🍗 Kyiv-Style Cutlets (Chicken Kyiv)
Kyiv-Style Cutlets, or Chicken Kyiv, are a famous Ukrainian dish featuring crispy, golden-brown breaded chicken cutlets with a deliciously creamy, garlicky butter filling. 🧈✨ When you cut into them, the melted butter flows out, creating a rich and flavorful experience! Serve them with mashed potatoes or a fresh salad for a perfect meal. 🥔🥗
Ingredients
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 100 g unsalted butter, softened
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 cup breadcrumbs
- ½ cup flour
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup vegetable oil (for frying)
Instructions
- Prepare the Butter Filling: Mix softened butter 🧈 with minced garlic 🧄, chopped parsley 🌿, salt 🧂, and black pepper ⚫. Shape into 4 small logs, wrap in plastic, and freeze for at least 15 minutes. ❄️
- Prepare the Chicken: Flatten the chicken breasts 🍗 using a mallet until about 1/4 inch thick. Place a piece of frozen butter in the center of each cutlet and fold the edges tightly to seal. Secure with toothpicks if needed.
- Coating Process: Dredge each cutlet in flour 🌾, dip into beaten eggs 🥚, then coat with breadcrumbs 🍞. Repeat the egg and breadcrumb coating for an extra crispy crust.
- Frying: Heat oil 🌻 in a deep pan over medium heat. Fry the cutlets for about 4-5 minutes per side until golden brown.
- Baking (Optional): To ensure the chicken is fully cooked inside, transfer the fried cutlets to a preheated oven (180°C / 350°F) and bake for 10 minutes. 🔥
- Rest & Serve: Let the cutlets rest for a few minutes before serving. Be careful when cutting into them – the hot butter will flow out! 🧈😋
- Enjoy the crispy, buttery goodness of this Ukrainian classic! 💛💙
Notes
A culinary classic loved and recognized worldwide! Kyiv-style cutlet is not just a dish but a true symbol of Ukrainian cuisine that has won the hearts of gourmets far beyond our country. The French compare it to an “airy chicken,” Italians call it “graceful meat,” and Germans consider it the “meat princess.” This cutlet perfectly combines the tenderness of chicken fillet, the aroma of fragrant greens, and the creamy juiciness of the filling that melts with every bite.
The main feature of this dish is that instead of traditional minced meat, a whole chicken breast is used, carefully pounded, stuffed with chilled butter mixed with fresh parsley, coated in crispy breadcrumbs, and fried until golden. As a result, you get a dish with an unmatched contrast of textures – crispy on the outside and incredibly tender and juicy inside.
Kyiv-style cutlets are traditionally served on a small chicken bone with a decorative paper frill to make them easy to hold without burning your hands. They taste best when paired with velvety mashed potatoes, fragrant buckwheat, or light vegetable salads.
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