Breaded Chicken Breast

I needed fresh chicken stock so there was little choice about dinner.  I did check the whole meat counter just in case something wonderful was being cleared but no luck.  A package of two breasts for less than $5 was the best deal anyway. It's great when need and supply meet like that. Yesterday we went to the Laughing Oyster for dinner so I always feel challenged to make as tasty a meal as I can.  Good as my food is becoming, Chef Dave is still better!

I like using an egg whenever I can since I have chickens laying them every day. One thing that bothered me was once my protein is coated there is a lot of egg left. Now I fry the skins up for the dogs then I use the skin fat to cook the breast and the skin pan to cook the egg for them too. The bones make stock so there is no waste.

First I put the potatoes on, the steamer water on to boil, oil in the frying pan  and prepped the vegetables.  I put the breasts in a plastic bag earlier so I arranged them with skin side down and pounded them flat to about double in size. I whisked an egg and put out a plate of bread crumbs seasoned with poultry seasoning and a little mixed pepper. 

I put 2 tbsp flour in the bag with the chicken and shook to evenly coat.  Then dipped the breasts in egg and rolled them in the bread crumbs. Season with some salt then straight into plenty of hot oil and season the top side too. I have not been getting enough salt on my protein when I put it in the coating mix. So until I find a better way I'll salt just before or in the pan.

I put the carrots in the steamer and a couple of minutes later the Brussels sprouts. Keep an eye on the chicken as the bread crumbs will scorch faster than flour alone, about 4 minutes a side. When the sprouts were starting to soften I drained the steamer and put the veggies back in the pot on medium low heat with extra virgin olive oil. The xv oil needs to cook a minute or so to enhance the flavor.

I plated my chicken with home made ketchup but Fern had his plain and crunchy. I had the right amount of salt on everything and all the flavors worked together.  If I improve my plating I will be pretty close to my ideal of a restaurant quality meal at home.