By Martha Rose Shulman
- Total Time
- About 30 minutes
- Rating
- 5(588)
- Notes
- Read community notes
This is a heavenly combination; I’m not sure what I like best, the subtly spiced spinach or the chicken. They make a great combo. When you add the rinsed spinach to the pan after cooking the chicken it will wilt in the liquid left on the leaves after washing, and it will deglaze the pan at the same time.
Featured in: One Chicken Breast, 2 Servings and Lots of Vegetables
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Ingredients
Yield:Serves 4
- 2boneless skinless chicken breasts (most weigh 8 to 10 ounces)
- 2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 3tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2garlic cloves, minced or pureed
- 1teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
- 1generous bunch spinach, stemmed and washed well in 2 changes water, or 2 6-ounce bags baby spinach, washed
- 2allspice berries, lightly toasted and ground
- ½teaspoon coriander seeds or cumin seeds, lightly toasted and ground
- ¼teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Salt to taste
- Freshly ground pepper
- 2tablespoons all-purpose flour or a gluten-free flour such as rice flour or corn flour
- 2tablespoons grapeseed, sunflower or canola oil
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
331 calories; 18 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 10 grams monounsaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 9 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 1 gram sugars; 34 grams protein; 592 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
Stir together the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, rosemary, and salt and pepper in a large bowl. Cut each chicken breast into 2 equal pieces (3 if they are 12 ounces or more) and place in the bowl. Stir together and refrigerate 15 to 30 minutes.
Step
2
Combine ground allspice, coriander or cumin, and cinnamon in a small bowl or ramekin and set aside.
Step
3
Remove chicken from the marinade and pat dry (discard marinade). Place two sheets of plastic wrap (1 large sheet if you have extra-wide wrap) on your work surface, overlapping slightly, to make 1 wide sheet, and brush lightly with olive oil. Place a piece of chicken in the middle of plastic sheet and brush lightly with oil. Cover the chicken with another wide layer of plastic wrap. Working from the center to the outside, pound chicken breast with the flat side of a meat tenderizer until about ¼ inch thick. (Don’t pound too hard or you’ll tear the meat. If that happens it won’t be the end of the world, you’ll just have a few pieces to cook.) Repeat with the remaining chicken breast pieces.
Step
4
Season pounded chicken breasts with salt and pepper on one side only. Dredge lightly in the flour (you won’t use all of it).
Step
5
Turn oven on low. Heat a wide, heavy skillet over high heat and add the oil. When oil is hot, place one or two pieces of chicken in the pan – however many will fit without crowding the pan. Cook for for 1½ minutes until bottom is browned in spots. Turn over and brown on other side, about 1½ minutes. (Do not overcook or chicken will be dry.) Transfer to a platter or sheet pan and keep warm in the oven. If there is more than a tablespoon of fat in the pan, pour some (but not all) of it off into a jar or bowl.
Step
6
Turn burner heat down to medium. Add ground spices to the pan and when they begin to sizzle add spinach and salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon and deglazing the bottom of the pan with the liquid that comes off the spinach, until spinach wilts, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove to a platter or to plates and serve with the chicken.
Tip
- Advance preparation: The chicken breasts can be pounded several hours ahead – but marinate them shortly before cooking – and kept between pieces of plastic in the refrigerator.
Ratings
5
out of 5
588
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Cooking Notes
Joshua
This was delicious. The chicken came out perfect. I think it could have supported some chopped walnuts even. The spinach was good and very savory. My wife did not care for the flavor but I think it was the allspice. The spinach might benefit from a bit of green apple to offset any bitterness in the spinach. Overall a great recipe.
Susan
My husband and I really loved this recipe. It was so flavorful, and the chicken was tender with a crispy coating. I took just a couple of shortcuts: I used 1/8 tsp allspice rather than allspice berries. Also, I never have the patience for pounding out chicken breasts, so I just slice them lengthwise to make them thinner.
