One could never have enough easy fallback chicken recipes on hand – at least I say. Chicken breast especially. It usually gets a bad rap as bland dried out white meat, but cooked correctly and with enough imagination, it can be a cut of meat you actually look forward to.
Though it’s true that chicken breast is less forgiving than the fattier dark meat, I have one reason your chicken breast tastes so terrible. You’re overcooking it. When I first started cooking, I was so nervous of under-cooking chicken that I purposefully overcooked it. The result was dry & tough meat, but disguised with enough spice or sauce, it was edible. No more of that.
A few tips to get the most perfect pan seared chicken cutlets:
- Season them WELL with salt & pepper
- Leave them alone. Once you set them in the pan, don’t touch!
- Cook a thin fillet for no more than 2-3 minutes per side.
- Before you flip, you should see the juices running clear or white out of the chicken and the cooked part coming through on the side facing you.
- If it’s stuck to the pan, leave it. The cutlet will release itself from the pan when it’s done!
Okay, now that we’re on the same page for cooking the chicken, let’s talk about this chicken caprese. Chicken breast is a GREAT lean protein that I cook at least twice a week. Most weeks I meal prep it for lunch too. For a 4 ounce serving, you get 26 grams of protein for only 185 calories. And since it’s a lean meat with no skin, 4 grams of fat.
Caprese, as you might know, is a mozzarella, tomato, and basil salad where everything just gets stacked right on top of each other with a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar to finish it off. Mmmhmm. Slide a chicken cutlet under there and you’ve got chicken caprese. Yep, we just did that. So whenever you need a bit of Tuscany, pull this out of your back pocket.
Start out by making sure all your chicken fillets are thin cuts. Season with salt and pepper to taste and a spice rub of garlic powder and parsley. Heat your grill pan on the stove on medium and add a drizzle of olive oil. Grill fillets for 2 minutes per side; no more! If they aren’t totally done, that’s okay, we’re going to finish them off in the oven. You can use a drizzle of oil for each batch, but these really don’t need more than that.
When all your fillets are grilled, lay them out on a baking sheet. Add the sliced mozzarella (NOT the deli kind!) on one per fillet. On top of that add your sliced tomato. Broil on high for 6 minutes. Be sure to watch it so it doesn’t burn! When it comes out, drizzle on top with olive oil & balsamic glaze.
You can either buy balsamic glaze or make it. To make it: pour ¼ cup of balsamic into a pan heated on high and boil for 8 minutes. It will reduce by more than half and become very sticky & stringy. Take a fork or spoon to drizzle all over the chicken. Top it all off with a fresh basil leaf!
Chicken Caprese
Ingredients
- Sea salt
- Black pepper
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp parsley
- 8 4 oz chicken breast fillets
- Olive oil drizzle
- 8 thin mozzarella slices fresh or packaged, not deli
- 8 thin tomato slices
- Balsamic drizzle or ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
Instructions
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Season chicken fillets with salt and pepper to taste. Mix together garlic powder and parsley and season chicken. Heat your grill pan on the stove on medium and add a drizzle of olive oil. Grill fillets for 2 minutes per side. You can use a drizzle of oil for each batch, but these really don’t need more than that.
-
When all your fillets are grilled, lay them out on a baking sheet. Add the sliced mozzarella on each fillet. On top of that add your sliced tomato. Broil on high for 6 minutes. When it comes out, drizzle on top with olive oil & balsamic glaze. Top it all off with a fresh basil leaf!
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To make the balsamic glaze: pour ¼ cup of balsamic into a pan heated on high and boil for 8 minutes. It will reduce by more than half and become very sticky & stringy. Take a fork or spoon to drizzle all over the chicken.
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