These almond-crusted chicken cutlets have a thin golden coating and a tender center. Two chicken breasts are split lengthwise to make four cutlets, dipped in beaten egg, and coated with dry almond flour before cooking in ghee. Serve them warm with vegetables, or slice them over a salad when those raw ingredients fit your Full GAPS meals.
As a working, homeschooling mom of six, I need the part of dinner that goes into the pan to be straightforward. Our family began GAPS in July 2024, and I know that getting a meal ready has to fit around the rest of the day. You can have the shallow dishes, measured coating and clean rack ready before you begin handling the chicken.
The distinction between breasts and cutlets matters here. This recipe starts with two whole boneless, skinless breasts, not four. Splitting each one through its thickness gives you four thinner pieces. That shape lets the center cook while the almond coating turns golden instead of leaving you with a thick breast inside an overbrowned crust.
Ingredients
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, split lengthwise into 4 cutlets
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup dry flour finely ground from properly prepared, sprouted and fully dried almonds
- ½ teaspoon natural sea salt
- ¼ cup homemade ghee
The almond flour needs to be dry and fine enough to make a coating. Measure the cup after grinding. Coarse pieces give a more uneven covering, while a moist almond paste clumps instead of dusting the chicken. Have the completed ingredient ready before starting the egg dip.
Proper nut preparation belongs before this recipe. For the dry sprouted-almond route, the almonds have already been prepared and dried thoroughly before grinding. The time for that work is separate from cooking these cutlets. Do not begin with a cup of wet almonds and treat it as a cup of dry flour.
The homemade fermented almond flour recipe on the site produces a fresh, moist preparation. That is useful to distinguish when planning your ingredients: it is not a ready-to-use replacement for this dry breading. Choose the dry form specified here rather than adding more wet flour until the coating looks thick.
Beat the eggs in their own shallow dish. Mix the measured salt into the almond flour in a second dish so it is distributed through the coating. You may have some egg and flour left after dredging. Do not press all the leftovers onto the cutlets just to empty the dishes.
The ghee measure is a quarter cup, which is four tablespoons for the batch. It is the cooking fat. The separate ghee recipe explains how to make it ahead; this chicken recipe starts with finished ghee. Keep raw olive oil for a finished dressing rather than using it in place of the pan fat.
Recommended Equipment
Use a large stainless-steel skillet, two shallow dishes, tongs and an instant-read food thermometer. A sharp knife and stable cutting board help you split the breasts evenly. A clean wire rack over a tray gives the cooked chicken somewhere to rest without sitting directly in its own steam.
Choose a skillet that lets the pieces sit in one layer with space between them. If they do not fit, cook in batches. A pan crowded with four overlapping cutlets will not behave like one holding two pieces with their whole coated sides against the hot fat.
Keep a clean plate or rack for cooked chicken separate from the dish holding the raw pieces. Set out the tools first, then wash your hands and the raw-chicken preparation surfaces before moving on to the rest of the meal.
How To Make Almond-Crusted Chicken
- Split each chicken breast lengthwise through its thickness to make four cutlets in total. Keep them reasonably even and pat the surfaces dry.
- Beat the two eggs in one shallow dish. In another dish, combine the cup of dry prepared-almond flour with the half teaspoon of salt.
- Heat the skillet over medium heat. Add the measured ghee and let it melt across the cooking surface.
- Dip a cutlet into the egg, let excess drip off, and coat it lightly on both sides with the almond-flour mixture. Repeat with the other cutlets.
- Cook in the hot ghee without crowding, about three minutes per side as a guide. Turn carefully once the underside is golden and the coating has set. Adjust the heat if the flour colors too quickly, and continue until every cutlet reaches 165°F in its thickest part.
- Transfer the cooked cutlets to the clean wire rack. Let the surface steam escape before slicing or serving. Finish any remaining skillet batch the same way.
After the egg dip, hold the cutlet above the dish briefly. A thin wet film is enough to help the flour adhere. Long trails of egg can turn the coating into patches of paste, particularly if you keep dipping it back and forth.
Lay the cutlet into the flour and turn it gently. Press just enough to cover bare areas, then lift it carefully. The chicken should still look like a thin cutlet under a light covering. An extra-thick layer is not needed for this recipe.
Once the first side is in the pan, give the coating time to set. Moving it around repeatedly can leave flour behind in the fat. Look at an edge and lift gently with the tongs when you are ready to check the underside. Turn when it is golden rather than waiting for a dark brown crust.
