Crispy Baked Harissa Chicken with Tomato, Cucumber and Mint Salad
I have never had a tomato girl summer. This is probably because raw tomatoes are something I’ve only recently come to enjoy. However this summer I’m confident it will finally be my year. That being said I have nothing to base this on other than that THIS chicken topped with THIS salad is my current hyper fixation meal.
The Chicken
In this recipe I pound out the chicken which I highly recommend. Chicken breasts are notoriously dry and part of that is because they are such an uneven shape. They are thick at one end, thin at the other and by the time the thickest part is cooked the rest is tough. To prevent this I’ve flattened the breasts which can be done by placing the breasts between two pieces of plastic wrap or parchment and pounding to 1/4″-1/2″ with a meat mallet or frying pan. Use what you’ve got!
This recipe uses a basic breading method of dry-wet-dry with additional flavours added to the eggs and breadcrumbs for a ton of flavour! When breading it’s incredibly important to season. I know that’s always an important step but with so much flour and breadcrumbs it can be easy to underestimate the amount of salt needed. While you should always be tasting for seasoning there are times that it just isn’t practical or safe. For example with flour, raw flour can carry E.Coli which many people don’t realize is the main reason you shouldn’t eat unbaked cookie dough. I would not recommend tasting the flour portion of your breading station but you can and should absolutely taste the breadcrumbs!
The Sauce
We’re making quite a bit of whipped feta here. Mostly because it’s delicious, but also because where I live it comes in a 200g package. If I only use part of it it will get pushed to the back of my fridge and inevitably forgotten. That is until an unknown amount of time is passed and I inevitably do a sniff and taste test on rancid feta. I’m just going to skip that nightmare and make the whole thing into whipped feta which you can completely cover your chicken in or save it for something else delicious in your future!
The Salad
I love a real simple salad and it doesn’t get much easier than this. Throw halved cherry tomatoes and sliced cucumbers in a bowl, squeeze a lemon, drizzle some olive oil, tear some mint and VOILA!
Equipment
- Parchment Paper or Plastic Wrap
- Meat Mallet or Frying Pan
- Bowls
- Microplane
- 3 Shallow Dishes
- Cutting Board
- Chef’s Knife
- Food Processor
Crispy Oven Baked Harissa Chicken
Course: UncategorizedDifficulty: Medium4
servingsIngredients
- Chicken
4 Chicken Breasts
1/2 Cup Flour
2 Eggs
3 Tbsp Harissa Paste
1.5 Cups Panko
2 tsp Paprika
1 tsp Ground Cumin
1 tsp Ground Coriander
1/4 Cup Parsley
1 Lemon
Olive Oil
- Whipped Feta
200g Feta (Approximately 1 Cup)
1/2 Cup Plain Greek Yogurt
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
- Tomato Cucumber Salad
1 Pint Cherry Tomatoes
1 English Cucumber
4 Sprigs of Mint
Directions
- Preheat your oven to 425F.
Lightly great a baking sheet with olive oil. - Gather three shallow dishes, pie plates or 1/4 sheet pans will work great here.
Add flour and pinch of salt to the first dish.
In the second dish whisk together two eggs and the harissa paste.
Finely chop the parsley and zest the lemon and set aside.
To the final dish add the parsley, lemon, bread crumbs, paprika, coriander, cumin and a heavy pinch of salt. - Next you will need to prepare your chicken for its breadcrumb bath.
Place each chicken breast between two pieces of parchment or plastic wrap and pound with a meat mallet or frying pan until 1/4″-1/2″ thick. - Using one wet hand and one dry hand fully coat the chicken first in flour, then egg and finally breadcrumbs being sure to the the excess fall away between each station.
Transfer to the prepared baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and baking for 15-18 minutes or until cooked to 165F. - Meanwhile mix the feta, olive oil, greek yogurt and juice from half of the reserved lemon to a food processor and blend until smooth.
Taste and adjust for seasoning as necessary. - Halve the cherry tomatoes.
If your cucumber is waxed or if the skin is exceptionally thick peel the cucumber and then remove the seeds with a spoon.
Roughly tear the mint.
Toss the cucumber and tomatoes in a bowl with a drizzle of olive oil, the juice from the second half of the lemon, season with salt and toss to combine. - Serve the chicken with a generous amount of the feta sauce and top with the tomato and cucumber salad.
