Panko Crusted Chicken With Creamy Mushroom Leek Sauce Recipes

Steps:

• Pound chicken breasts, one at a time in a resealable freezer bag, until about 1/2-inch thick. Lightly beat egg in a shallow bowl. Combine panko crumbs, salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder in a separate shallow bowl. Dip chicken breasts in egg until coated, drip off excess and dip in panko mixture. Press chicken into crumbs until fully coated.
• Heat oil in a large skillet on medium high heat. Transfer chicken to pan and cook about 2 to 3 minutes per side or until chicken is brown, crispy and fully cooked.

Steps:

• Combine chicken thighs and buttermilk in a bowl. Stir well. Cover and refrigerate for at least three hours. Overnight is okay, too. My chicken thighs were quite large, so I cut them in half to maximize the coverage of panko breadcrumbs (see note in Step 4).
• When ready to cook, pre-heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Combine panko breadcrumbs, thyme, smoked paprika, lemon zest and salt in a bowl and stir well.
• Remove each thigh piece from marinade and dredge in the panko mixture. Transfer to a plate. Note: Panko breadcrumbs are larger and crispier than regular breadcrumbs. I love their taste and texture -- I cut the thighs in half so I can use more crumbs. If you leave the thighs whole, you will probably need only 1 cup of crumbs.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large skillet/frying pan. Brown the thighs, on both sides - about 4-5 minutes per side. Depending on the size of your skillet, you may need to do this in more than one batch.
• Transfer partially-cooked thighs to a baking dish and pop in the pre-heated oven for 20 minutes.
• While the thighs are cooking, wipe out the skillet/frying pan you used for the chicken, so you can use it again. Hey, why wash pots and pans unnecessarily. And slice the onions and mushrooms, and chop the garlic and parsley.
• Melt the butter in the wiped-out skillet and add the last tablespoon of oil. Heat. Then add the sliced onions and cook for 2 minutes. Then add the sliced mushrooms and chopped garlic. Cook, stirring frequently, until everything has softened.
• Stir in the cream and parsley. Heat through.
• When serving, spoon sauce over the chicken.

Steps:

• Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Season all over with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and the black pepper. Finely grate, pass through a press or mince 2 garlic cloves. Set aside half the grated garlic for finishing the dish. Rub the rest all over the chicken pieces. Set aside the chicken while preparing the other ingredients.
• In a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, combine 1 tablespoon oil and 1 tablespoon butter. When the butter melts, add chicken in batches and cook until browned on both sides, 4 to 6 minutes per side. If the pan dries out, add a little more oil as needed. Transfer browned chicken to a plate.
• Add remaining tablespoon each oil and butter to the pan. Once the butter melts, add mushrooms and cook undisturbed until well browned on one side, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir and cook for 1 minute longer.
• Thinly slice 2 garlic cloves. Reduce heat to medium, and stir in sliced garlic, leeks and a large pinch each of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until leeks are tender and golden brown, 7 minutes. Add rosemary and wine to the pot and let simmer, scraping up the browned bits, until liquid reduces by half, about 1 minute.
• Nestle chicken, skin side up, into the pan and pour in any accumulated juices from the plate. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, covered, until chicken is cooked through, 25 to 35 minutes.
• Transfer chicken to a serving platter and tent with foil to keep warm. Pluck the rosemary sprigs from the pot. If the sauce looks thin, turn the heat to medium-high and let simmer until it thickens slightly, 2 to 5 minutes. Stir in the remaining grated garlic, the crème fraîche, chives and lemon zest. Taste sauce and add more salt if needed. Spoon sauce over the chicken and top with parsley, more lemon zest and a dollop of crème fraîche, if you like, and serve.