Description

This crispy pumpernickel fried chicken is paired with many pickled briny flavors to make a fun whimsical chicken dish.

Ingredients

Scale

For the Breadcrumbs

1 lb of pumpernickel bread
1 Tb caraways seeds

For the Cornichon crema

3 Tb sour cream
1 Tb dijon mustard
4 Tb cornichon pickle juice
1 Tb white distilled vinegar
Salt

For the Radish Salad

1 bunch of red radishes or 1 large watermelon dish, sliced in all different ways
Salt
The juice of half of a lemon
2 Tb white distilled vinegar
6 basil leaves, torn or ribboned

For the Chicken

2 lbs chicken breasts, thinly sliced
Canola oil
2 eggs
1 cup flour
1-2 cups of pumpernickel breadcrumbs
salt, pepper, cayenne to taste
10 cornichon pickles, diced

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Instructions

To make the breadcrumbs, cut the loaf of bread into ~3 inch cubes and spread it over 2 baking sheets. Place them in a 325F oven for about 45 minutes until all of the bread is completely dry and crisp. (See note 1)
Allow the bread to cool completely, then grind it in a food processor in batches until fine crumbs form. If some pieces stay large, just crumble those with your fingers afterwards. Place breadcrumbs into a container and set them aside.
Make your radish salad. Slice the radishes and place them in a mixing bowl with 1 big pinch of salt. Use your fingers to rub the salt all over the radishes, and then let them rest for 5 minutes. The salt will draw out a lot of water, so use a paper towel to pat the radishes dry. Then add the lemon juice, white distilled vinegar, and basil, and toss to combine. Place radish salad in the refrigerator until ready to eat.
Make the Cornichon Crema by combining the sour cream, dijon mustard, and pickle juice, and season with salt to taste. Place this in the fridge as well.
Dice the 10 Cornichon pickles and set them aside in a small bowl.
Prepare the dredging station. In 1 bowl, place 1 cup of flour. In another bowl, scramble 2 eggs and 1 Tb of water. In a third bowl, place 1 cup of breadcrumbs and caraway seeds. Season the flour and breadcrumb mixtures with pinches of salt, pepper, and cayenne. (See note 2)
Season chicken with salt and pepper, then bread the chicken. Dredge each cutlet first in flour mixture, then egg mixture, then breadcrumb mixture.
Heat the frying oil. Fill a sauté pan with enough oil to reach 1 inch up the side of the pan, and heat over a medium flame. Allow the oil to come to 270-300F, then fry 2 cutlets at a time, approximately 2-3 minutes per side. Try to keep the oil from going above 300F. (See note 3) Place cooked chicken on a paper towel lined plate.
Serve the dish on a platter with chicken on bottom, then dollops of cornichon crema, then radish salad, then a handful of diced cornichons. You can serve more cornichons and mustard on the side for people who like extra briny flavors.

Notes

Note 1: I recommend making the breadcrumbs earlier in the day or a day in advance since they require baking and cooling time. The bread must be completely dried out and then cooled in order to make crumbs.

Note 2: A 1 quart deli container is perfect for holding 1lb of breadcrumbs. Depending on how many cutlets you get out of your 2 lbs of chicken, you may need more or less breadcrumbs, so start with 1 cup of breadcrumbs and add more as necessary.

Note 3: Use an instant read thermometer to check the temperature of the oil as you fry. If the temperature reaches 310, reduce heat to low.

Note 3: Seasoning your breading components will make a high difference in how much flavor you chicken has. Salt makes things taste more like themselves, so if you salt the pumpernickel breadcrumbs, they will take more like pumpernickel, which is the star of this recipe.