| Healthy "Fried" Chicken |
From "Ask DIY"
episode ADI-711 |
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Q: Do you have a recipe for fried chicken that's not too greasy or too dry? A: (DIY's Dr. Gourmet, Tim Harlan) Fried chicken is a Southern favorite that has caught on all over the world. But deep-fried chicken, like the kind you get at fast-food restaurants (figure A) is high in fat and calories. Typically, a single fried-chicken breast contains about 400 calories and 24 grams of fat. The key to flavorful fried-chicken -- no matter how you make it -- lies in the spices. Here's a method of preparing "oven-fried" chicken (figure B) that's high in flavor but low in fat. A single chicken-breast prepared in this way contains about 275 calories, and only about 4 grams of fat.
Ingredients: 1 large egg
1 large egg-white
1 Tbs. Dijon mustard
1 box (5 ounces) plain melba toast
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. dried rosemary
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional)
Four 4-ounce boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Spray oil
Steps:
- Start with the coating. In a mixing bowl, blend the egg, egg-white and Dijon mustard. Whisk the ingredients thoroughly. This will create a sticky coating that will allow the breading to form a batter-like crust on the chicken. (To reduce fat even further, you could use an egg substitute rather than the whole egg.)
- To make the breading, place 5 ounces of ordinary melba toast in a food processor (figure C). The spices for this recipe are added via the breading, so add the thyme, rosemary, oregano, garlic powder, black pepper salt and (if you like your chicken hot and spicy) cayenne pepper. Once you've added your spices, grind the ingredients in the food processor to make a crumbled breading. Avoid grinding the ingredients all the way down to a fine powder.
- Place the breading in a plate. Dip the chicken breasts in the coating, then place them into the breading (figure D) to coat the chicken thoroughly with the crumbs.
- For extra-crispy chicken, dip the breaded chicken back into the coating once again, then back into the breading. This creates a double coating of breading on the chicken.
- Place the breaded chicken-breasts onto a baking tin, and spray them with a light coating of spray oil (figure E).
- Place the chicken into an oven preheated to 400 degrees. Bake for 12 to 17 minutes. At about 2 minutes, turn the breasts over, spray them again and place them back into the oven.
- Remove from the oven (figure F) and plate for serving (figure G).
RESOURCES :
Chicken and Poultry Bible
Model: 0670873705
Author: Christian Teubner
(1997)
Penguin Putnam, Inc.
New York, NY 10014
Phone: 212-366-6000
The Complete Chicken Cookbook
Model: 1571455906
Author: Editors of Thunder Bay Press
(2001)
Thunder Bay Press
San Diego, CA 92121
Phone: 619-457-2500
Chicken
Model: 0743224418
Author: Rick Rodgers
(2001)
Scribner Book Co./Simon and Schuster
New York, NY 10020
Phone: 212-698-7000
Chicken: 150 Great Recipes for All Seasons
Model: 0811817725
Author: Elaine Corn
(1999)
Chronicle Publishing Company
Website: www.chroniclebooks.com
Beer Can Chicken
Model: 0761120165
Author: Steven Raichlen
(2002)
Workman Publishing Co. Inc.
New York, NY 10003-9555
Phone: 212-254-5900
Fax: 212-254-8098
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