Unbelievable Walnut-Crusted Hen – Sally’s Baking Habit

This walnut crusted hen served with honey mustard glaze is altogether healthful and savory, crisp and saucy, and really simple to make. It’s every part you need dinner to be, whether or not you serve it as an off-the-cuff meal or for a particular vacation gathering.

I make this dish each spring season and through the years, I’ve perfected the recipe to assist make sure the coating sticks AND doesn’t style soggy. The toasted walnuts, tender + juicy hen, and candy honey mustard are made for one another, and it’s actually versatile sufficient for all events:

1. It’s fancy sufficient for firm and holidays. Spruce it up with recent parsley and serve it with home made biscuits, rice, steamed greens, and/or a recent leafy salad. 
2. It’s additionally easy, but particular sufficient for a Sunday dinner with simply the household.
3. Lastly, this walnut hen makes for a fast, low-key meal on weeknights. And any leftovers hold like a dream—a fast reheat within the oven brings the crisp coating again to life.

Walnut Crusted Hen: What to Count on

• Texture: Served heat out of the oven, you’ll take pleasure in crunchy chopped walnuts, tender juicy bites of hen, and sticky candy glaze with each scrumptious mouthful. If you happen to crave texture, this recipe completely delivers. FYI: these browned crispy walnut bits on the backside of the pan are the most effective half. Don’t go away them behind!
• Taste: It is a balanced dish. The seasoned hen, the nutty walnuts, and the tangy sweetness of the honey mustard glaze work so properly collectively. The white wine within the hen marinade provides depth of taste, however should you’d wish to skip the wine, you may change it with hen inventory. And be at liberty to switch the walnuts with pecans.
• Ease: It is a recipe for cooks of any talent stage. Marinate the hen, coat it within the nut combination, after which bake. Serve with a 2 ingredient glaze. 
• Time: Put aside about half-hour for hands-on prep, plus at the very least 4 hours to in a single day for marinating the hen. For a good faster hen dish (no marinating required), strive my skillet apple cider hen.

Don’t Skip Marinating the Hen

Earlier than coating the hen in walnuts, you’ll wish to marinate it for at the very least 4 hours and as much as 12 hours. The marinade combines olive oil, dijon mustard, dry white wine, garlic, and dried thyme, and serves two functions:

1. It provides scrumptious taste to the hen.
2. It helps the walnut coating stick.

If you happen to don’t wish to use wine, you may substitute low sodium hen broth.

After marinating, you’ll coat the hen in walnuts, flour, salt, and pepper.

Success Tip: The finer you chop the nuts, the extra they’ll stick and keep on the hen. Be sure you minimize them up additional fantastic.

Sear & Bake The Walnut Hen

Sear the hen earlier than baking it. Why are you doing this? First, it locks within the marinade’s taste. It additionally helps make sure the walnuts persist with the hen, and provides a pleasant crunch, too.

Switch the seared hen to the oven and bake.

Success Tip: Make clear up a breeze with an oven-safe skillet that may deal with all of the cooking, from searing to baking. I take advantage of an oven-safe skillet in the identical method for lemon thyme hen, cilantro lime hen, and garlic hen.

Whereas the hen bakes, whip up the glaze by mixing dijon mustard and honey collectively. If the walnut crusted hen had been an ice cream sundae, the honey mustard glaze can be the very essential whipped cream + cherry on prime—it simply completes the entire dish!

Serve With:

If you happen to want concepts for facet dishes that pair properly with walnut crusted hen, listed below are a few of my favorites: home made biscuits or dinner rolls, brown or wild rice, steamed greens equivalent to asparagus, inexperienced beans, or broccoli, and/or a spring greens salad.

I hope you take pleasure in this recipe as a lot as our household has through the years. A well-known dish can remind you of dwelling, however solely the most effective can take you there.

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Walnut-Crusted Hen

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4.7 from 20 evaluations

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  Creator: Sally
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  Prep Time: 4 hours, half-hour (consists of marinating)
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  Cook dinner Time: 25 minutes
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  Whole Time: 5 hours
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  Yield: serves 4
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  Class: Dinner
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  Technique: Cooking
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  Delicacies: American

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Description

This walnut crusted hen served with honey mustard glaze is altogether healthful and savory, crisp and saucy, and really simple to make. The dish pairs splendidly with steamed greens, rice, and/or a spring greens salad.

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Directions

1. In a big bowl, whisk the olive oil, mustard, white wine, garlic, and dried thyme collectively. Add the hen, turning to coat. Cowl tightly and refrigerate for at the very least 4 hours and as much as 12 hours.
2. In a shallow dish equivalent to a 9-inch sq. baking pan or a pie dish, mix the walnuts, flour, salt, and pepper collectively. Take away the hen, shake off any extra marinade, and dip either side of the hen within the walnut combination. Ensure that both sides is generously coated.
3. Preheat the oven to 425°F (218°C).
4. Warmth 1 Tablespoon of olive oil in an oven-safe skillet* over medium warmth. Add the hen and sear for two minutes, 1 minute on both sides. Switch skillet to the oven and bake, coated loosely with aluminum foil, for 15-20 minutes or till the hen is absolutely cooked via. (Hen is taken into account performed when an immediate learn thermometer reads the middle of the thickest half as at the very least 165°F (74°C).)
5. Whisk the glaze components collectively and serve with hen. Garnish hen with recent parsley, if desired.
6. Leftovers hold properly within the fridge for a couple of days. You may reheat on the range over medium warmth or within the microwave.

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Notes

1. Make Forward Directions: You may marinate the hen for as much as 12 hours in step 1.
2. Particular Instruments (affiliate hyperlinks): 9-inch Sq. Baking Pan (or different shallow dish) | Solid-Iron Skillet | Tongs | On the spot-Learn Thermometer
3. Walnuts: The finer you chop the walnuts, the extra doubtless they’ll adhere and persist with the hen. Be happy to switch the walnuts with pecans, if desired.
4. Skillet: If you happen to don’t have an oven-safe skillet, merely use the skillet you’ve and switch seared hen to a parchment paper-lined or silicone baking mat-lined baking pan to bake.
5. This recipe is a 20+ 12 months household favourite, tweaked through the years and initially from an previous Bon Appetit journal subject.