Juicy, tender and moist—this chicken wins an award. There are so many ways to cook a chicken breast and a lot of the time it becomes too dry. I was at a stand still when trying to find the perfect way to achieve moisture. Then I found ‘The Kitchn’ version. This version includes a quick brine with any aromatics you happen to have. Foolproof. I applaud them. I will never make chicken breast any other way again. It is also just becoming spring where I live, in New England. The minute it hit 60 degrees I was dreaming of farmer’s markets and ice cream cones. I want to see color in everything I eat when the weather is warm. However, no such luck on the farmer’s market front just yet. That is not stopping me. I will still add color to my day. I chose to do that with a quick salsa verde. There are two salsa verdes that are the most common. One being the mexican version, usually a milder version of its red counterpart. Frequently used as a topper for many entrees, or just as a dip. I am making the other version; the Italian one. I used what I had in my fridge here. Which means I sadly am omitting the anchovy filets. So please feel free to add them to yours. I didn’t miss them, but you might.
A Classic Chicken Breast Dressed up with Salsa Verde
Serves 2
Brine
- 3 cups of water
- 3 tbsp salt (any type you have)
- A few aromatics (i.e. thyme, rosemary, peppercorns, bay leaf, garlic)
Salsa Verde
- 1 1/4 cups flat leaf parsley
- 1/2 of a large garlic clove
- 1/4 cup breadcrumbs
- 2 tsp capers (rinsed and drained)
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Chicken
- 2 chicken breasts
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- pinch of salt and pepper
- We are going to start with the brine. Place the chicken breasts in a shallow dish. Dissolve the salt into the water. Then pour the mixture over the chicken just until it’s fully covered. Add any aromatics you’d like. Then I covered it and put it in the fridge to sit for about 25 minutes.
- During that time I made the verde sauce. In a food processor, add the parsley, garlic, breadcrumbs and capers. Zap it a few times until well combined. Then, add lemon juice, zap. Finally, while it is running, slowly pour in the olive oil. Should form a loose paste. Stop when it looks like photo above.
- Now here comes the magic. Take your chicken out of the brine and pat very dry. Use something heavy to flatten the chicken to a unified desired thickness. Salt and pepper both sides. In a medium saute pan (with a lid!) heat the olive oil over a medium high heat for about a minute, until hot. Reduce heat to medium. Place both pieces of chicken in, let them sit for about a minute to give it some color. Flip over the chicken and reduce the heat to low. Cover the pan with a secure lid for 10 minutes, do not peak. Then after 10 minutes remove from the heat and let sit for another 10 minutes, still do not peak. (Confession: I did peak, but it was really fast!) It should be perfectly done. The magic of steam. It doesn’t hurt to check with a meat thermometer, should not be below 165 F) or just cut into it.
- Serve your chicken anyway you’d like. I sliced it and then spooned the lovely Salsa Verde on top. Juicy, savory, and a little tart.
Go enjoy this. Eat it outside. Happy Spring 🙂
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