">Milanese Chicken Caesar Salad | Italian Recipes | Our Modern Kitchen Milanese Chicken Caesar Salad | Italian Recipes | Our Modern Kitchen Print

A global favourite, and for good reason. The finer points as to the origin of the famous salad remain a hotly debated topic, though the general consensus suggests that it was invented by an immigrant Italian chef working in Mexico. There are many reincarnations of this dish if you look around, but we wanted to try and keep to the roots of this beloved salad whilst still adding a little twist of our own. Our incarnation replaces the croutons with Milanese Chicken and an added anchovy gremolata in a nod to the Italian heritage.

Scale

Ingredients

CHICKEN MILANESE

4 Chicken Breasts

100g Plain Flour, Heavily Seasoned with Salt and Peppers

200g Panko Breadcrumbs

50g Parmesan, finely grated

Zest of Half a Lemon

2 Large Eggs, whisked

CAESAR DRESSING

2 Egg Yolks

6 Anchovy Fillets

1tsp Dijon Mustard

1 Garlic Clove, Minced

125ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Juice of ½ a lemon

40g Parmesan, finely grated

Pinch of Black Pepper

SALAD

4 Little Gem Lettuce, leaves torn

Parmesan Shavings

GREMOLATA

1 Garlic Clove

4 Anchovy Fillets

Zest of Half a Lemon

1 Small Bunch of Parsley, roughly chopped

Pinch of Pepper

200ml Light Olive Oil, or flavourless oil

Groundnut Oil

50ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil

METHOD

CAESAR DRESSING

1. Place the Garlic, Anchovies, a pinch of salt and a drizzle of olive oil onto a chopping board and finely chop together. Then once the ingredients a finely diced, using the back of the knife, mash the diced ingredients into the board until a homogenous paste is achieved.

2. Place the egg yolks into a large mixing bowl and whisk together for a minute until slightly thickened. Then add the anchovy paste and Dijon mustard and whisk together for a further minute.

3. Then, whisking as you go, very slowly (you cannot go too slowly), drizzle in the Extra Virgin Olive Oil drop by drop. Then add the remaining oil, again very slowly and whisking as you go, until you have achieved a thick glossy emulsion.

4. Add the grated parmesan and then the lemon juice and whisk together. The lemon juice will loosen the dressing but if necessary, add a splash of water to loosen to the consistency of a dressing a-posed to a mayonnaise.

5. Season with Pepper. The anchovy and parmesan should provide plenty of salt.

6. Set aside until needed. This will make a generous supply of dressing and will keep in the fridge for up to a week.

 

ANCHOVY GREMOLATA

To make the Gremolata, place all the ingredients onto a chopping board and dice together until you have a homogenous mix of finely diced ingredients. Season with pepper and set aside until needed.

 

CHICKEN MILANESE

1. Mix the breadcrumbs, grated parmesan and lemon zest until evenly combined.

2. Place the chicken breasts between two sheets of greaseproof paper and bash the chicken to a thickness of about 1cm with a rolling pin or meat hammer and then cut the flattened chicken breasts in half lengthways so that you have 8 long thin fillets.

3. Place the flour, beaten egg and breadcrumbs in separate bowls. Dredge the chicken in the flour mix, followed by the egg and lastly the breadcrumbs until completely coated.

4. Place a large frying pan over a medium heat and fill with olive oil until you have a depth of 2-3mm of oil in the pan. Once the oil is hot, carefully lay the chicken into the pan and cook for 3 minutes on each side until completely golden and crisp. Lift out the chicken and drain any remaining oil on kitchen paper. Allow to stand for 5 minutes.

 

THE SALAD

1. Romaine Lettuce is usually used for Caesar salads, but we prefer the sweetness, texture and portioning Little gem offers. Separate the leaves and slice the larger leaves in half lengthways.

2. Divide the lettuce and chicken into 4 equal portions.

3. To assemble the salad add the leaves to a large bowl or plate with a tbsp of the dressing, mix together with your hands to ensure the leaves are evenly covered. Slice the chicken and add to the leaves. Top with the gremolata and parmesan shavings. Serve immediately with extra dressing and gremolata.

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