Three minutes per side is a starting guide, not a promise for every piece of chicken. Breast size, cutlet thickness and the skillet change the cooking time. Use the thermometer for the center, with the probe positioned so it reads the meat rather than touching the pan. The safe temperature chart lists 165°F for chicken.
The rack helps keep the underside from staying damp. Slice after the coating has settled enough to handle. For a salad, cut the chicken into strips and put it on the greens just before serving; do not leave the hot cutlets sitting on dressed leaves while the next batch cooks.
Where It Fits On Full GAPS
This recipe is for Full GAPS after eggs and properly prepared nuts have been introduced and tolerated. The almond coating is cooked, but it is still a nut ingredient. The preparation and your place in the diet matter more than the fact that the coating contains no grains.
It is not an early Intro chicken preparation. Skillet frying and a nut-flour crust are different from the gently cooked meats introduced earlier. If you are choosing food for an earlier stage, use a recipe written for that stage rather than removing the coating and guessing that the rest of these directions apply.
There is no Parmesan in this standalone chicken formula. Cheese may belong to a finished meal that uses it, but it is not hidden in the coating. That makes it easier to see which ingredients you are introducing when you serve the chicken with a sauce or salad.
The recipe contains eggs and almonds, and the cooking fat is ghee. It is not egg-free, nut-free or No-Plant GAPS. Although the coating has no cheese, these cutlets still cook in ghee. Use the GAPS food list and stage guide when choosing the rest of the plate.
Storage And Serving
Serve the cutlets warm while the outside is at its best. Cooked vegetables make a simple side. If raw greens fit your progression, slice the chicken over a salad and add the dressing close to serving. Keep sauces beside the chicken until you are ready to eat so the coating does not spend the whole wait soaking in them.
Refrigerate cooked leftovers promptly in a covered container. Cooked poultry can be refrigerated for three to four days when handled and stored properly. Reheat leftovers to 165°F. The coating may soften after refrigeration, so do not expect it to be identical to the freshly cooked cutlets.
When planning ahead, keep the cooked chicken separate from undressed greens and from sauce. Take out the portion needed for the meal instead of warming the whole batch repeatedly. Follow the earliest storage limit of the components you combine.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does This Make Two Portions Or Four?
The batch makes four cutlets from two breasts. The card uses four cutlets as its yield. How you serve them depends on the size of the breasts and the rest of the meal; a cutlet is not another whole breast.
Why Is The Coating Falling Off?
Check that the chicken surface was dry before the egg dip, that excess egg dripped away, and that the almond flour was dry. Then let the first side set before turning. A heavy wet coating and repeated movement are both worth checking before adding more flour.
Can I Cook Four Whole Breasts Instead?
That would be a larger amount of meat and a different thickness. For this measured batch, split the two breasts into four cutlets. Use the card’s 2× setting if you want twice the recipe, then cook in as many uncrowded skillet batches as needed.
Does Doubling Change The Cooking Time?
Each cutlet still needs to reach the same temperature. More chicken usually means more skillet batches, so the whole job takes longer even though each thin piece cooks in a similar way. The card does not present six minutes as the total time for every possible batch size.
More Full GAPS Dinners
Keep the homemade ghee recipe handy for preparing your cooking fat. My planned Dinner Cookbook brings family meal ideas together for the days when you need the next dinner decision made. Follow the WFLI cookbook catalog for its release.
Almond-Crusted Chicken Recipe
Almond-Crusted Chicken For Full GAPS
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Split each of the two chicken breasts lengthwise through its thickness into two cutlets, making four total. Keep them reasonably even and pat dry.
- Beat the two eggs in one shallow dish. Mix the cup of dry prepared-almond flour and half teaspoon of salt in another.
- Heat a large stainless-steel skillet over medium heat. Melt the measured ghee across the cooking surface.
- Dip a cutlet into the beaten egg, let excess drip off, and lightly coat both sides with the almond-flour mixture. Repeat with the remaining cutlets.
- Cook in the hot ghee without crowding, about three minutes per side as a guide. Turn carefully when the underside is golden and set. Adjust the heat if the coating colors too quickly, and continue until each cutlet reaches 165°F in its thickest part. Cook additional skillet batches as needed.
- Transfer to a clean wire rack over a tray. Let surface steam escape before slicing or serving.
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