken to coat all sides, cover and allow to marinate 2 to 3 hours in the refrigerator. Turn the chicken once while it is marinating.
• Preheat grill or broiler and preheat oven to 150 degrees. Broil or grill the chicken with high heat, turning once, until the chicken is attractively seared on the outside and still pink, but not raw, in the middle, 4 to 5 minutes on each side.
• Place the seared chicken breasts in the warm oven, cover with foil and allow to continue warming at least 20 minutes and up to 1 1/2 hours.
• Mix the tomatoes, basil, capers, vinegar and remaining oil together and season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• When you are ready to serve the chicken, remove it from the oven and arrange on a platter. Top each breast with some of the tomato mixture and serve.

CRISPY CHICKEN STRIPS WITH SALAD

Steps:

• Make the sauce: Mix the mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon dill, 2 teaspoons mustard powder, the lemon juice and 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside. Combine the breadcrumbs, cheese, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon mustard powder, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a shallow bowl. Beat the eggs in another shallow bowl. Heat the vegetable oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Dip the chicken strips in the beaten egg and then in the breadcrumb mixture, pressing so the coating sticks. Working in batches, add the chicken to the skillet and cook until golden brown and crisp, about 3 minutes per side, adjusting the heat as needed. Transfer to paper towels to drain. Place the greens in a large bowl and toss with the tomatoes, the remaining dill and 3 tablespoons of the dill-mayonnaise sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Divide the chicken and salad among plates and serve with the remaining sauce for dipping.
• Photograph by Antonis Achilleos

CRISPY CHOPPED CHICKEN SALAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place prosciutto in singlelayer on large baking sheet. Bake until crisp, 8 to 10 minutes, set aside.
• In large nonstick skillet heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium heat. Sprinkle chicken with salt, pepper, and paprika; add to skillet. Cook 8 to 10 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink (170 degrees F), turning once. Cool slightly; slice.
• For Lemon Dressing, finely shred peel from one lemon; squeeze lemons to make 1/3 lemon juice. In small bowl whisk together remaining olive oil, lemon juice, shredded peel, and shallot. Season with salt and pepper to your liking and set aside.
• In large bowl combine carrots, zucchini, sweet peppers, onion, and chicken. Toss with dressing. Add blue cheese.
• Line salad bowls with romaine. Spoon in chicken mixture. Top with prociutto.

CRUNCHY CHOPPED SALAD

Steps:

• Before you get started take a look at our chopping and knife skills guide. If your chopping board doesn't have anti-slip grips, lay a dampened tea towel or sheet of kitchen paper on the work surface, then place the board on top to stop it from slipping.
• Holding the lemon with your hand in the bridge position, cut the lemon in half. Push one half onto a citrus juicer, twist and squeeze to release the juice. Repeat with the second lemon half. Pour the juice into a jam jar or small bowl along with the oil.
• Add the mustard, honey and a good pinch each of salt and black pepper. Seal the jar and shake to combine, or whisk the ingredients together. Will keep covered in the fridge for up to a week.
• Cut the tomatoes in half by pinching each one between your thumb and a finger and carefully slicing through the middle with a small serrated knife. Cut each piece in half again to make quarters, then tip the tomatoes into a large bowl.
• Wipe down the chopping board, then cut the cucumber in half lengthways. Put the two halves cut-side down on the board so they don't roll around, then cut in half again along the length, so you have four chunky sticks of cucumber. Cut across the cucumber now to make little triangles, keeping your free hand in the claw position with your fingers tucked away from the blade of the knife. Tip the cucumber into the bowl with the tomatoes.
• Cut the hard stalk off the lettuces, then cut each lettuce in half and in half again to get four wedges. Working with one lettuce wedge at a time, hold the wedge with your hand in the claw position and chop it into small ribbons - the smaller, the better for this salad. Repeat with the remaining wedges and tip the lettuce into the bowl.
• Snip the cress straight into the bowl using kitchen scissors. Weigh out the pomegranate seeds using the scales and add these to the bowl. Repeat with the mixed seeds. Drizzle over roughly half of the dressing over the salad (you will have some leftover) and toss everything together to coat.

CRISPY-SKIN CHICKEN BREASTS WITH WARM MUSHROOM SALAD

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Season the chicken all over with salt, pepper, smoked paprika and the lemon zest.
• In a large cast-iron skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken to the skillet skin-side down. Lower the heat to medium and cook until the skin is browned and crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer the chicken skin-side up to the prepared baking sheet. Bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of one breast registers 155 degrees F, about 20 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate and let rest for 5 minutes. (The internal temperature will rise to about 165 degrees F during resting.)
• Meanwhile, in the same skillet, melt the butter with the rendered chicken fat over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until browned and tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Season the mushrooms with salt and pepper. Transfer to a large bowl and tent with foil.
• In a small bowl, whisk the vinegar, shallot, mustard, thyme and honey together. Gradually whisk in the remaining 3 tablespoons of oil; season the dressing with salt and pepper.
• Transfer the mushrooms to a serving bowl. Add half the dressing and mix well. Add the spinach and arugula and the remaining dressing and toss to coat. Transfer the salad and chicken to a platter. Serve with the lemon wedges.

CRUSTY CHICKEN BREASTS TOPPED WITH CHOPPED SALAD

Steps:

• Combine breadcrumbs, Parmesan and lemon peel in shallow bowl. Place eggs insecond shallow bowl Season chicken with salt and pepper. Dip one chicken piece into eggs, turning to coat completely. Dredge both sides of chicken in breadcrumb mixture, pressing crumbs to adhere. Transfer chicken to plate lined with plastic wrap. Repeat with remaining chicken. Can be prepared 8 hours ahead. Cover with plastic and chill. In medium bowl combine arugula, tomatoes 2T olive oil, onion, basil, vinegar and lemon juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Heat remaining 1/4 c oil in heavy large skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken and saute till brown and springy to touch, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer to platter and spoon 1/4 of salad mixture over each.