In this delicious and easy spicy pecan crusted chicken recipe, standard chicken breasts get a serious facelift with a wonderful, crispy, spicy crust coating. Chopped buttery pecans and whole wheat panko breadcrumbs are blended with chipotle pepper seasoning and orange zest to add a wonderful, nutty, and spicy crust.
The coated chicken fillets are then pan-fried with barely any oil at all, relying on the natural fats of the pecans to help the frying process. The end result is a healthy and incredibly flavorful chicken dish that offers a buttery crisp, with a hint of citrus and a kick of heat. All this mouth-watering flavor for just 6 Points per serving!
Spicy Pecan Crusted Chicken Recipe
These wonderful, crispy, spicy, nutty-coated chicken breasts make an easy and delicious Weight Watchers dinner recipe. A hint of orange and a kick of chipotle seasoning give this meal a lot of pizzazz.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs skinless boneless chicken breasts - cuts into 6 fillets
- ½ cup chopped pecans
- 1 cup whole wheat panko breadcrumbs
- 2 tsp ground chipotle pepper
- 1 tbsp orange zest
- 2 large egg whites
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Using a mallet, flatten each chicken fillet to about 1/3” thickness.
- Place pecans, panko, orange zest, chipotle, and salt & pepper in a food processor, and pulse until the pecans are crumbled well and the mixture is uniformly breadcrumb-like. Pour into a shallow dish.
- Dip each piece of chicken into the egg whites, gently shake off the excess, and then dredge in the pecan breadcrumb mixture. Coat well.
- Spray a large, nonstick skillet with an olive oil mister or cooking spray, and set over medium-high heat. Add the chicken, cover, and cook until browned on the outside and no longer pink in the middle, about 3-4 minutes per side. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 filletCalories: 270 kcal (14%)Carbohydrates: 10.5 g (4%)Protein: 35 g (70%)Fat: 9 g (14%)Saturated Fat: 2.31 g (14%)Fiber: 1.8 g (8%)Sugar: 1.56 g (2%)
Tried this recipe?Let me know how it was!
9 Comments
The breadcrumbs u describe in the ingredients says whole. What does that mean? Whole wheat?
Where does the orange zest come in? Should it be in with the breadcrumb mixture?
Yes! Sorry Lisa…I missed typing that into the instructions! I’ll update the recipe now – thanks for catching that!
Does the breadcrumbs u list mean whole wheat breadcrumbs….
Yes, that should say “whole wheat panko breadcrumbs”. Thanks for catching my typo!
How do i find out how many carbs in this and all recipes?
Susan, the nutritional stats are listed at the bottom of the recipe.
PER SERVING: 270 calories; 9g fat; 10.5g carbohydrates; 35g protein; 2g fiber
This looks great – could you elaborate on the ground chipotle pepper? Is that a bottled product, or are you saying to grind a fresh chipotle pepper?
Thanks!
It’s an a product that you can buy bottled: http://www.amazon.com/Spicely-Organic-Chili-Chipotle-Ground/dp/B00A3811YS/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1410287221&sr=8-3&keywords=ground+chipotle.