Yes another post about halloumi but stay with me on this one you won't regret it. When I'm not buying at the markets, I try to buy most of my meat from Super Butcher. It's a warehouse-style butcher that sells to the public at wholesale prices. You need to be a bit tough to go in there. It's really just a giant fridge so you have to dress warmly (they provide jumpers as well) and be prepared to see hanging carcases and buy big chunks of meat. They chop them up however you like so that's an added bonus.
One special I always look out for at Super Butcher is the chicken breast sale. Every now and then they offer it up at $6.99 a kilo which is a great deal. The only thing is you have to buy the whole tray which is usually about 3kg. I take it home, chop it into various sizes and freeze it in double portions. As you can imagine I often have quite a supply of chicken and am always looking for new ways to prepare it - enter halloumi. I've seen chicken crumbed in parmesan before so figured halloumi couldn't be that different. It was so tasty. The halloumi seemed to seal the outside of the chicken so it was nice and succulent and it added such a wonderful flavour.
Here's how you make it. Lay out three shallow, wide bowls. In one, combine the halloumi, crumbs and lemon zest with a little salt and pepper. Whisk the egg in another bowl and place the flour in the third bowl.
Dip the chicken fillets in the flour first. Make sure they're totally coated then shake off the excess and dip them in the egg. Let the excess drip off and then press them into the crumb mixture.
If you have time, refrigerate the fillets for 20 minutes. I didn't have time so moved straight on to cooking.
Heat a little oil in a frying pan and cook the fillets for 2 minutes.
Flip them over and cook for another 2 minutes on the other side. They should look golden brown. A word of warning - the halloumi pops quite a bit and some hot pieces jumped out of the pan. If you have a splatter cover, use it or beware.
Transfer the chicken fillets to a lined baking tray. I scattered the leftover crumb mixture on top of the fillets. The sweet potato chips were coated in lemon zest and pepper. Bake the fillets for 15 minutes or until they are cooked through.
They puffed up beautifully and were so juicy and tender.
Serve the halloumi-crumbed chicken with vegetables and a wedge of lemon. Enjoy!
Recipe
Ingredients
- 80 g 3oz halloumi, finely grated
- 2 teaspoon lemon zest
- 2 tablespoon bread crumbs
- 2 chicken breast fillets
- 1 egg
- ⅓ cup plain AP flour
- salt and pepper
- vegetables to serve
Instructions
- Mix the halloumi, bread crumbs and lemon zest together in a wide shallow bowl and season it with a little salt and pepper.
- In another bowl, whisk the egg.
- In another bowl, tip in the flour.
- Crumb the chicken fillets by dipping them in the flour bowl. Shake off the excess then dip them in the egg. Let the excess egg drip off and then place them in the final bowl - the halloumi crumb. Press them in firmly so they're well coated.
- Pre-heat the oven to 180C(356F) fan-forced.
- Heat a little oil in a frying pan and cook the chicken for 2 minutes on each side until it is browned.
- Transfer the fillets to a lined baking tray and cook them for a further 15 minutes or until cooked through.
- Serve the chicken with vegetables or salad.
Nadiya Ahmed says
I have been looking for cheese crumble chicken recipes but always found those that use parmesan. I was afraid to give a try with halloumi, wondering how it'd comr out. Then came across this recipe and now I'm confident much!! I'm on a keto diet and I don't want to use flour (also, i don't have any other kind of flour which is keto friendly). I'm wondering if I can skip the flour coating part or maybe I'll flour coat and my body will ignore the very little amount flour that'll be over the chicken lol. Thanks for this recipe!
Love from Kuwait.
Mel Kettle says
OMG YUM! Am making this soon. I love Super Butcher too. mmmm :)
Claire says
It was delicious! You really can't beat Super Butcher - they're great on price and quality.
Jessica says
I've just started using Halloumi, and adore it - this is a fantastic and unique way to put it to use! Love that you have a place to buy meat like that - bundling up and going into a cold giant room to pick it out sounds so sort of lovely!
Claire says
It's so fabulous. It is kind of exciting. To me it's like a supermarket grab on a game show. I put my jacket on and see how fast I can get around so I don't freeze!
Jennifer @ Mother Thyme says
This looks delicious! We love chicken and I look forward to giving this a try! :)
Claire says
I hope you like it as much I did!
Nic@diningwithastud says
I adore haloumi! This is such a perfect dish :) looks awesome!
Claire says
Thanks Nic. Halloumi and chicken are two of my favourite foods so I was happy to put them together.
Clarkie @ Beloved Green says
Ooah, this looks like a great evening dish. A good, easy to put together meal, lovely!
Claire says
If you jazzed is up with a few herbs (maybe mint) and some lovely sides it would be dinner party worthy I think.
The Café Sucré Farine says
This looks like a FABULOUS meal! I've never tried halloumi but have been wanting to - it sounds like I've been missing out! Oh, and how fun to have a meat warehouse! I'm a bit jealous! :)
Claire says
Oh wow you HAVE to try halloumi. It is so fantastic. The meat warehouse is great. I rug up like I'm going to the snow but it's worth it.
Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella says
Ooh I'll go for any way to add more halloumi into my life! :D
Claire says
I'm still discovering new ways. Such tasty cheese!