We are in the process of selling our house. We haven’t lived here forever, but it’s amazing how much “stuff” you can accumulate in 5 years. Especially when you have 2 kids come along in those 5 years. I have been trying to sort through things little by little so that I’m not totally overwhelmed when moving day rolls around.
One thing I’ve really been trying to get a handle on is cooking through most of the food in the freezer and the pantry. I hate having to move things from the refrigerator/freezer of one house to the next. And I really hate having to move packages of things that are already open and half eaten. So I’ve been trying to get a little creative in ways to use up these ingredients.
So what do you do when you have a big bag of pretzels in the pantry, but your daughter is over her pretzel phase? You use them to make dinner!! This meal was totally inspired by a bag of pretzels. When I decided to try making pretzel crusted chicken, the first thing that came to my mind was a mustard sauce. Because who doesn’t love pretzels with mustard? Then I thought of a cheddar sauce. And I couldn’t decide which direction I wanted to go. So I combined them both, and made a Mustard-Cheddar sauce!! This recipe was a 100% success, and something that I would totally make again. And might have to – because there are still some of those pretzels left!
Pretzel Chicken with a Mustard-Cheddar Sauce
total time: about 30 minutes
serves 4
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
about 6 ounces of salted pretzels
salt and pepper
2 eggs
vegetable oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon flour
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon spicy mustard
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
fresh flat-leaf parsley, for garnish
Completely butterfly each of the chicken breasts, making a total of 4 thin chicken breasts. One by one, put the chicken breast in between 2 pieces of plastic wrap and flatten slightly with a mallet.
Put the pretzels in a food processor and process until you have fine crumbs. Put the crumbs in a shallow dish and season with salt and pepper. In another shallow dish, beat the eggs.
In a large saute pan over medium heat, heat up the oil, about 1/8″ deep.
Dip each chicken piece into the pretzels, then into the eggs, then back into the pretzels. Add to the hot oil in the pan. Put the chicken into the hot oil and cook until the pretzels are browned and the chicken is cooked through. This only takes about 3 or 4 minutes on each side.
Meanwhile, make the sauce. In a saucepan, melt the butter. Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in the milk and the mustard, and cook until slightly thickened. Stir in the cheese. Season with salt and pepper, if needed.
Serve the chicken with the Mustard-Cheddar Sauce, and sprinkle a generous amount of parsley on top.
Bev Weidner says
I die. Cheddar Mustard sauce?
Yep, dead.
l.o.v.e.
Becki @ Becki's Whole Life says
Oh wow. That sounds sooo good. I haven’t even had breakfast yet and I would eat it right now.
branny says
Beautiful photos
patsyk says
Now that is a great way to use those pretzels! The cheese-mustard sauce intrigues me and I think I may have to try something like that soon… 2 of my favorite ways to enjoy pretzels!
Rosa says
That sauce sounds fantastic! A perfect pairing.
Cheers,
Rosa
Tiffany says
Oh this looks good… really goood!
Pam says
This is a great sauce that this mustard addict will be trying! Thanks for the recipe!
Kelly says
This chicken looks amazing!!! I always love mustard with my pretzels so this is a great twist!! Saving this one for sure 🙂
amy @ fearless homemaker says
i always use panko crumbs (rather than regular bread crumbs) on chicken because i love the crunch. this would definitely do the same. + the mustard-cheddar sauce? genius! my only concern is whether the pretzels will make the dish super salty? guess i have to try it to find out! =)
Kim says
Holy cow woman…that looks amazing!! I’ve always wanted to try a pretzel coating on chicken and now I know I must do it. I’m totally pinning this 🙂
P.S. Have you tried those new pretzel crisps by Snack Factory? They have a Buffalo Wing flavor and it is amazing. I’m thinking I’d like to try the pretzel chicken you made using those as a coating – yum!
Heather of Kitchen Concoctions says
I absolutely LOVE using crushed pretzels as breading for chicken (and other things)! In fact I used crushed pretzels last night to make a ‘healthier’ baked onion ring (which turned out fantastic). Your version with this mustard cheese sauce looks absolutely divine! I think I will have to make it tonight!
carrian says
Pinned it to pinterest! Looks fab!!
Joanne says
I love how you took traditional pub fare and reinvented it in a whole new way!
Skinny Fat Kid says
Pretzels and Cheese. This will certainly make chicken taste good! And I like the suggestion on having fun with flavored pretzels! The possibilities are endless!
jennifurla says
what a great idea, a must try for my fam.
Elaine says
Cool! I believe this is also a Rachael Ray recipe (of course not exactly the same, but she has a version), so it covers a RR recipe too!
