Ingredients
1/2C extra-virgin olive oil (952c, 0k, 0p, 0f)
1 cup buttermilk (98c, 12k, 8.1p, 0f)
2# tender-cut chicken breasts (594c, 0k, 111p, 0f)*
Vinaigrette
3 large mashed garlic (13.5c, 3k, .6p, .2f)
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (42c, 8.1k, .2p, 0f)
Juice from 1 lemon (11c, 3.3k, .2p, .1f)
Freshly ground black lemon pepper
Herbed bread crumbs
1-1/4C freshly grated Parmesan (420c, 14k, 28p, 0f)
1C bread crumbs (896c, 160k, 30.4p, 10.4f)
1T each dried basil, oregano, and thyme (15c, 3.4k, .6p, 2.1f)
Cooking
2 quick sprays of olive oil (2.8c, 0k, 0p, 0f)
Dish total 3044.3c, 203.8k, 382.9p, 12.8f
5 servings (3 tenders)
Per serving 608.86c, 40.76k, 76.58p, 2.56f
Directions
First wash hands and prep your meat and veggie station. Oven to 500F.
2) On the meat cutting board, cut out the chicken tenders on a whole chicken breasts (each side) and then cut the chicken into strips that approximate chicken tenders. I made about 5″tenders” plus the real one per breast. Put the cut strips into a bowl and add buttermilk. Using your hands stir to coat. Let marinade for 25 minutes (but not longer). Meanwhile wash hands and all items the chicken has touched while it marinates.
3) Vinaigrette : While marinating, on the wooden cutting board prep everything else. Peel and mash the garlic, add the garlic and salt in a bowl. Whisk in the balsamic vinegar and then 1/2C olive oil. Season the vinaigrette with freshly ground lemon pepper and a squeeze from a lemon. Whisk and set aside.
4) Herbed bread crumbs: Mix 1T each dried basil, thyme, and oregano into a bowl. Crush the dried herbs with your hand to release flavors and add the bread crumbs. Mix well.
5) Spray olive oil on lined baking sheet.
6) Remove the chicken from the buttermilk and dredge in the cheese-bread mix to coat completely. Arrange the chicken on the prepared baking sheets, making sure they are not too close together. Spray olive oil over the chicken and bake ~15 minutes until golden brown.
7) Serve on a platter with the vinaigrette drizzled over the chicken. Any leftover dressing should be in a bowl for dipping. I served this with a crunchy salad (red cabbage, carrots, spring onion, + celery) with poppy seed dressing.
[x] Flexitarian + Omnivore
[O] Weight Maint
[O] Keto
[x] Mediterranean
[O] Lectin Avoidance: wheat, milk
[x] Oxalate Avoidance:
[x] Purine Avoidance
[x] Allergies: MILK, GLUTEN
— with changes —
[x] Vegan + Vegetarian + Pescatarian: switch chicken to non-meat substitute
[x] Gluten free: (use gluten free bread crumbs)
Comment
*2# of chicken breast is ~2-3 chicken half breasts or 1.5 full breasts. How many you do is up to you as and is reliant on the size of the meat.
The sauce was unexpected and very good. The first time I tried this recipe I used panko and it came out splotchy which is why I caution to use bread crumbs which are finer and will coat the chicken better. Where the panko adhered it was crunchy.
I was also concerned about the high temp, but the chicken came out moist and very tasty. I even tried “naked” chicken breast (boneless and skinless) and chicken breasts with a rub at the 500F setting and they all came out very tasty. All I did was to spray oil on the chicken.
Source Giada de Laurentis had her Crunchy Parmesean Chicken Tenders recipe reprinted by Food Network. Each chicken breast only has one “tender” so this is an expensive cut of chicken breast. Although I used the tenders, I then used them as a sample size and cut the rest of the breasts to look similar so that I could use the whole breast. Tenders tend to be thinner than the breast so I was pleased when everything cooked evenly.