Chicken Kiev is a dish that for over a hundred years has been considered the hallmark of the Ukrainian capital like a famous cake or chestnuts. But today the popularity of this treat has gone far beyond the borders of the country - in many restaurants around the world there is a name on the menu for a juicy fragrant delicacy.
For example, in American establishments there is often an unusual dish with the interesting name "Kiev Chicken". And going to a restaurant in France, you can taste the same delicacy, but with a more unusual name - "cutlets de valay". But under all these names, no matter how interesting they may be, lies a simple Ukrainian treat with an unsurpassed taste and an unforgettable aroma.
A few words about the famous delicacy
Despite the popularity of Kiev cutlets and universal love for them, housewives take this dish at home very rarely, and even with some reluctance. And all because there is an opinion that the process of their manufacture is too painstaking and time-consuming. But in reality there is nothing frightening and too complicated in it. And the products for making delicious Kiev cutlets need quite affordable and very inexpensive. So there is not a single reason to deny yourself the pleasure to try the tender fillet with juicy filling, made by yourself.
Chicken cutlets in Kiev are really delicious: they attract gourmets with an appetizing crispy crust, an exquisite aroma and amazing juiciness. A thin breading hides a tender fillet with melted butter and fresh herbs - this combination is simply unforgettable.
Features
According to the classic recipe, Kiev cutlets are prepared from chicken breast. The dish itself is a chopped filet, in which a piece of butter is wrapped. This is the main feature of such a dish: in fact, unlike other meatballs, this delicacy is made from a whole piece of meat.
The finished product has a rather unusual shape, reminiscent of a kind of ellipse. The traditional way of cooking involves fixing chicken cutlets in one end, which is usually decorated with a papillot.
Cooking secrets
Knowing some of the subtleties, making delicious cutlets with your own hands will not be difficult for you.
First of all, you need to learn how to properly chop the fillet. This should be done starting from the thicker side of the piece with a sharp knife. So you do not cut it through. From each filet you need to cut small pieces - they will come in handy later on. After making an incision, the brisket must be deployed like a book.
The chopped pieces need to be beaten with a kitchen hammer. As a result, you should get round meat cakes with a uniform thickness. From these pieces it will be much easier for you to form beautiful cutlets. In addition, thanks to the beating, the finished treat will come out more delicate. And in order for the chicken pieces not to scatter throughout the kitchen, and the meat itself to be torn, before the manipulation, each fillet should be wrapped in polyethylene.
The formed products must be sent to the freezer for 10 minutes before dipping into breading. Due to this preparation, the oil inside the cutlet will harden and will not leak out during the frying process.
It is very important to twist the cutlet correctly so that the liquid filling does not flow from it. In the center of each piece you need to lay out the frozen butter, and on top cover it with a small fillet cut off at the beginning of the process. You need to wrap cutlets, like simple cabbage rolls. As a result, they should be elongated without any gaps.
Breading is also considered an extremely important stage in the preparation of delicious Kiev cutlets. After all, it acts as an obstacle to the resulting oil and forms the very delicious crust with an unforgettable crunch. That is why the breading should be double. By the way, it is prepared from flour, eggs and crackers. Before crumbling the cutlets in breadcrumbs, they should be dried with paper towels.
Some more recommendations
By pulling out the tendons from the brisket, you will make your dish softer and more tender. If you are reluctant to bother with them for too long, then just cut them in some places. Such a trick will allow cutlets not to cringe during the roasting process.
Complementing the breading with a small amount of spices and dry herbs, you can play with taste accents and aromas.
For frying products, it is advisable to prepare refined olive, vegetable, corn, or peanut butter. Keep in mind that its taste affects the quality of the finished cutlets.
Products should only be fried in hot oil.
Product Preparation
If you still doubt your abilities, use the presented recipe for Kiev cutlets with step-by-step photos. It is with its help that you can easily understand all the intricacies and details of the process.
And first of all you need to prepare all the necessary ingredients:
- 0.9 kg of chicken;
- 4 eggs;
- 3 tablespoons of flour;
- 300 g butter;
- a bunch of greenery;
- salt and pepper to your taste;
- breadcrumbs.
Kiev cutlets recipe with step by step photos
Step 1. First, prepare the filling. To do this, take softened butter and mash it thoroughly with a fork. Then send finely chopped greens, salt and pepper to it. Mix all this thoroughly until a homogeneous consistency is obtained.
From the prepared mass, build balls of elongated shape and place them in the freezer for 5-10 minutes. Due to this manipulation, the filling will remain intact when frying the cutlets.
Step 2. Now you need to prepare the chicken breast for further processing. Remove the tendon and bone from the fillet and repel it using a kitchen hammer. By the way, if suddenly you do not have such a device, take a simple rolling pin.
Before you beat the fillet, cut a small piece from it, and then divide it into two parts, revealing, like a book. The thickness of the piece should be uniform over the entire surface. But at the same time there should not be bald spots in it.
And do not forget to do the same manipulations with the small fillets that you first cut. In conclusion, salt and pepper the chopped pieces on one side, which will then be internal.
Blank forming
Step 3. After the fillet is ready, remove the prepared oil from the freezer and start sculpting the future meatballs in Kiev. Step-by-step photos will help you do this easily and quickly. On the edge of each broken piece, place the frozen workpiece and cover it with a small fillet. After that, wrap the workpiece with a roll so that the filling is inside. Do the same with the remaining pieces.
Note that the oil must be hidden in several layers of meat. This is a prerequisite for obtaining juicy, tender cutlets. After all, if you incorrectly wrap the billet, then during the frying process, the oil will simply leak out and the cutlet will remain empty.
Step 4. Prepare everything you need for batter. Drive eggs into one bowl and lightly whisk them with a little salt. Pour the sifted flour into another. Place the breadcrumbs in a plate that is convenient for you.
One of the most common mistakes of hostesses who started cooking Kiev cutlets is neglecting breading. In fact, this is a significant blunder, due to which the products are dry and tasteless. Only a dense, thick breading can hold the meat juice inside the cutlet.
Roasting
Step 5. Dip the formed workpieces first in flour, and then in eggs. In addition, each piece should be completely covered with breading. Then roll the products again in flour and eggs, and then send, finally, to the prepared crackers. Cutlets should be coated with breadcrumbs on all sides.
Step 6. Pour so much oil into the pan so that the finished products are immersed in it about half. Then heat the frying surface and lay the formed patties on it. You need to cook them from all sides before the appearance of a golden crust. In total, the frying process takes approximately 10-15 minutes.
Finishing touch
Step 7. Now there is the final stage of preparing delicious Kiev cutlets. A recipe with a photo will come to your rescue here. Although all the most difficult you have already done. Put the fried cutlets in a baking dish and send them to the oven heated to 180 degrees for 10-12 minutes. In this way, you will bring the chicken to full readiness, even if in some places it is fried unevenly.
If your kitchen has a slow cooker, you can use it for cooking cutlets. To do this, the functions "frying" and "baking" are suitable for you.
Immediately serve cooked fragrant Kiev cutlets to the table. In the photo you can see how liquid filling flows out of them when cutting. Such an effect can be achieved only in hot treats. Melted butter in combination with spices and herbs flows appetizing on a tender fillet - for the sake of such pleasure, you can certainly work hard.