Russian Chicken Cutlets

Russian Chicken Cutlets

Serves 6

(Russia)

This is an elegant and interesting treatment for chicken. Since the sauce is a simple Hollandaise you can double its recipe easily.

Ingredients

2 slices white sandwich bread

¼ cup half-and-half cream or sweetened condensed milk

2 to 2½ cups uncooked ground chicken

2 teaspoons salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

½ cup finely chopped fresh, white mushrooms

7 tablespoons butter

2 cups Japanese Panko bread crumbs

vegetable oil for frying

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 egg yolks, beaten

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Preparation

1.  Remove crusts from the bread, place bread in a large bowl and pour cream over the bread.  Let bread stand until all liquid is absorbed.

2.  Add ground chicken, 1 teaspoon of salt, pepper, mushrooms, and 3 tablespoons of softened butter to the soaked bread and mix until well blended.  Chill mixture at least 1 hour so the mixture can be easy to handle.

3.  Shape into 12 pork chop shaped cutlets.  Build a breading station by placing the bread crumbs on a large plate; coat each cutlet on both sides and edges with the bread crumbs; press crumbs on firmly (the formed chicken cutlets should be sticky enough not to need the traditional flour, egg, breadcrumb station).  Chill breaded cutlets in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour to allow coating to firmly set.

4.  Heat a large, heavy skillet over medium heat, add ¼ inch of vegetable to the skillet when it is heated.  When oil is hot add cutlets and fry, turning to fry golden brown on both sides.  As the cutlets are browned remove from skillet and place on a paper towel lined plate to drain.  When finished frying the cutlets, place them on an oven-proof serving dish into an oven that has been pre-heated to 375° F oven for about 15 minutes.   Keep the cutlets warm until ready to serve.

5.  Meanwhile, in the top of a double boiler combine the lemon juice and egg yolks and whisk to blend thoroughly.

6.  Add the appropriate amount of water to the lower portion of the double boiler and place it over medium heat.  When the water becomes hot, place the top of the double boiler in place and add 2 tablespoons of butter to the heated lemon juice and egg yolk mixture.  Beat with a whisk until the mixture is smooth and thoroughly blended .

7.  Cut the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter into small pieces and add to the egg yolk mixture a piece at a time; beating until smooth after each addition. 

8.  After all the remaining butter has been added, remove the top of the double boiler from the water and stir in the remaining salt and cayenne pepper.  Place this sauce in a sauce boat.

9.  Either serve the warm cutlets on the serving plate or transfer the warm cutlets to individual service plate along with vegetables of your choice and serve with the Hollandaise sauce on the side. 

Note: a double boiler can be approximated by using two sauce pans, one smaller than the other so it can fit inside the larger. Then putting water in the larger and “floating” the smaller in the larger.

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