I’ve had this in my files to post for a while, so I thought it would make a good full dinner menu. I had run across two different techniques to improve on oven-baked chicken and decided to combine them to see what would happen. I will not make it any other way going forward.

The first thing that is different, you add the flour to the egg mixture, making a bit of a batter. Dip the chicken in it and coat completely. Hold up and let excess drip off, back into the bowl. Then place the chicken piece into the breadcrumb mixture.

Take a spoon and generously spoon bread mixture over the entire chicken. Using a fork, press the breadcrumbs into the egg wash. Turn it over gently and repeat on the other side. Place on a baking sheet (I like to use parchment paper for ease of clean up).

Bake according to directions below. This technique  works well with boneless or bone-in and any meat you would dredge in flour or breadcrumbs. It coats piece evenly, creates a tighter seal and you lose less of the breading. By adding flour to the egg mixture the batter keeps the chicken very most and creates a great, crunchy crust.

On the board tonight:

1. Oven Fried Chicken
2. Broccoli
3. Garlic Baked Potatoes
4. Sliced Pears

Oven Fried Chicken

• 2 bone-in, skin on chicken breasts
• 2 bone-in, skin on chicken thighs
• 2 chicken legs (or two additional thighs)
• 2 cups Italian breadcrumbs
• 2 cups Panko
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• ¼ cup water**
• 1/8 tsp ea. salt & pepper (or to taste)

large mouth bowl, large plate and baking sheet lined with foil or parchment

Wash and pat dry chicken. In large bowl, add water, eggs, flour, oil, salt and pepper and mix well. Spread breadcrumbs and panko evenly on large plate. I often use extra seasoning in the breadcrumbs – garlic powder, onion powder, dried basil and oregano, lots of pepper.

Take chicken pieces one at a time and dredge in the egg mixture, coating completely, dredge in bread crumbs until lightly coated on all sides. See technique above. Place on baking sheet. Bake  at 400 degrees for 45 minutes, or until temp registers 160 degrees. I usually cover for 10 or 15 minutes with foil at the beginning to avoid burning the crust. For even crisper chicken, place a wire baking rack on the baking sheet and cook chicken on that. I don’t have one big enough, so I haven’t tried it.

** add more if needed

Baked Potatoes with Roasted Garlic Butter

• 4 large baking potatoes, scrubbed and dried
• olive oil
• Salt
• 2 to 4 metal skewers

Spread

• 1 or 2 large head of garlic
•  olive oil
• 1 to 2 sprigs of rosemary, minced
• 4 to 8 tbsp of butter

Skewer each potato (depending on the size of the skewer you can sometimes get 2 on it, leaving room between potatoes). Rub oil liberally on potatoes and then coat with a light layer of salt. Bake at 400 degrees for 30-45 minutes, until tender when pierced with a fork.

Meanwhile, peel white paper skin from garlic and slice off 1/4 inch off the top. Coat well in olive oil, place in a small baking dish (I saw a great recommendation making several and using a 6-cup muffin tin). Cover with foil and bake at 450 degrees for 30 minutes, or until cloves are soft when pierced. (Of course you can use a garlic roaster if you have one). You can cook this while you are prepping the chicken and potatoes, then reduce heat.

Once garlic is cool enough to handle, squeeze cloves out of their skins. Using a fork, mash garlic, butter, pinch of salt and minced rosemary to smooth paste. Serve with potatoes.

Shopping List:

• 2 bone-in chicken breasts, 2 bone-in thighs, 2 legs (or additional thighs)
• 2 cups Italian breadcrumbs
• 2 cups Panko
• 2 eggs
• 1 large head Broccoli
• 4 large baking potatoes
• 4 large pears
• parchment paper (my preference) or foil
• 2 heads of garlic

Also: rosemary sprigs, olive oil, salt, pepper, and butter

 

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Tonight’s menu is not terribly original, I’d bet everyone’s mom has some version of this that she served – especially if you grew up in the 60’s and 70’s. This was a weekly staple of my childhood. Of course we had to eat it off the bone, we were so deprived back then.

So I offer a menu that tastes great, is easy to put together and for me,  has a lot of nostalgia.

On the board tonight:

1. Oven Fried Chicken
2. Broccoli
3. Garlic Mashed Potatoes
4. Sliced Pears

Oven Fried Chicken

• 4 boneless chicken breasts*
• 2 cups Italian breadcrumbs
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• ¼ cup water**
• 1/8 tsp ea. salt & pepper (or to taste)

large mouth bowl, large plate and baking sheet lined with foil or parchment

Wash and pat dry chicken. In large bowl, add water, eggs, oil, salt and pepper and mix well. Spread Italian breadcrumbs evenly on large plate. Take chicken pieces one at a time and dredge in the egg mixture, coating completely, dredge  in bread crumbs until lightly coated on all sides. Place on baking sheet. Bake  at 375 degrees for 30 minutes with foil covering the chicken, uncover and cook additional 15 minutes.

*You can substitute thighs, 2 per breast

** add more if needed

Garlic Mash Potatoes

• 6 large russet potatoes or equivalent – washed & cut into 6-8 pieces (peeling is optional)
• 1-3 tsp crushed garlic (depending on your taste preference)
• 2 tbsp butter or margarine
• ¼ cup milk
• ¼ cup chicken broth
• salt & pepper (to taste)

2 quart sauce pan

Add potatoes to sauce pan and cover with water, place lid on and bring to a boil. Once potatoes are fork tender, drain, add butter, garlic, salt & pepper, milk and broth. Mash until fluffy.

Shopping List:

• 4 boneless chicken breasts (or boneless breasts and thighs)
• 2 cups Italian breadcrumbs
• 2 eggs
• 1 large head Broccoli
• 6 large russet potatoes
• 4 large pears
• parchment paper (my preference) or foil

Also: milk, garlic, chicken broth, olive oil, salt, pepper , and butter

Cooking Note:  When I cooked this last night,  I used my cast iron skillet.  This, while sounding like a good idea, did not work.  What works so well in other dishes to evenly bake and brown, only served to dry out the coating on the chicken,  instead of nicely browning and crisping it.

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I chose this menu because I am annoyed. I’m annoyed with KFC – they are running this horrible ad campaign that suggests cooking at home is so difficult and messy that your only option is to buy a fat and salt laden fast food meal from them. Don’t get me wrong, I love me some KFC on occasion, and if they want to tout how good it tastes, I have no problem with that, but this current campaign, well let’s just say it goes against what I’ve been trying to do for the 5 years: helping people realize cooking is fun and easy.