Oven-Baked "Fried" Chicken

These are the days when I need to have my oven on. Daily highs in the teens or low 20’s, lows in the single digits… I am always feeling cold! So while I am in the kitchen making dinner, I enjoy some nice oven-generated heat.

I usually bake something in midafternoon (today it was bread) and, then make dinner while the oven is hot. Oven-fried chicken is a favorite and, along with mashed potatoes and gravy, it certainly is comforting on these frigid, windy winter days.

I practically grew up on fried chicken, and my Gram made the absolute best, but because it contains so much fat I have been making oven-fried chicken for the past many years. It took a long time to find a recipe which gave me both flavor and crispiness, and I have tried many recipes, but I keep returning to this one which I found on the Food Network site (by Robin Miller). The Dijon mustard brushed on the chicken before coating not only adds a wonderful flavor but also helps the crumbs to adhere. A necessary change that I made to the recipe was to use panko crumbs instead of instant oats. I think that panko crumbs are the best for oven-fried anything because they crisp much more than regular bread crumbs (or oats) do. I also omitted the mustard powder in the crumb mixture since I thought it may be too mustard-y with using Dijon mustard on the chicken, and I added a shake of ground chipotle for just a bit of smoky heat.

The herbed coating was crunchy and flavorful, the chicken moist and tender-- you can’t ask for better. AND the kitchen was toasty-warm! :)

Mashed potatoes are a treat for us since we don't eat many white potatoes. I like to steam a mixture of diced potatoes and cauliflower florets, then when they are tender add warm skim milk and light butter, mash, season with salt and pepper-- mashed potatoes that taste wonderful and are lower in carbs and fat that those made with all potatoes, whole milk, and butter (ah, for the mashed potatoes of my childhood, though!!!).

One note- to make the chicken extra-crispy, I placed it under the broiler after it was done baking. Then I was distracted with pouring wine, so it burnt a little on top. Oops.

Oven-Baked "Fried" Chicken
by Robin Miller

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/robin-miller/oven-baked-fried-chicken-recipe/index.html

• Cook Time: 30 min

• Level: Easy

• Yield: 4 servings

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Times:

Prep

10 min

Inactive Prep

--

Cook

30 min

Total:

40 min

Ingredients

• Cooking spray
• 2/3 cup instant oats (I used panko crumbs)
  
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon mustard powder (I omitted this, but added a dash of ground chipotle)
  
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 4 (4-ounce) boneless skinless chicken breast halves
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.

In a shallow dish, combine oats, garlic powder, onion powder, mustard powder, paprika, oregano, thyme, salt, and pepper. Mix well and set aside.

Brush each chicken breast with Dijon mustard. Add chicken to oat mixture with tongs and turn to coat both sides. Transfer chicken to prepared baking sheet and spray with cooking spray.

Bake 30 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through.

(I placed the chicken under the broiler to crisp the top-- watch carefully so it doesn't burn!!!)