My family’s favorite “breaded” Paleo Chicken Cutlets that are super easy, quick, and just as good as the original. Whole30 compliant and kid friendly – you can put these on you “go-to” dinner list!
I’ll begin today’s post with a true-chicken-cutlet-story from my childhood. Or adolescence? I can’t remember anymore. Anyhow, my mom – who worked full time++ while I was growing up (and still does, actually) – set a goal at some point to cook dinner once per week.
I think it was Saturdays, might have been Sundays. Nope, Sunday was family meeting day, Saturday dinner day. So, anyway…
The thing she would make once per week was chicken cutlets. You can feel the excitement now, I’m sure.
Gosh help me, if there was such a thing as the internet back then, or, even if I’d just had a cookbook, I probably would’ve cooked myself once per week or at least printed out a few recipes for my dad to figure out. To save us from TV dinner and delivery overload.
He tried lasagna once and simultaneously made it watery and burnt – I still don’t understand that one. But back to the chicken cutlet story.
The weekly chicken cutlets – along with the mashed potatoes, canned corn and the occasional canned peas, made quite the impression on me. So much so, that I’m sitting here now more than 30 years later telling you the story, that really isn’t much of a story, but rather PROOF that delicious, home cooked meals are MEMORABLE – even if they only happen once per week. Maybe ESPECIALLY if they only happen once per week.
I suppose if I wanted to get (probably-unnecessarily) analytical about my food blogging ways, I would tell you that my “mission” as a (Paleo) food blogger is to help busy families (MOMS!) have MORE of those memorable home cooking family moments.
Made grain free and healthier, of course! And yes, it totally counts even if it’s only on Saturdays (which, maybe-not-so-accidentally happens to be today!)
These Paleo chicken cutlets are as close to a copycat of what my mom used to make as I could come up with. The Italian style breadcrumbs are mimicked with a mixture of blanched almond flour and coconut flour plus salt and Italian seasonings, and the dredging/frying process is very much the same. Voila – we have a Whole30 and Paleo chicken winner here!
The best part? My kids (and husband) – who still eat unhealthy chicken fingers on occasion – love these as much as any non-Paleo chicken. I made them this time with smashed & roasted red potatoes and a simple salad, but, if you prefer going the mashed potato/canned corn route you know I will not blame you!
Busy mommas, unite! And definitely make your family these “breaded” Paleo chicken cutlets – whenever/wherever you’re reading this – it’s Saturday somewhere, right? Hmm, not sure. Either way let’s start cooking!
“Breaded” Paleo Chicken Cutlets {Whole30}
"Breaded" Paleo Chicken Cutlets {Whole30}
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, thin sliced or pounded to 1/2" thickness
- 1 cup blanched almond flour*
- 1/4 cup coconut flour*
- 1 and 1/4 tsp fine grain sea salt
- 1/8 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp Italian seasoning blend <--My favorite
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- dash red pepper flakes optional
- 1 egg whisked
- 3 tbsp coconut oil + 2 tbsp ghee for frying**
Instructions
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Mix all the dry ingredients in a medium shallow bowl (you will dredge the cutlets in the mixture)
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Have your whisked egg in a shallow bowl, heat a large, heavy, deep skillet over medium heat and add 3 tbsp total of cooking fat (a combination of ghee and coconut oil, or all coconut.) Depending on the size of your skillet, you might have to fry these in 2 batches, so have additional cooking fat ready in case you need more.
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Once the skillet it preheated (you can see if a drop of the dry mixture sizzles), dip one cutlet in the egg, shaking off excess, then coat in the dry mixture, shaking off excess. Place the chicken in the pan, then repeat the process for each piece of chicken.
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Cook on one side until medium-golden brown (2 minutes) and crisp, then carefully turn over the chicken with tongs and cook the second side until golden brown and juices run clear, about 2 minutes depending on the thickness of your chicken***
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Carefully remove chicken cutlets from skillet with tongs and place on a paper-towel lined plate to absorb excess grease. Serve hot with baked fries, sweet potatoes, or butternut squash fries! Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
*You will likely have a bit of this mixture leftover, but I recommend using this amount to ensure you have enough to dredge all the cutlets without things getting sticky!
