Chef Juliette
The Preparation of Soups
Préparation des Potages teaches the first obligation of soup: it must announce the dinner in one clear, savory spoonful, then reach every guest fiercely hot in a properly warmed bowl.
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The Grilling of Products Coated with Butter and Bread-crumbs
Created by Chef Juliette
Fine crumbs, clarified butter, and patient heat turn small chicken pieces bronze while the meat stays succulent. The lesson is simple and exact: colour and cooking must arrive together.
Main Dishes
French
Dinner Party
Weeknight
25 min
Active Time
15 min cook•50 min total
Yield4 servings
Petites pièces de volaille grillées au beurre et à la chapelure (butter-and-crumb grilled chicken) teach control, not force. The panure au beurre, the butter-bound crumb coat, is a thin protective jacket rather than heavy armour. The one true thing is this: the heat must be moderate enough for the chicken to cook at precisely the pace the crumbs colour.
The old entry is a method rather than a composed poultry dish, and it supplies neither a garnish nor a brigade quantity. Here it is applied to twelve chicken tenderloins for four people because these small, even pieces can cook through as their coating bronzes. Unlike a sauced dish, it needed neither a saucier nor a stockpot; its brigade luxury was a grillardin, the cook assigned to the grill, tending a charcoal fire with clarified butter ready at hand. A low home broiler, a rack, and a spoonful of attention replace that dedicated station. The heat source and quantity changed because they had to. The fine crumbs, repeated butter basting, and careful turn are the dish and must stay.
Done properly, each piece arrives butter-gold and close-coated, with a fine crisp surface protecting succulent meat. The coating is fragile, but not precious, and any small break can be patched where it happens. Before the tray approaches the heat, set the distance correctly; moderate fire decides everything that follows.
Grillades au beurre et à la chapelure belong to the working repertory of the Parisian classical grill station, where small poultry pieces and cutlets were cooked over a controlled charcoal fire. The method passed easily into cuisine bourgeoise because butter and saved bread turned modest portions into a generous supper without requiring a separate sauce. It is sometimes mistaken for ordinary fried breading, but its identity lies in moderate radiant heat, repeated clarified-butter basting, and a delicate panure intended to protect the juices rather than form a thick shell.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
chicken tenderloins
Quantity
12, about 1½ pounds (680 g)
tough white tendons removed
unsalted butter
Quantity
¾ cup (180 ml / 170 g)
clarified and kept warm
fine dry white breadcrumbs
Quantity
1½ cups (360 ml / 135 g)
fine sea salt
Quantity
1½ teaspoons (7.5 ml / 9 g)
freshly ground white or black pepper
Quantity
½ teaspoon (2.5 ml / 1 g)
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| chicken tenderloinstough white tendons removed | 12, about 1½ pounds (680 g) |
| unsalted butterclarified and kept warm | ¾ cup (180 ml / 170 g) |
| fine dry white breadcrumbs | 1½ cups (360 ml / 135 g) |
| fine sea salt | 1½ teaspoons (7.5 ml / 9 g) |
| freshly ground white or black pepper | ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml / 1 g) |
Equipment Needed
- •Small heavy-bottomed saucepan
- •Rimmed half-sheet pan, about 18 by 13 inches (46 by 33 cm)
- •Oven-safe wire rack sized to fit the pan
- •Pastry brush
- •Thin flexible metal spatula
- •Instant-read thermometer
Instructions
- 1
Clarify the butter
Melt the butter slowly in a small saucepan without stirring. Skim off the white foam, then pour the clear golden fat into a warm bowl, leaving the milky sediment behind. Keep it fluid over the gentlest heat. Clarified butter matters here because ordinary melted butter contains milk solids that scorch before the chicken cooks.
- 2
Moderate the heat
Set an oven-safe wire rack over a rimmed sheet pan and brush the rack lightly with clarified butter. Position it 8 to 10 inches (20 to 25 cm) beneath the broiler and preheat on low. If your broiler has only one fierce setting, use the greater distance. This arrangement is the home equivalent of a carefully tended gridiron: radiant heat strong enough to colour, but far enough away to cook the poultry at the same pace.
A tray close to the element gives you burnt crumbs over undercooked chicken. Distance, not bravery, controls this grill. - 3
Prepare the poultry
Pat the tenderloins thoroughly dry. If any piece is much thicker than its neighbours, place it between two sheets of baking paper and tap it gently to an even ½-inch (1.25 cm) thickness. Mix the salt and pepper, then season both sides evenly. Small, equal pieces are essential because the coating and the centre must finish together.
- 4
Form the panure
Spread the breadcrumbs in a shallow dish, holding a small handful aside for repairs. Brush each tenderloin generously with warm clarified butter, lay it in the crumbs, and press lightly so a thin, even panure clings to every side. Do not pack on a thick coat; it will loosen under its own weight. Set the coated pieces on the prepared rack and let them stand for 10 minutes so the butter settles into the crumbs.
- 5
Grill and baste
Place the tray beneath the broiler and cook the first side for 5 to 6 minutes. Every 2 minutes, let a few droplets of clarified butter fall over each piece without dragging a brush across the fragile crumbs. The panure should deepen gradually from pale gold to an even butter bronze. If dark spots appear early, move the tray farther from the element at once.
- 6
Turn and rescue
Slide a thin metal spatula completely beneath each piece and turn it once, supporting the whole coating rather than gripping it with tongs. If the panure cracks, don't pull it away. Ça se rattrape: dab the exposed place with clarified butter, press on some reserved crumbs, and return it gently to the heat. Besprinkle the second side with butter and cook for another 4 to 6 minutes, until the coating is bronze and the thickest centre reaches 165°F (74°C). If the colour arrives first, lower the tray and continue cooking gently.
- 7
Rest and serve
Transfer the chicken to a warm platter and leave it uncovered for 3 minutes. Covering traps moisture and softens the panure you have worked to preserve. Serve at once, while the crumb coat is crisp at the surface, tender beneath, and visibly glossy from its final butter basting. À table!
Chef Tips
- •Use fine crumbs made from plain, dry white bread and sift out any large pieces. Coarse crumbs form an uneven coat that colours in patches and drops away when turned.
- •Clarified butter is the practical foundation, not a flourish. Without its milk solids, it can baste repeatedly under direct heat without leaving bitter black specks across the panure. We don't apologize for butter.
- •Tenderloins are used because the source calls for small objects that cook as their coating colours. If using chicken breast, cut it into equal medallions and flatten them to ½ inch (1.25 cm); a whole thick breast will not obey the method.
- •Serve this immediately. Leftovers keep covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, but the coating softens; reheat them uncovered on a rack at 350°F (175°C) until hot.
- •Pour a dry Mâcon-Villages or a light Beaujolais. Either refreshes the palate after the butter without overwhelming the mild poultry.
Advance Preparation
- •Clarify the butter up to 3 days ahead, cover it, and keep it refrigerated. Warm it gently until fluid before coating the chicken.
- •Trim and portion the chicken up to 1 day ahead and keep it covered in the refrigerator. Pat it dry again before seasoning.
- •The chicken may be coated and refrigerated uncovered for up to 30 minutes before grilling. Do not crumb it overnight; the panure absorbs moisture and loses its clean texture.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 190g)
Calories
595 calories
Total Fat
37 g
Saturated Fat
21 g
Trans Fat
1 g
Unsaturated Fat
14 g
Cholesterol
190 mg
Sodium
1100 mg
Total Carbohydrates
22 g
Dietary Fiber
1 g
Sugars
2 g
Protein
42 g
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