Ali Litts
I think the reason people are having trouble with the spinach part being bitter might be because they toasted them too long. From what I've learned, and I'm not an expert but have read some on this, you only toast them briefly in a dry pan until you start to smell them. If you roast them longer and burn them, they get bitter. Then remove and grind. Also this recipe suggests putting the spices first in the pan before the spinach. Do this quickly because they can burn then too.
amory
loved this recipe and would suggest shortcut of putting chicken and marinade in large sturdy ziplock bag. Later you can gently pound the chicken inside the bag as well.
Sean
Is there any reason to pound the chicken only after it is all messy? I pound it thin before marinating, which seems to make more sense.
wannabe baker
My chicken browned beautifully on the outside but wasn’t finished on the inside. I had to put in 325 oven for 10 more minutes. Perhaps it wasn’t thin enough? I measured it to a 1/4 inch.
Karen from Ithaca
Flavorful and easy-to-follow recipe! If you are looking for a crunchy side, cabbage can be substituted for the spinach quite nicely - no adjustments to seasonings.
Sean
Is there any reason to pound the chicken only after it is all messy? I pound it thin before marinating, which seems to make more sense.
jgivenshtx
I let mine marinate a little while longer, and I tried two dredging options: matzo meal and rice flour. Big fan of the crunch the matzo offered. I didn’t get much water coming off the spinach, so I had to add about a half a cup of water. Just keep an eye out if yours gets dry. The water, plus some salt, makes a quick fix.
HYO
Note: spinach not worth the extra effort
Betsey
The flavor of the chicken was good, but I would have preferred it grilled. We did not enjoy the spinach. I will use the marinade for grilled chicken but otherwise will not make this recipe again.
Claire in SF
This was great: quick, easy and tasty! Yes, the spinach was different, but isn't that why we cook and try different recipes. The spinach complemented the chicken beautifully. Would not change a thing.
amory
loved this recipe and would suggest shortcut of putting chicken and marinade in large sturdy ziplock bag. Later you can gently pound the chicken inside the bag as well.
twinsmn
Great recipe. Easy and quick! Spinach was great. I didn’t have all the spices but used the substitution recommendations and sprinkled a little lemon juice over whole dish. A winner.
Kris
Flour coating stuck to the pan for me but the chicken had good flavor. Wasn’t crazy about the spinach.
Alf
The marinade turned out delicious and, counter to general sentiment, I liked the spinach. It had a Middle Eastern thing going on, and I might add some chickpeas with feta to finish for more texture next time. I started with chicken tenders, which we frequently use for meal prep, but didn’t pound them quite so thinly as recommended. Learned a lesson when I flipped more than once and the flour coating stuck to the pan.
kelsey
Great for weekdays - quick, straightforward, little cleanup as the intro states. I used thin sliced chicken breast and skipped pounding the chicken to save additional time and dishes.
Ali Litts
I think the reason people are having trouble with the spinach part being bitter might be because they toasted them too long. From what I've learned, and I'm not an expert but have read some on this, you only toast them briefly in a dry pan until you start to smell them. If you roast them longer and burn them, they get bitter. Then remove and grind. Also this recipe suggests putting the spices first in the pan before the spinach. Do this quickly because they can burn then too.
angela
Winner, winner chicken dinner! The spiced spinach was a little weird. Next time, I am going use the pan juices and squeeze of lemon to sauté some blanched green beans. The chicken turned out great. My son ate every bite and said it was delicious (he's picky).
Susan
My husband and I really loved this recipe. It was so flavorful, and the chicken was tender with a crispy coating. I took just a couple of shortcuts: I used 1/8 tsp allspice rather than allspice berries. Also, I never have the patience for pounding out chicken breasts, so I just slice them lengthwise to make them thinner.
sirgroiney
Thanks Susan! I was hoping someone would say they didn't want to pound the chicken out. I don't want to, so now I can try this recipe right now!
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