The Ultimate Chicken Kiev
The chicken kiev... childhood favourite, guilty pleasure, love of my life. I have always and will always be a huge fan of it because, really, how can you possibly beat garlic butter wrapped in chicken wrapped in crispy fried breadcrumbs: it's the food of gods.
Recently, the humble kiev has been making a bit of a resurgence with Jamie Oliver putting it in his new book and Tom Kerridge cooking it on the BBC last week and I felt it was high time I put my version into the ring for people to enjoy. Like Jamie, I add bacon because, well, why wouldn't you? And like Tom, I spice mine up a bit with a hint of cayenne. But unlike the rest of them, I roast my garlic beforehand, which, ladies and gentleman, is absolutely the best thing that could ever happen to chicken kiev. Don't believe me? Give it a go for yourself...
The Ultimate Chicken Kiev
Serves 4
1 bulb of garlic
8 rashers of streaky bacon
olive oil
½ a bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley (15g)
100g unsalted butter, (at room temperature)
2 good pinches of cayenne pepper
4 skinless chicken breasts
200g plain flour
3 large free-range eggs
200g Japanese panko breadcrumbs
vegetable oil, for shallow frying
pinch sea salt flakes
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas 4.
Cut 1cm/⅓in off the top of the garlic bulb to expose the cloves and discard. Loosely wrap the garlic in foil and roast in the oven for 45 minutes, or until very soft. Leave to cool, then squeeze the softened cloves from the skins. Crush the cloves on a chopping board with the side of a large knife to form a paste.
Fry the bacon in a pan on a medium heat with a tiny drizzle of olive oil, until golden and crisp, then remove. Once cool enough to handle, crumble or chop into a fine crumb. For the butter, finely chop the parsley leaves and mix into the softened butter with the cayenne, bacon and roasted garlic paste. Roll into a sausage in greaseproof paper and firm up in the fridge.
To stuff the chicken breasts, start by pulling back the loose fillet on the back of the breast – put your knife in the opposite direction and slice to create a long pocket. Open the pocket up with your fingers, cut the chilled butter into four and push one piece into the pocket, spreading it out with your fingers. Fold and seal back the chicken, completely covering the butter and giving you a nice neat parcel. Repeat with the 3 remaining breasts.
If the oven is still on, great, if not heat it again to 180C/350F/gas 4.
Place the flour in one shallow bowl, whisk the eggs in another, and put the breadcrumbs and a pinch of seasoning into a third. Evenly coat each chicken breast in flour, then beaten egg, letting any excess drip off, and finally, turn them in the breadcrumbs, patting them on until evenly coated.
Shallow-fry in 2cm of sunflower oil on a medium to high heat for a couple of minutes on each side, or until lightly golden, then transfer to a tray and bake in the oven for 10 minutes, or until cooked through. You can bake them completely in the oven and skip the frying altogether, you just need to drizzle them with olive oil and bake for about 20 minutes – they won't be as golden, but they'll be just as delicious. Serve immediately. I like mine with chips and greens beans.
Recently, the humble kiev has been making a bit of a resurgence with Jamie Oliver putting it in his new book and Tom Kerridge cooking it on the BBC last week and I felt it was high time I put my version into the ring for people to enjoy. Like Jamie, I add bacon because, well, why wouldn't you? And like Tom, I spice mine up a bit with a hint of cayenne. But unlike the rest of them, I roast my garlic beforehand, which, ladies and gentleman, is absolutely the best thing that could ever happen to chicken kiev. Don't believe me? Give it a go for yourself...
The Ultimate Chicken Kiev
Serves 4
1 bulb of garlic
8 rashers of streaky bacon
olive oil
½ a bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley (15g)
100g unsalted butter, (at room temperature)
2 good pinches of cayenne pepper
4 skinless chicken breasts
200g plain flour
3 large free-range eggs
200g Japanese panko breadcrumbs
vegetable oil, for shallow frying
pinch sea salt flakes
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas 4.
Cut 1cm/⅓in off the top of the garlic bulb to expose the cloves and discard. Loosely wrap the garlic in foil and roast in the oven for 45 minutes, or until very soft. Leave to cool, then squeeze the softened cloves from the skins. Crush the cloves on a chopping board with the side of a large knife to form a paste.
Fry the bacon in a pan on a medium heat with a tiny drizzle of olive oil, until golden and crisp, then remove. Once cool enough to handle, crumble or chop into a fine crumb. For the butter, finely chop the parsley leaves and mix into the softened butter with the cayenne, bacon and roasted garlic paste. Roll into a sausage in greaseproof paper and firm up in the fridge.
To stuff the chicken breasts, start by pulling back the loose fillet on the back of the breast – put your knife in the opposite direction and slice to create a long pocket. Open the pocket up with your fingers, cut the chilled butter into four and push one piece into the pocket, spreading it out with your fingers. Fold and seal back the chicken, completely covering the butter and giving you a nice neat parcel. Repeat with the 3 remaining breasts.
If the oven is still on, great, if not heat it again to 180C/350F/gas 4.
Place the flour in one shallow bowl, whisk the eggs in another, and put the breadcrumbs and a pinch of seasoning into a third. Evenly coat each chicken breast in flour, then beaten egg, letting any excess drip off, and finally, turn them in the breadcrumbs, patting them on until evenly coated.
Shallow-fry in 2cm of sunflower oil on a medium to high heat for a couple of minutes on each side, or until lightly golden, then transfer to a tray and bake in the oven for 10 minutes, or until cooked through. You can bake them completely in the oven and skip the frying altogether, you just need to drizzle them with olive oil and bake for about 20 minutes – they won't be as golden, but they'll be just as delicious. Serve immediately. I like mine with chips and greens beans.
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