**I love this specific combination for how it helps the cutlets brown without burning, however you can easily use all coconut oil to fry the cutlets.
***You might need to adjust the heat and/or add more fat to the skillet while cooking the second side, as well as for the second batch.
Nutrition
What I Used to Make My Paleo Chicken Cutlets:
Want more family friendly Paleo chicken recipes? Try one of these!
Crispy One-Pan Bacon Wrapped Chicken
Chicken Salad with Bacon and Scallions
Favorite Paleo Chicken Recipes On the Web!
Paleo & Whole30 Chicken Tenders
Cast Iron Skillet Chicken Thighs
Tell Me!
What was your favorite home cooked dinner growing up?
What are your favorite side dishes right now?
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I love this idea-as well as all your other recipes!!! I’m planning to make these this week, but I’m big on making almost all my meals on Sunday for the week. Do these chicken cutlets taste just as good warmed up as they do fresh?
I have to say we all – even the kids – like these as leftovers as much as fresh! They lose the crispiness but keep the flavor and moistness, although reheating in the oven can crisp them up again. My husband likes taking these as leftovers to work for lunch once per week 🙂
Michele,
Made your delicious paleo chicken cutlets tonight for dinner. They were delicious!
Thanks for sharing!
Brian
That’s great! Thrilled you liked them and thanks for letting me know 🙂
Hi! I made this for my fiancé and I last week — our personal preference was to try it again with double the seasonings and use ghee butter with olive oil. I made it, again, last night and we L O V E D it!!
I am so thankful for a new recipe in the books during W30 – thank you!
Can you use an air fryer instead ?
I don’t have an air fryer so honestly have no idea how it would work! If you wind up trying it please let me know!
Can this be baked? If so at what temperature?
Thank you so much for these amazing breaded chicken cutlets!! I’m on R1D38 and was kind of feeling like I was in a rut, and then I found your post. I do love, and have missed, my Schnitzel, but your rendition of the breaded, fried chicken cutlet was so tasty! If I ever actually stop being compliant, I’ll still turn to your version. I served it with roasted cauliflower rice and roasted onions and zucchini. What a fantastic dinner!! Thank you!
So happy to hear you loved them! It was a game changer here as well when I nailed down the recipe. The rest of my family prefers these over any non-paleo version – so funny! Thrilled it worked out for you!
Hi! This looks so good! Please forgive me if this has been answered and I am just overlooking the reply. Can you bake this instead of frying? If so, what temperature would you suggest?
Many thanks!
Barb
Oops sorry missed this one! While it’s possible to bake them you won’t get the crispiness that pan frying provides. I would suggest 425 to yield the crispiest results, time will vary based on your oven and thickness of the cutlets but I would flip after about 8 minutes and check them from there. Hope this helps!
Hi! Just tried to make these and the breading didn’t seem to really “stick” when I went to turn them over or pull them out (with tongs). Any idea why?
I’d say the skillet/oil wasn’t hot enough to get them to fry properly? When I make these I sometimes get small pieces that come off but overall the breading sticks well. If you try again, make sure the skillet it really hot by dropping a bit of the breading mixture in and seeing if it sizzles right away. The material of your skillet might affect it as well, if it’s not non-stick enough the breading might be sticking and coming off of the chicken even with the right amount of heat.
Do these do well in the freezer? I would like to have them as a quick heat up thing.
I swear you have helped me keep my sanity as well as keeping my family of 5 fed and at least somewhat happy (I mean, the kids are coming off mac and cheese, nachos, and grilled cheese sandwiches so they won’t be super happy!?) during hubby’s and my first Whole 30. Thankfully, your stint on IG @whole30recipes came just a few days after hubby and I started our first Whole 30—28 days ago. We have basically lived on your apple cinnamon breakfast cereal for breakfast, and I’ve lost count of how many of your entree recipes I’ve made and have been a hit! Just made these chicken cutlets for the first time and hubby can’t stop munching. THANK YOU so much for all your hard work! I really appreciate it!!