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The Best Gluten-Free Chicken Schnitzel is made with seasoned almond flour and is a 10 minute wonder meal.
Chicken Schnitzel is definitely my favourite weeknight meal at the moment. I am having it every other night and I can’t see I will ever get tired of it. It’s crisp on the outside with the chicken perfectly juicy on the inside.
This recipe is also super quick with limited ingredients and just happens to fit in nicely with the Whole30 which I’m currently in another round of. There are no breadcrumbs needed in this recipe as the almond flour crisps up deliciously in the pan without being too crunchy or nutty.
Almond flour is my secret weapon in making the best gluten-free Chicken Schnitzel. It’s actually not that easy to get hold of though so do check if you’re ordering it online that it is actually the finely milled almond flour that you are buying.
Quite often you’ll find ground almonds are packaged up as almond flour but that’s not what you’re looking for here. The almond flour you want is white, powdery and well, flour-like.
You will be using the almond flour exactly the same way you would if you were coating with regular flour. Your chicken is bashed gently out to an even thickness with a meat mallet, then dipped in beaten egg and then finally dredged through the seasoned almond flour.
Season the flour well so that the crisp coating is ultra flavourful. The chicken is then pan-fried for three minutes each side and before you can google the correct spelling for schnitzel, dinner is done.
I love to serve the best gluten-free Chicken Schnitzel with a quick homemade coleslaw. I haven’t included an exact recipe below as you can use whatever veg you happen to have in the fridge to make it.
I feel I have hit the jackpot though if I have carrots, red cabbage and fennel in. I just throw them into the food processor fixed with the grater attachment and mix the shredded veg with some mayo (I often don’t put onions in as they need to be sliced by hand and frankly I can’t be bothered).
If I’m feeling really decadent I’ll sauté up some new potatoes but really that’s fancy-talk as the dish doesn’t need it. But whatever you do, don’t forget the squeeze of fresh lemon. It’s essential.
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If you make the Best Gluten-Free Chicken Schnitzel then please leave a comment below and give the recipe a rating which helps others find the recipe on Google. If you then go on to use this recipe as a launch pad for your own baking creation then I’d also love it if you’d share it and tag me on Instagram. It is so lovely for me to see your versions and variations of my recipes.
The Best Gluten-Free Chicken Schnitzel
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon ghee
- 45 g almond flour
- ½ teaspoon smoked sweet paprika
- ¼ teaspoon onion granules
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon mustard powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 egg
- 1 chicken breast
Instructions
- Melt the ghee in a large flat bottomed saucepan or cast iron pan and turn to a medium-low heat.
- Whisk together the almond flour with the paprika, onion granules, garlic powder, mustard powder, salt and pepper and sprinkle evenly onto a plate.
- Break the egg into a medium sized bowl and whisk lightly.
- Batter the chicken breast gently to an even 1 inch thickness, then dip first into the egg, then once fully coated dredge through the almond flour so it’s coated well on both sides.
- Carefully place the chicken into the pan and cook for 3 minutes each side until golden.
- Remove the chicken from the pan, cut into even strips and serve with homemade coleslaw.
Thank you for all your recipes and ideas, Georgina!! And the information you've shared regarding gluten-free flours is wonderful. It's so hard to figure out when one is first learning GF baking.
I wanted to make a suggestion for an alternative to almond flour (my daughter can't eat almonds or gluten) for the batter on schnitzel, chicken fingers, or even a crispy fish batter.... We are Canadians living in Tyrol, Austria and another easy way to get a crisp batter for schnitzel is to use tapioca flour for the first layer, then egg, then medium to finely ground GF corn flakes (using a nut grinder or food processor works). I also add spices (garlic/onion powder, thyme, sage, rosemary, etc) to the flour and corn flakes (optional), but this can also make a really wonderful batter that is super crispy when fried or even baked in the oven (if you want less oil in the recipe) from frozen (freezing the raw battered chicken between pieces of baking paper then into a ziplock bag).
And then of course, as they do it here in Austria, add a large spoonful of cranberry sauce on the side. I just thought I would suggest another alternative for those that may have gluten and nut issues... Hope this may help someone else in a similar situation.
Thanks again for all those fantastic recipes, Georgina!
Hi Rachel, I think that's a great suggestion. I love using tapioca flour for my breading (and potato starch or cornflour works beautifully too!) What a great idea to use GF cornflakes - I'll try that next time!
This sounds and look SO delicious! Such a great idea to use almond flour, I always end up with a bunch of almond flour left over from baking and then never quite know what to do with it. This sounds like a wonderful way to use it. Thanks for sharing, Georgina! 🙂
Hi Nicole - thank you! It's one of my favourite meals at the moment and the almond flour works so well!