Grana Padano breadcrumbed chicken breast recipe

This dish involves covering flattened chicken breasts in cheesy breadcrumbs and then frying until golden. Grana Padano doesn’t seem to feature in as many recipes as Parmesan, but it’s just as good. Both are semi-aged Italian cheeses but it’s the latter that seems to get all the glory in culinary circles. In fact, Grana is a great cheese in its own right and well-known in Italy – and less expensive than Parmesan (£12.50 per kilo, compared to around £20 per kilo). Grano Padano is subtler, less nutty and salty than Parmesan, with a slightly fruity flavour.

Ingredients

• 2 chicken breasts, skinless, boneless
• 100g breadcrumbs
• 75g Grana Padano cheese
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 1tsp dried thyme
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 50g plain flour
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 200ml olive oil
• 50g butter

Method

1. For the chicken coating, place the breadcrumbs, Grana Padano, lemon zest, thyme and pepper into a food processor and blitz to fine crumbs.
2. Butterfly the chicken breasts. Place the chicken onto what would have been the skin side, then cut down the centre line to half the way through. Turn the knife sideways and cut horizontally almost to the side of the breast to open it out, then repeat with the other side so you have a chicken breast, twice the size it was and half the thickness.
3. Dust the chicken in the flour.
4. Dip into the egg then into the breadcrumbs, making sure to coat each side thoroughly.
5. Heat the olive oil and the butter in a large frying pan then add the chicken breasts, and fry until golden-brown, about 5-6 mins each side. Place onto kitchen paper to drain.
6. Serve with a squirt of lemon, potato salad and rocket leaves.