Chicken tenders are a secret favorite of professional chefs. And in this recipe, Jacques Pépin allows the strips of white meat to star, with a bit of char and a crisp-crunchy condiment. They don’t need a breaded coating to make them fly.
Serve with warm flatbread.
Chicken tenders with chimichurri
1?6 chicken tenderloins (not breaded) (a scant 1½ pounds total)
1teaspoon kosher salt
1/3cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil
3or 4 scallions
2cloves garlic
4or 5 red radishes
Leaves from 2 or 3 stems cilantro
1lime
1teaspoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Toss the chicken tenders in a mixing bowl with ½ teaspoon of the salt and a tablespoon of the oil. Place a heatproof ceramic serving platter in the oven; preheat to 140 degrees. Heat a large grill pan over medium-high heat.
Working in batches as needed, add the chicken tenders to the skillet and cook for about 1 ½ minutes or until char marks form, then turn them over and cook for about a minute. Transfer to the platter.
As you prep the following ingredients, transfer them to a medium bowl: Discard the root ends of the scallions, then finely chop what’s left (to taste). Mince the garlic. Cut the radishes (to taste) into thin rounds, then cut the rounds into half-moons or into very thin slices (julienne). Coarsely chop the cilantro (to taste). Cut the lime in half and squeeze to yield 2 tablespoons of juice.
Add the dried oregano, crushed red pepper flakes, the remaining ½ teaspoon of salt and the remaining 1/3cup of oil to the bowl; stir to form the chimichurri sauce.
Remove the platter from the oven; spoon the sauce over the chicken. Serve warm.
Nutrition per serving, 4 servings: 390 calories, 36 g protein, 2 g carbohydrates, 26 g fat, 4 g saturated fat, 115 mg cholesterol, 360 mg sodium, 0 g dietary fiber, 0 g sugar.
Adapted from “Heart and Soul in the Kitchen,” by Jacques Pépin
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