While browsing the Internet to find a new chicken recipe among the ten zillion recipes that are out there, I came across this delicious creation featured on Epicurious.com. With a really good homemade pear salsa and a fabulous pan sauce made with the pan drippings and pear nectar, “Sautéed Chicken Breasts with Pear, Bell Pepper, and Cilantro Salsa” is, in one word, “fantastic!”
Ingredients for the Salsa:
- 2 Anjou or Bosc pears (about 1¼ pounds total), peeled, cored, and cut into ½-inch cubes
- 1 cup finely diced red bell pepper, seeded (about 1 large pepper)
- ½ cup finely chopped red onion
- ¼ cup finely chopped jalapeño chilies, seeded (about 2 medium-size chilies)
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
Directions for the Salsa:
- In a medium bowl, mix together all of the ingredients except the cilantro.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Let the salsa stand at room temperature for 1 hour; then stir in the cilantro.
Ingredients for the Chicken:
- 3 skinless boneless chicken breast halves (about 1½ pounds total), halved horizontally
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons butter (¼ stick), divided
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- ¾ cup low-salt chicken broth
- ¾ cup pear nectar
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Directions for the Chicken:
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper.
- Place the flour in a wide, shallow bowl; then dredge the chicken in the flour, shaking off the excess. Place the chicken pieces on a baking sheet or large plate.
- Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large heavy skillet over high heat.
- Add 3 chicken breast pieces to the skillet and fry until nicely browned and cooked through (about 3 minutes per side). Transfer the chicken to a large plate.
- Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil to skillet and cook the remaining chicken breast pieces. Transfer the chicken to the plate and tent the chicken with foil to keep it warm while preparing the pan sauce.
- To prepare the sauce, add the chicken broth to the skillet and bring it to a boil. Make sure to scrape up the browned bits, which add so much flavor to the sauce.
- Stir in the pear nectar, mustard, and lemon juice. Boil the mixture until thick enough to coat a spoon (about 4 minutes).
- Season the sauce to taste with salt and pepper.
To serve this dish, which provides six servings, place one chicken breast piece on a dinner plate; then spoon the pan sauce over the chicken. Divide the pear salsa among the six servings as an accompaniment to the chicken. Yum!


