Home Run Chicken
by Featured Belly Maker John Carroll
Ingredients:
One pound of boneless chicken breasts
Olive Oil
Minced Garlic (from a jar)
Bread crumbs
Shredded Mozzarella
Chopped tomatoes
White cooking wine (or perhaps the white wine you'll be serving)
This was formerly called lazy man's chicken but the ladies seem to love it so much that my slugging percentage dramatically increases whenever I make it - if you know what mean.
Generally this recipe is good for two people, even if one is a dude with a very healthy appetite. So just multiply the ingredients you'll need based on the number of people your feeding.
You'll notice that I'm not very precise with ingredients and amounts. That's because I'm a guy and I like playing fast and loose with the rules of culinary expression. So don't be a wuss - just jump in and cook to your own taste.
First clean the chicken breasts. That means: cut out the fat and tendons. Since you might be a novice at this, you may want to pass by your mother, sister or married buddy's house to have this done. But if you're alone in a strange city don’t worry it's easy but tedious. Just make sure to do a good job. Nothing spoils a chick's mood like having to spit out grizzle. Just try to cut the chicken into normal cutlet size (i.e. two squared inches) rather than serving shredded chicken.
Pour 1/4 cup of olive oil in a medium pan, mix in two table spoons of minced garlic. Swirl the chicken around so that it gets some garlic and oil on both sides. Then coat the top of the chicken with a light layer of Italian-seasoned bread crumbs. Bake until the chicken is cooked and the bread crumbs are light brown. Remove from oven and leave in the pan. Pour some white cooking wine over the chicken and bread crumbs. Add shredded mozzarella to the top and some diced tomatoes to top that. Place in the oven until the cheese looks toasted. Pour the pan drippings over the chicken before serving. Pan drippings are good, damn good.
If this looks like a lot of trouble, trust me, it’s the easiest chicken dish that looks good, tastes good, and looks like it took some effort.
You can also top it with a lean cured meat like prosciutto (expensive) or turkey bacon (cheap) but not regular bacon because it's too greasy.
Suggested beer/wine: Fetzer Chardonnay, any Riesling (REES-Ling), Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Pete's Wicked Summer Brew
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