I Like Peanuts, But I Love Pistachios Even More. Pistachio Crusted Chicken Served With Baked Potatoes, Crispy Onion Rings & My Home Made Jus.

I don't even need to mention it, but yes you guessed it, I made it up as i went along, you probably knew that already. I love experimenting in the kitchen & trying out different things. My family love it, they're always like, "So Chef what's on the menu today" Just before going to bed I make sure I plan out in my head what im going to cook, I didn't do that this time round but luckily I remember what goes into this dish.

P.s my easy baked potato salad & onion rings have already been posted previously, make sure to check them out.

Ingredients for the herb pistachio crust

100g pistachio nuts 

50g melted butter 

60g fresh chives chopped 

30g chopped rosemary

Small bunch of fresh parsely 

100g breadcrumbs 

Zest & juice of 1 whole lemon

4 small garlic clovss chopped roughly 

Salt & pepper to taste 

Ingredients for the chicken 

1 chicken breast 

Olive oil Salt & pepper 

1 tsp rosemary

Chilly flakes

Lemon zest 

Garlic powder 

Ingredients for the roasted chicken jus

Chicken bones & left over bits (neck, carcass, wings, bones, fat etc)

2 onions roughly chopped

2 carrots roughly chopped

2 celery stalks roughly chopped 

5 sprigs of rosemary

1 head of garlic cut in half

Salt & pepper to taste

Olive oil

2 lemons roughly chopped

500ml chicken broth

3 tbsp butter cut into cubes

Method for herb pistachio crust

In a food processor add the pistachio nuts, butter & the herbs & blitz them until it forms a green colour. Add in the breadcrumbs, lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic & seasoning to your preference. Blitz again for a few seconds & set aside.

Method for the chicken

Place the single chicken breast in between two sheets of climg film & slightly bash it Using a meat hammer. Put slitz in the chicken & Season the chicken with olive oil, salt, pepper, rosemary, chilly flakes, lemon zest & garlic powder. Set aside & let Iit marinade upto 3 hours so all the flavors infuse in the chicken properly. When its time to place the herb crust on all you have to do is mould the crust over the chicken tightly & drizzle over some olive oil ready to be baked after the jus is made. Place the rest of the herb crust in the fridge to be used again throughout the week.

Method for the chicken jus

Switch the oven on to 350 degrees. Get a roasting dish & add all the chicken bones & fat & anything else you can get hold of. Add in all the vegetables, rosemary sprigs and the garlic. Add in the lemons & make sure to season well with salt & pepper, drizzle with olive oil & roast in the oven for around 40 minutes until everything including the bones are nicely browned.

Once the bones & vegetables are browned take out the oven & place the roasting dish on the stove top on medium heat. Add 1/3 cup of apple juice to deglaze. Scrape the bottom of the pan to scrape the brown bits, make sure to use a wooden spoon. Add in the chicken broth/stock & let it simmer for around 6 minutes, let the liquid reduce down. Take the roasting dish of the heat & strain everything make sure to press down using pressure on the vegetables, this will give the most flavor possible & also as you push the pulp out from the vegetables it will help thicken the jus slightly. 

Add in the cold butter cubes to the sauce & mix it in until it has melted, lastly season with salt & pepper & serve with the chicken alongside some vegetables or even a mash, whatever you prefer really.

Bon Apetite!