Mrs. L says
I might have to go buy a bag of pretzels so I have leftover pretzels to make this!
Erin @ Dinners, Dishes and Desserts says
I love the idea of pretzel crusted chicken! I think I might be able to get my son to actually eat this chicken! We might be moving soon too – I need to start going through stuff, it is just so over whelming!
Holly says
This looks DIVINE!!! Can’t wait to try this one out! Mmmm
Anna says
Is this a Rachael Ray recipe? It reminded me of one of hers.
http://www.rachelrayshow.com/food/recipes/pretzel-crusted-chicken-breasts-with-cheddar-mustard-sauce/
Deborah says
Elaine and Anna – how funny! I watch A LOT of RR, so I’m sure I probably saw this and it was probably hiding out in the back of my head! 🙂
Deborah Dowd says
This is my kids of recipe! It is simple , uses easily obtained ingredients, and is creative! Love the mustard- cheddar cheese sauce.
teresa says
this is so yummy! friendly for kids and adults. and the sauce sounds awesome!
Pats1013 says
Saw this yesterday, made it tonight for dinner. Its sooooooooo good. Its a keeper in this house. Thanks for sharing it. Also its not too salty.
Renee says
I’ll have to try this with gluten free pretzels. It sounds so yummy!
Meg says
This sounds amazing! I’m always looking for new ways to cook chicken and I will have to try this one! Thanks for sharing!
Alicia@ eco friendly homemaking says
Wow this chicken looks so good. I wouldn’t have thought about pretzels!
Monet says
The name alone made my stomach growl. I love pretzels…and I eat A LOT of chicken. Thank you for sharing, my friend. This looks delicious and I’m wishing I could have had THIS for dinner. Blessings and love from Austin!
Keersten says
What a fun combination. I can’t wait to try it. You are one seriously creative cook-and we all benefit!
amanda k says
Looks Delicious!!!!
Sonya says
I made this lastnight and WOW was it a huge huge hit! even my mustard hating youngest son couldn’t get enough of the sauce 🙂 Thanks for a fantastic recipe that will be made often!
The Food Hunter says
I’ve never used pretzels like this before …sure is an interesting idea.
Christina says
You must be very in tune with your Rachael Ray on this one, she has a recipe thats almost identical.
Deborah says
@Christina, yeah, another commenter said that, too! I’m a huge RR fan, so I must have had this idea in the back of my head from her!
Erin says
This was delicious – thanks for the recipe!
Karen says
I just made this for dinner tonight! AMAZING! This recipe is a keeper for sure.
Meredith says
I found this recipe on Pinterest and have been meaning to make it for a while. Just wanted to let you know that it was a big hit and I will definitely be making it again. Thanks!
Deborah says
@Meredith, I’m so glad you liked it!!
jeanine says
Made this tonight. I followed the recipe exactly as written and it was delicious! Thank you.
PureX says
I am a professional photographer. Having said that, I would just like to point out that when staging a photograph, there are certain physical apparatus which must exist so that the viewer of said photograph does not end up 100% aware of how unnatural the shot is.
Observe the sauce present on the Knife in Image 2 and Image 3.
How did that get there? There was a specific cut in an area which lacked sauce to begin with. Yet by some mysterious force, there is an exaggerated amount of sauce on said Knife.
There is no excuse for this abomination.
In all seriousness though, you should work on providing a more authentic feeling to your presentations. Good luck!
lindsay says
I have made something like this for awhile now, and I put chopped up pickles on the top. It is the perfect contrast if you like pickles!
Deborah says
@lindsay, I love pickles, so I’ll have to try that next time!!
Tammy Milani says
As a fellow blogger I feel like I need to let you know this original recipe has been published on a FB page called Welcome Home. This page has come to the attention of many of us food bloggers and designers for taking recipes and never giving credit or acknowledgement for where they came from. She actually says they are hers. I just thought you should know. It was published on March 19.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Welcome-Home/130807550406694?fref=ts
Deborah says
@Tammy Milani, thank you so much. It looks like she took down the recipes but is making her page private and then will repost. I wish there was more we could do about all of this theft. It’s starting to make me really sad.
Ava Balsamo says
Maybe Rachel Ray started it, but these pics look 1000 times better!! Will definitely try!
M says
I love this chicken! Do you have nutrition information available for it?
Deborah says
I don’t usually calculate the nutritional information because so many factors can come into play (brands, etc vary so much) so if I want the count, I’ll usually just plug the recipe into a site like caloriecount.com or something similar. Hope that helps!