Recipe of the Week: Grilled Chicken Paillard

A chicken paillard is simply a cutlet of chicken breast that has been pounded into an evenly thin slice, then quickly cooked. Classically a paillard is sauteed and served with a sauce made from the fond left behind in the pan, but since the height of tomato season I’m serving these with a fresh salsa spiked with capers.

Grilled Chicken Paillard

Serves 4

Ingredients

3-4                        boneless and skinless chicken breasts, sliced horizontally into 3 cutlets
to taste                salt and pepper
4 tbsp                   fresh parsley, minced and divided
2 tbsp                   olive oil, divided
2                            large field or heirloom tomato, cored, quartered, and seeded
2 tbsp                   capers in vinegar

2 tbsp                   black olives, pitted
1                            small shallot, minced
2 tbsp                   red wine vinegar
1 pinch                 chili flakes
1 tsp                     fresh rosemary, minced

Method:

1) Preheat the grill to high.

2) On a large cutting board, lay out a sheet of plastic wrap. Lay out 2-3 chicken cutlets so that there is at least an inch of space between the breasts, then blanket them with a second sheet of plastic wrap. Using a heavy mallet (or the bottom of a small pot), lightly tap the cutlets until they are thin. Remove the cutlets from the plastic sheeting and set aside on a tray. Repeat with the remaining cutlets.

3) Season the cutlets with salt, pepper, and 2 tbsp of parsley. Drizzle the cutlets with 2 tbsp of olive oil and rub all over. Set aside to marinate while you make the salsa.

4) Cut the tomato into small dice. Don’t worry too much about the uniformity of the dice, as long as the tomato pieces are about twice as large as a caper. Put the tomatoes in a bowl with the capers, olives, shallots, the remaining parsley, the remaining olive oil, red wine vinegar, chili flakes, and rosemary. Mix well and season to taste with salt and pepper. 

5) Grill the chicken breasts over high heat, flipping often until they are cooked all the way through, about 4-5 minutes total.  Arrange on a platter and spoon some of the salsa over the top.  Serve with the remaining salsa on the side.