Paleo Crumbed Chicken with Rainbow Slaw

By Catherine Noonan on November 17, 2014 in Food

Crunchy, succulent, tender and incredibly satisfying – it’s meals like this Paleo Crumbed Chicken that make the paleolithic diet so enticing. You can literally have your crumbed chicken and eat it too!

Forget the breadcrumbs (which are frowned upon by the paleo brigade), this golden chicken has been crumbed with hazelnut meal. It’s high in protein thanks to the chicken and nut meal and is perfectly balanced by a light salad, which is dressed only with freshly squeezed citrus juice and olive oil.

Ingredients (serves 2)

1 egg
1 cup hazelnut meal, (or almond or sunflower meal)
1 tsp ground harissa spice mix (or any other spice mix)
2 small chicken breasts, or 1 large breast halved horizontally
2 tbsp coconut oil, for shallow frying
1/4 purple cabbage, finely shredded
1 carrot, spiralled or julienned
1 cup firmly packed dark leafy greens (e.g. kale or spinach), finely shredded
1/2 red capsicum, thinly sliced
1 handful mint leaves, torn
Juice of 1/2 orange or lemon (approx 4 tbsp)
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

Tools

Chopping board and knife
2 small mixing bowls
Meat mallet
Heavy-based frying pan
Salad bowl
Kitchen paper towel (or a clean tea towel)

Method

1. Place the cabbage, carrot, dark leafy greens, capsicum and mint in a salad bowl, toss and set aside.
2. In a small mixing bowl, beat the egg and set aside.
3. In another small mixing bowl, combine the nut meal and spice and set aside.
4. Butterfly the two chicken breast pieces so that they’re no more than 1cm thick and bash with a meat mallet to tenderise and even out the thickness. Pat the meat dry with kitchen paper towel.
5. Dip and coat the chicken in the beaten egg and then coat with the nut meal and spice mix.
6. Over medium heat, in a large heavy-based frying pan, heat the coconut oil. Once hot, add the crumbed chicken, cooking for a couple of minutes on each side until golden.
7. While cooking, arrange a couple of sheets of paper towel (or a clean tea towel) on a plate. Once cooked, transfer the chicken to the paper towel – this will absorb any excess oil.
8. Finally, mix the citrus juice with the EVOO and pour over the salad.
9. Serve immediately while the chicken is still hot and crispy.