Crispy Buffalo Chicken

November 5th, 2010 § 27 Comments

If I know you as well as I think I do, which is technically-speaking not at all, then you can’t live without a crispy chicken finger. The basis of this judgment has been drawn from my conclusion that all living, breathing organisms have innate tendencies to seek three very crucial things: water, air, and buffalo chicken.

I draw all types of scientific conclusions.

Next time I’ll tell you about the theory of relativity as illustrated through cupcakes.

But today, we turn our bright eyes to the chicken finger. The crisp-crusted, moist and tender-middled, fiery red sauce-slathered, the someone-get-me-a-bib-and-for-cryin’-out-loud-where’s-the-damn-blue-cheese-dip?!?…chicken finger.

Here’s my methodology: Lots of healthy chicken tenders are baked. I get that. I appreciate that. And I love comfort food makeovers. Really I do.

But I’ve never bitten into a baked tender that altogether satisfied my intense cravings for foods that end in cutesy words like stix and dippers, and generally any soul-soothing noshable at a pub.

So I don’t want to solely bake these chicken fingers. But I don’t want to fully fry them either. What I’ve discovered is the magic of partially pan-frying. To do this, I cook the chicken a little more than halfway on the stove top in a modest amount of oil because I want a browned and crisped crust, but don’t necessarily want them to be drenched in oil, as tempting as that may be. The reason I don’t cook them completely in the pan is because that would require them staying in the hot pan for a lengthy amount of time, and unless I use a lot of oil, the fingers have a tendency to burn.

The beauty is that I’m still developing that golden brown, faintly greasy crust, and the tenders stay on the healthier side of things. Searing the breading on both sides allows me to lock in the moisture of the bird while still developing a crunchy coating. I then finish them in the oven so that they cook through. And then I dunk them in spicy, orange-hued hot sauce and dip them in creamy, cool blue cheese dressing.

Make sense?

Just come over and I’ll make you some. We’ll watch Bill Nye and talk science.

Let’s get to it.

Line up three separate bowls and fill them in this order- first with the flour, second with the egg mixture, and third with the bread crumbs combined with steak seasoning.

Begin by dredging each tenderloin first in the flour (you only need a light dusting- shake off excess), then dip into the egg bath, then dredge in the bread crumb mixture-pressing to coat the tenderloin well. Place each prepared tenderloin on a large plate.

Place half of the chicken tenderloins in the hot, oiled pan all at the same time, spacing them evenly. You don’t want to overcrowd your pan. Cook for about 4 minutes, without moving them, so that they develop a nice crispy crust on one side.

Flip and cook for an additional 3 minutes.

Place the chicken on a wire rack set atop a roasting pan. Place in the oven and cook at 400 for about 5-7 minutes, just so that the chicken can cook through.

When the chicken tenders are cooked through, remove them from the oven and fill a shallow bowl with the hot sauce. Dip each tender into the hot sauce, just to quickly coat. Set the pieces back on the wire rack until you’re done coating all the chicken. Serve with blue cheese dressing and crunchy celery sticks.