Chicken Cutlets

Fried chicken cutlets on decorative serving platter with lemon wedges.

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Pan-fried thinly sliced, breaded chicken breasts that's juicy on the inside and crispy on the outside!

Prep Time5

Cook Time16

Marinading time15

Total Time36

Course: Appetizer, Dinner, Entree, Lunch

Cuisine: International

Servings: cutlets

Calories: 1411kcal

Author: Anecia Hero

Equipment

Large skillet 10" inch - 12" inch if you're making two or more cutlets
Meat thermometer
3 flat or shallow dishes or pie plates for dredging station
Wax Paper
Meat mallet

Ingredients

2 pounds chicken breast See recipe notes below
½ cup buttermilk (whole or reduced fat)
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup cornstarch
2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided (1 teaspoon for the flour mixture; 1 teaspoon for the breadcrumbs)
2 cups Panko breadcrumbs See recipe notes below
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon dried Italian seasonings (optional) See recipe notes below
1½ cups oil: vegetable or canola See recipe notes below
1 lemon - fresh lemon juice - just a squeeze for each cutlet before serving

Instructions

Prep

Pat chicken dry with paper towel; trim any visible fat and cut horizontally with a sharp knife
2 pounds chicken breast
Place breast halves on a cutting board and cover with wax paper. Use the flat side of a meat mallet and pound the breasts until their ¼" inch thick.
Place breasts in baking dish; add buttermilk, coating each breast; cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes
½ cup buttermilk (whole or reduced fat)

Set up Dredging Station

Set up dredging station: Lightly beat eggs and put in one dish. Combine flour, cornstarch and half of the salt in a second dish. In the third dish, combine breadcrumbs, onion powder, garlic powder, Italian seasonings (optional), black pepper and remaining salt.
2 large eggs, lightly beaten, 1½ cups all-purpose flour, ½ cup cornstarch, 2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided , ½ teaspoon ground black pepper, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon onion powder, 2 cups Panko breadcrumbs, ½ teaspoon dried Italian seasonings (optional)

Fry the Cutlets

Pour oil into large skillet on medium to medium-high heat; test oil temperature with thermometer; you want it to be around 315℉ -325℉; if you don't have a thermometer, sprinkle a few breadcrumbs in the hot oil; if they sizzle, the oil is hot enough
1½ cups oil: vegetable or canola
Use tongs or a fork and remove buttermilk soaked chicken breast directly from the dish-leave any buttermilk on the breast. Dredge it in the flour, coating both sides; then dredge it in the egg; then place the chicken breast in the breadcrumbs. Use your hand to pat the breadcrumbs onto the chicken breast. Let the breaded cutlets sit a few minutes before frying. (This ensures the breadcrumbs won't fall off.)
After resting a few minutes, place the breast in the hot oil.
Cook the cutlet for 4-5 minutes per side, until the internal temperature reaches 165℉. You can peek to see if it's browning, but I do not recommend flipping it for at least 3 minutes.
Transfer to a wire rack or paper towel lined plate and resume recipe until all the chicken breasts are fried.
Give each cutlet a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and serve.
1 lemon - fresh lemon juice - just a squeeze for each cutlet before serving

Notes

Chicken Breasts -

The chicken breasts I bought were about one pound each in weight; this made 4 cutlets.

Italian seasonings -

If you want to add Italian spices to this dish, I recommend you add them to the breadcrumb mixture.

Breadcrumbs -

You can use plain or Italian flavored. If your chicken breasts are large, you may need more Panko crumbs.

Oil -

You may use a little more or a little less oil than the recipe calls for because the amount of oil will be determined by the size of your skillet and the number of breasts you fry.

I used a 12" inch skillet with 1½ cups of oil for frying 4 cutlets.

I recommend you strain the oil between batches and remove any excess breadcrumbs from the skillet. For the second (and subsequent batches), use the strained oil (you may have to add more oil if you're making a lot of cutlets). This ensures the cutlets brown the same and there's not any super brown Panko crumbs on the final product.

Nutrition