Oven Fried Chicken

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In January, many of us start off the year with goals of eating healthier meals. This recipe gives you the great taste and juiciness of fried chicken but with only a portion of the fat. Using boneless, skinless chicken breast and egg whites only instead of the full egg are other ways to reduce the fat even more.

The key to the crust is the Panko with it's flaky and crunchy texture, but the spices put it over the edge. The order of dipping the chicken in the flour, then the egg, then the Panko is important. The flour coats the chicken and gives the egg something to hold onto. The egg then gives the Panko something to hold onto, so each component is essential to creating a crust that will stay put.


Ingredients:

  • 2 cups Panko bread crumbs

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

  • 1 teaspoon paprika

  • 1/2 teaspoon thyme

  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

  • 3 eggs

  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

  • 8 pieces of chicken (we used boneless, skinless chicken thighs in this recipe, but boneless skinless chicken breast are also fine. If using bone in thighs, the cooking time will increase by 30 minutes).

Procedure:

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Set up a baking sheet wrapped with foil and place a baking rack on top. Coating the wire rack with non stick cooking spray will help prevent the crust from sticking.

  2. In a shallow bowl or pan, pour in the Panko, the olive oil, and the spices and mix well with a fork.

  3. In a separate small bowl big enough to hold one of your pieces of chicken, beat 3 eggs. (Using just egg whites will reduce the level of fat in the recipe, but will also reduce the flavor.)

  4. In another shallow bowl or pan, add 3/4 cup all purpose flour.

  5. Set up your work station with the chicken, the flour, the egg , the panko, and the prepared pan in that order.

  6. Working with one piece of chicken at time, dip into first the flour, then the egg then the Panko, making sure to fully coat all sides with each. Then transfer the chicken onto the wire rack, spacing them evenly apart.

  7. Bake on the middle rack of the preheated oven until golden brown and until the center of the thickest portion measures 165 degrees F. For the boneless chicken, this is about 35-45 minutes, depending upon the size of each piece. For bone-in pieces, cook time will be closer to 50 minutes to one hour.

Set up your work station with the chicken, flour, egg, Panko, and pan.

Set up your work station with the chicken, flour, egg, Panko, and pan.

Cook until golden brown and the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F.

Cook until golden brown and the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F.

ENJOY!