Classic Dish: Roxolana's Chicken Kiev
After cooking an elaborate dinner for Independence Day, and due to the heat, I've returned from the garden world back to the food world!Chicken Kiev feels like an almost magical dish to me. So homey, comforting yet so elegant. Just a perfect example where simplicity really works.
I'm not ashamed to admit for most of my chicken eating life, I've had this dish (and its American counterpart Chicken Cordon Bleu, filled with cheese and ham instead of butter) out of the grocery frozen food section. My mom used to buy it for us from Price Club, now Costco, when we were younger.
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| Chicken Kiev at Roxolana |
What is Chicken Kiev? A deboned, pounded chicken breast rolled around a chilled piece of herb/garlic butter, then breaded and baked or fried.
When you cut into it, the glorious butter comes pouring or squirting out and provides the sauce for the chicken. That first cut is poetic!
It's a popular Ukrainian dish, but I hear it's originally a French dish that a late 18th century Empress used to like. Another theory is that it was invented in the Moscow Merchant's Club in the earlier 20th century.
Wherever it came from, let's be thankful that it is also an American old school classic, so much so, that certain grocery stores carry frozen versions of it.
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| Chicken Kiev at Roxolana |
Roxolana's ample version comes with 2 (!) chicken breasts, your choice of sides and a Ukrainian tart apple dipping sauce. In my case the sides were Russian roasted potatoes and grilled vegetables including a lot of eggplant, my favorite!
They kindly removed the bell pepper from the side dishes for me, one of the few things I do not eat.
Their service is excellent as well as the cozy atmosphere. Highly recommended.
It was indeed a fantastic experience trying the "real thing" with this longtime favorite dish.
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