A kid-friendly dish that's designed to please everyone around the table
There are many ways that parenting humbles you. It seems almost predictable that the child of a food editor would prefer grilled cheese or buttered noodles over spaghetti Bolognese (“too saucy”) or chicken enchiladas (“The cheese looks weird, and what are those green things?”). I used to be known for my elaborate dinner parties, but now hot dogs are my specialty.
My 9-year-old son, Theo, is bright, sweet, and silly, but I don’t have the patience for his hot takes on my cooking after a full day at work. So I often make dinner for my husband and me and cobble together a Theo Special if he doesn’t like what’s on that night’s menu. (I can hear the parenting criticisms being formed as I write this.) That solves the immediate problem, but if I just provided hot dogs as an option, would he ever try new things? I needed a better plan.
The Chicken Dinner Solution
I decided to turn one simple dish – a crispy piece of boneless chicken – into a customizable supper that everyone around the table could appreciate. That was my lofty goal, anyway. To keep this meal from going into nugget territory, I turned to fellow parent and Test Kitchen Professional Anna Theoktisto. She pounded chicken breasts into thin cutlets and then flavored the meat and the panko breading with an ingenious ingredient: ranch seasoning mix. The chicken is pan-fried until golden, like a juicy and crispy schnitzel. And the ranch adds zingy notes of buttermilk, savory garlic, and brightness from dried herbs.
You can serve the chicken solo (with a little ketchup on the side to entice the skeptics), top a pile of salad with it, tuck it into a sandwich – and the list goes on. Depending on your child, you may or may not want to call it a “schnitzel.” The name could instantly turn the dish into something unfamiliar and therefore inedible, or they might find the word hilarious and chow down with glee. Happily, Theo had the latter reaction, uttering those four precious words: “Is there any more?"
Serving Ideas For The Grown-Ups
While the crispy fried chicken is delicious as-is, here are two adult-friendly ways to enjoy it.
Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley
Five-Minute Fried Chicken Salad
Toss together 4 cups torn red leaf lettuce, 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes, and 1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives in a large bowl, and divide mixture between 2 plates. Slice 2 Crispy Ranch Chicken Cutlets, and place 1 on top of each salad. Drizzle with your favorite vinaigrette.
Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley
Chicken Parm Sandwiches
Preheat oven to broil with rack about 4 inches from heat source. Butter cut sides of 2 ciabatta rolls with 2 Tbsp. softened unsalted butter. Place buttered sides up on an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet. Place half of 1 Crispy Ranch Chicken Cutlet on bottom half of each roll. Top each with 2 fresh mozzarella cheese slices; sprinkle with Parmesan. Broil until cheeses are melted, about 3 minutes. Spoon 1/4 cup warmed marinara sauce evenly over each; place remaining half of each roll on top.
This article was written by Lisa Cericola from Southern Living and was legally licensed through the DiveMarketplace by Industry Dive. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@industrydive.com.
