Coconut Island Chicken with Pineapple Maui Salsa

This Discover Cooking with California Olive Oil Recipe Contest submission comes from Judith Berman Yamada. Judith says:

“This simple chicken dish highlights fresh tropical flavors and colors and derives a rich fruity crispness from We Olive Extra Virgin Arbequina Olive Oil.”

• ½ – Medium sweet red bell pepper, seeded and quartered
• 1 – Large Maui sweet onion (Walla Walla or Vidalia) peeled and quartered
• 2 – cloves garlic
• 2 – jalapeno peppers, stem and seeds removed, quartered
• 2 cups – fresh pineapple cubes
• 1 Tablespoon – raw sugar
• 2 – barely ripe kiwifruits, peeled and quartered
• 1 Tablespoon – fresh lime juice
• ¼ cup + 2 Tablespoons We Olive Extra Virgin Arbequina olive oil, divided
• 2 teaspoons – kosher salt, divided
• 1 teaspoon – coarsely ground black pepper, divided
• 4 – boneless, skinless free range chicken breasts (2 whole)
• 2/3 cup all purpose flour
• ¾ cup – raw macadamia nuts, finely chopped
• ¾ cup – unsweetened flake coconut (medium or fine flake)
• ¾ cup – panko (Japanese style) breadcrumbs
• 1 Tablespoon – ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon – poultry seasoning
• 1 teaspoon – garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon – paprika
• 1 large egg + 1 egg white
• 2 Tablespoons cold water

1. To food processor, add red bell pepper, sweet onion, garlic, and jalapenos. Pulse in short bursts, two times. Cut pineapple cubes in half; add to processor bowl, and pulse once again. Add raw sugar, kiwifruit, fresh lime juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Pulse all ingredients, one more short burst. Mixture should be consistency of chunky salsa. Scrape into non-reactive bowl; cover and refrigerate.

2. Cut each chicken breast into four equally sized strips. You will have sixteen strips. Put chicken strips into large non-reactive container or bowl. Remove salsa from refrigerator. By now a lot of juice will be evident in the salsa. Strain most juice over chicken. Also, scoop ½ cup of salsa over chicken, making sure that salsa and juice cover all pieces. Cover remaining salsa, and return it to refrigerator. Marinate the chicken 30 minutes.

3. Combine finely chopped madadamias, coconut, panko, ginger, poultry seasoning garlic powder and paprika. Whisk to mix well. Line a large, sided, cookie sheet with foil; brush foil with 1-tablespoon olive oil. Put all purpose flour into pie pan or plate. Combine egg, egg white and cold water; whisk well. Drain chicken strips, removing any salsa that adheres. Dispose of marinade. Dip each chicken strip first into flour, then egg mixture and then into coconut, macadamia breading. Make sure to press breading into each piece to cover well and completely. Place each strip on prepared pan, leaving as much room as possible between pieces. Refrigerate chicken for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Remove chicken from refrigerator. Put remaining olive oil into an oil spray bottle and spray top side of each strip with half the olive oil. Alternately, gently dab ½ the olive oil on the breaded chicken with a pastry brush. Bake in lower third of oven for 15 minutes; turn chicken carefully, spray or dab again with the remaining olive oil, and bake another 10 – 15 minutes. Allow chicken to sit five minutes before removing from pan. Serve Coconut Island Chicken with Pineapple-Maui salsa. If desired, accompany with jasmine rice.

Note: Cold leftover Coconut Island Chicken is good tucked into a warm flour tortilla and topped with a little pineapple salsa.