I make this topping frequently and freeze it since I like to top muffins, pies, and cakes with it. I may now use it anytime I feel like it!
| Prep Time: | 20 mins |
| Cook Time: | 40 mins |
| Total Time: | 1 hr |
| Servings: | 4 |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
Ingredients
- 2 cups chopped pistachio nuts
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
- 2 egg whites
- 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon butter
- 2 shallots, finely chopped
- ½ cup red wine
- 4 ounces dried cherries
- 1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
- 1 ½ cups chicken stock
- 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Mix together the pistachios and bread crumbs in a bowl. Beat the egg whites in a separate bowl, and set aside.
- Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper, gently dip them into the beaten egg whites, and then press into the pistachio-bread crumb mixture to coat. Gently toss between your hands so any coating that hasn’t stuck can fall away.
- Heat the oil and butter in an oven-safe skillet over medium heat. Gently place the chicken breasts into the hot skillet, and fry for 5 to 8 minutes, until the bottom coating is golden brown and crisp.
- Turn the chicken over in the skillet, and place the skillet in the preheated oven. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the chicken is no longer pink, the juices run clear, and the top coating is lightly browned.
- While the chicken is baking, melt 1 teaspoon of butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat, add the shallots, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until tender. Pour in the wine, drop in the cherries, and cook and stir for about 10 minutes to reduce wine to a glaze. Pour in the orange juice, chicken stock, and orange zest, and cook and stir about 20 more minutes, until sauce is reduced and thickened.
- The nutrition data for this recipe includes the full amount of the breading ingredients. The actual amount of the breading consumed will vary.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 894 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 74 g |
| Cholesterol | 85 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 9 g |
| Protein | 41 g |
| Saturated Fat | 12 g |
| Sodium | 963 mg |
| Sugars | 24 g |
| Fat | 51 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
This recipe would get 5 stars from me if the calories were less per serving . Regarding the sauce: I did make a very few changes– I used one shallot instead of two, and put a whole clove of garlic in the sauce and removed it before it was done. I also added a 1/4 teaspoon extra of orange zest, and a few tablespoons more of wine. NOTE: you must be patient when reducing the sauce. It took me about 35 minutes. Use a timer and you will not fret when it doesn’t get thick right away. My husband loved, loved, loved it and he’s a picky eater!
I used dark skinless bone in pieces of chicken because that is what I had. Letting the chicken dry for a few moments after crusting it helped. I browned it on all sides before baking it and I sprayed with olive oil spray the top side when I first put it in. I turned once during baking and cooked to 165 degree meat temp. I tented it and the temp rose to almost 170 (Fahrenheit). I had no scallions, so I used very finely diced onions in the sauce, I used olive oil instead of butter and I used about a cup and a half of fresh well drained cherries in place of dried ones and only about 5/8 of a cup of orange juice. I cooked a long and added about 1/4 cup pf sugar, while to release the pectin in the fruit.This all worked very well. Completely Delicious. We loved it.
This is a very good dish. I used whole eggs and fresh squeezed orange juice to make it. I added 1/2 clove of garlic. The sauce would not thicken on its own, so I needed to add cornstarch to it. (My girlfriend’s suggestion) She told me to make sure I mix the cornstarch with cold water before adding it to the sauce to avoid clumping. Worked like a charm. The flavors of the sauce work really well with the crunch and texture of the chicken. I will make this again!
I could not tell there was pistachio in my coating – maybe I chopped it too fine. Breading stayed on the chicken and looke nice. I had my pan too hot on the first side of the chicken, it got quite dark very fast. The sauce really makes this a stand-out dish. I had leftover cranberry chutney which I heated with a bit of red wine and poured over top. Worthy of a dish for company next time!
I follow recipes as written. The chicken turned out perfect and delicious and alone would be 5 stars. But the sauce was not good and overpowered by orange flavor. I recommend the chicken but skip the sauce!
This was very good, but the sauce never thickened up no matter how long I cooked it. Will try again..chicken was great even without it. Cut back the pistachios to 1 cup and you will still have enough breading. Couldn’t bear to throw out all those pricey nuts. pecan would be good also.
I made this with pecans, since I had some on hand and pistachios were so expensive. I also added a little salt to the sauce. Very good! I will make again.
This was perfect as written! My entire family loved it. You have to allow the sauce to cook long enough to reduce or else it will not be thick. This is going in my ‘Family Favorites’ file, and it would be fantastic to serve on holidays and for company. 5 stars all the way!
Both the sauce and the chicken were delicious recipes, but I wasn’t totally convinced they belonged together. My boyfriend and I added a few tablespoons of flour to the sauce because it didn’t thicken up (or seem likely to given the lack of thickening agent . . . maybe I missed something in the recipe?). I would make both of these pieces again, but I think I would pair them differently. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
This recipe was really good I made it with my mom for dinner and everyone loved it even my little sister who is a really picky eater. Also, 1 shallot was just enough for this recipe.
This was wonderful! I served it for Easter (dietary restrictions eliminated lamb and no one in my house is a big fan of ham) with wild rice and roasted baby vegetables. I would suggest that only half of the breading is needed. I ended up throwing out a huge amount full of VERY expensive pistachios!
We made this for ourselves on Valentine’s Day last year (in ’09). It was TERRIFIC. We also made orange juice tzimmes (glorified carrot coins) and mushroom risotto to eat with the chicken. We had plenty of leftovers! Accompanying recipes are on this website. Tzimmes –
Didn’t mess with the wine or the freshly squeezed juice. I used juice from frozen concentrate and I “reconstituted” the cherries by letting them soak all day in enough Grand Marnier to cover. I’ll make extra sauce next time. Seems the more I play with the Grand Marnier the more kitchen fun I have. Hmmmmm.
I hate to only give this 3 stars, because I think it has potential, and I think some of the problem was with me! First of all, I could not find shelled pistachios in my store, so it took MUCH longer than 20 minutes to prepare as I had to shell 2 c. of nuts! I also browned both sides of the chicken before putting it in the oven which I definitely recommend. I will say the chicken smelled great while it was baking. Now about the sauce…I would cut the amount of shallots in about half. That flavor was overwhelming. And this part was definitley my fault..we are not wine “common sewers” so the red wine I had was probably not very good. And I didn’t use fresh orange juice (really, who has time for that?) So my problem was that I had a hard time getting the sauce to reduce and thicken. I turned up the heat and finally I just had to serve it b/c the chicken was done. The chicken did have a very nice flavor, I must say. I will probably give this another try with fewer shallots and better wine and hope for the best.