Sautéed Chicken Breasts with Sweet and Sour Pan Sauce
By America's Test KitchenPublished on August 22, 2007
Time
40 minutes
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
Chicken Cutlets
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 ½ pounds), rinsed and dried thoroughly¼ cup unbleached all-purpose flour 1 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter 1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oilSweet and Sour Pan Sauce
2 - 3 cloves garlic (1 ½ tablespoons minced)2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes ¼ cup dark brown sugar, packed firm¼ cup distilled white vinegar 2 tablespoons soy sauce ½ teaspoon anchovy paste or Thai or Vietnamese fish sauce4 medium scallions, including the tender green parts, sliced thinInstructions
- Sprinkle 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon pepper on both sides of the cutlets. Measure flour onto a plate or pie tin. Working with one cutlet at a time, press both sides into the flour. Make sure tenderloin is tucked beneath and fused to main porton of breast. Pick up cutlet from tapered end; shake gently to remove excess flour.
- Heat butter and oil in a heavy bottomed skillet measuring at least 9 inches across bottom. Swirl skillet over high heat until butter has melted. Continue to heat skillet until butter stops foaming and has just begun to color. Lay cutlets in skillet, tenderloin side down.
- Maintain medium high heat, so fat sizzles but does not smoke, and sauté cutlets until browned on one side, about 4 minutes. Turn cutlets with tongs (a fork will pierce meat); cook on other size until meat feels firm when pressed and clotted juices begin to emerge around tenderloin, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer cutlets to a plate, keep warm in oven set at lowest temperature possible, and continue with recipe.
- Place garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes on a cutting board; mince further to pulverize the pepper. Without draining fat, return skillet to medium heat; add garlic mixture and sauté until softened, about 1 minute. Increase heat to high; add next 4 sauce ingredients and accumulated pan juices; boil, stirring to loosen browned bits from pan bottom, until mixture thickens to a light syrup, less than a minute. Pour sauce over the chicken cutlets, scatter scallions on top, and serve immediately.
Time
40 minutesYield
Serves 4Ingredients
Chicken Cutlets
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 ½ pounds), rinsed and dried thoroughly
¼ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter
1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
Sweet and Sour Pan Sauce
2 - 3 cloves garlic (1 ½ tablespoons minced)
2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
¼ cup dark brown sugar, packed firm
¼ cup distilled white vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
½ teaspoon anchovy paste or Thai or Vietnamese fish sauce
4 medium scallions, including the tender green parts, sliced thin
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Chicken Cutlets
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 ½ pounds), rinsed and dried thoroughly
¼ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter
1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
Sweet and Sour Pan Sauce
2 - 3 cloves garlic (1 ½ tablespoons minced)
2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
¼ cup dark brown sugar, packed firm
¼ cup distilled white vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
½ teaspoon anchovy paste or Thai or Vietnamese fish sauce
4 medium scallions, including the tender green parts, sliced thin
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Chicken Cutlets
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 ½ pounds), rinsed and dried thoroughly
¼ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter
1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
Sweet and Sour Pan Sauce
2 - 3 cloves garlic (1 ½ tablespoons minced)
2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
¼ cup dark brown sugar, packed firm
¼ cup distilled white vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
½ teaspoon anchovy paste or Thai or Vietnamese fish sauce
4 medium scallions, including the tender green parts, sliced thin
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
Our ideal sautéed chicken breast recipe would have to produce chicken with a nicely browned exterior and a tender, juicy interior. Although there are several keys to sautéing boneless chicken breasts correctly, one element was paramount for our sautéed chicken breast recipe: There must be enough heat. Other points we found to be significant were drying the meat thoroughly with paper towels after rinsing under cool water and lightly flouring the cutlets. Flouring serves two purposes: It creates a barrier between the fat in the pan and the moisture in the cutlet so that the fat "spits" less, and it helps to produce a consistently brown and crispy crust.
Instructions
- Sprinkle 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon pepper on both sides of the cutlets. Measure flour onto a plate or pie tin. Working with one cutlet at a time, press both sides into the flour. Make sure tenderloin is tucked beneath and fused to main porton of breast. Pick up cutlet from tapered end; shake gently to remove excess flour.
- Heat butter and oil in a heavy bottomed skillet measuring at least 9 inches across bottom. Swirl skillet over high heat until butter has melted. Continue to heat skillet until butter stops foaming and has just begun to color. Lay cutlets in skillet, tenderloin side down.
- Maintain medium high heat, so fat sizzles but does not smoke, and sauté cutlets until browned on one side, about 4 minutes. Turn cutlets with tongs (a fork will pierce meat); cook on other size until meat feels firm when pressed and clotted juices begin to emerge around tenderloin, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer cutlets to a plate, keep warm in oven set at lowest temperature possible, and continue with recipe.
- Place garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes on a cutting board; mince further to pulverize the pepper. Without draining fat, return skillet to medium heat; add garlic mixture and sauté until softened, about 1 minute. Increase heat to high; add next 4 sauce ingredients and accumulated pan juices; boil, stirring to loosen browned bits from pan bottom, until mixture thickens to a light syrup, less than a minute. Pour sauce over the chicken cutlets, scatter scallions on top, and serve immediately.
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