Mustard-baked chicken with a pretzel crust

Jack and I are in Cleveland this week, visiting my family and my yummy little niece, who is three weeks old. As a treat to my middle sister, the new mommy, I made one of her favorites - inspired by a dish from Great Lakes Brewery - tonight:

Mustard-baked chicken with a pretzel crust
Food & Wine Magazine


Ingredients

1/2 pound hard pretzels, coarsely crushed (4 cups)

1/2 cup canola oil

1/2 cup whole-grain mustard

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1/4 cup water

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

Salt and freshly ground pepper

6 large skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400°. In a food processor, pulse the pretzels until coarsely ground; you should have coarse chunks and fine crumbs. Transfer to a large, shallow bowl. 2. Wipe out the food processor. Add the oil, whole-grain and Dijon mustards, water and vinegar and process until smooth. Season the dressing with salt and pepper.

Pour half of the dressing into a large shallow bowl, add the chicken breasts and turn to coat. Dredge the chicken in the pretzel crumbs and transfer to a rack set over a rimmed baking sheet. Bake in the upper third of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until cooked through. Slice the chicken and serve warm or at room temperature with the remaining mustard dressing.

Make ahead

The baked chicken and dressing can be kept at room temperature for up to 2 hours.

Notes

For a crisp topping, it’s essential to use thick, hard pretzels, such as the sourdough or handmade versions.