Baked "Fried" Chicken Recipe
Servings: 4 chicken breasts
Ingredients
- Seasoning:
- 1 Tablespoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ¾ cup buttermilk or kefir or plain unsweetened plant milk with 2 tsp apple cider vinegar or pickle juice*
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, (about 4 small-ish breasts), thicker part pounded slightly with a meat mallet or rolling pin in between two sheets of parchment paper or plastic wrap
- Coating:
- 1 large egg or 3 Tablespoons aquafaba liquid from a can of chickpeas
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour spelt flour, gluten-free flour blend, or grain-free flour blend
- 2 Tablespoons arrowroot powder or cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- Unrefined olive oil or olive oil spray or avocado oil spray
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together all of the seasoning ingredients. Reserve half of the spice mix (eyeball it) for the marinade (Step 2) and set aside the rest to use in the coating.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, kosher salt, and half of the prepared spice mix. Add the chicken and toss to coat. Marinate the chicken in the refrigerator for 8 hours or overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. This will help with easy clean up. Place a metal cooling rack over the baking sheet and spray or brush well with olive oil.
- Remove the chicken from the fridge and reserve 1 ½ Tablespoons of the marinade.
- Beat the egg in a shallow baking dish (I like to use a pie plate). Take another shallow dish and combine the flour, arrowroot, baking powder, remaining spice mix and 1 teaspoon of salt.
- Drizzle the reserved marinade (1 ½ tablespoons) over the flour mixture and toss it together with your fingertips to create some lumps.
- To assemble: take the chicken breasts, one at a time, and dip into the egg mixture, coating both sides, then dredge with the flour mixture. Press the chicken into the flour mixture to help it adhere and toss to coat both sides. Transfer coated chicken pieces to the prepared cooling rack.
- Coat the top of the chicken with a little olive oil. You can either brush with oil or spray it with oil. Be sure to lightly coat the entire top of the chicken or you’ll be left with dry flour spots.
- Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until a thermometer inserted into the thicket part reads 160 degrees. Optional step: set oven to broil and broil chicken pieces about 6 inches from heat source for 2-3 minutes or until chicken is nicely browned.
Notes
Notes: if the chicken breasts you buy are very large, pound them out a little and cut them in half crosswise to make two pieces.
You can also do this recipe with bone-in, skin-on pieces (drumsticks, thighs, and breasts.) Just cook at the same temperature for longer, about 45-55 minutes depending on the size of the pieces. This longer cook time will also result in a crispier exterior coating.
*or pickle juice
Notes:
For the crispiest texture, I recommend frying the chicken in a pan with oil. Another option is to cook them in an air-fryer at 375 degrees (coat rack and chicken with oil) and start checking them after 15-20 minutes.
For the crispiest texture, I recommend frying the chicken in a pan with oil. Another option is to cook them in an air-fryer at 375 degrees (coat rack and chicken with oil) and start checking them after 15-20 minutes.