Crispy Baked Chicken
Ingredients
- ½ cup of plain or panko breadcrumbs or gluten free breadcrumbs or ground nuts - see variations in notes below
- ¼ cup parmesan or nutritional yeast
- 1 - 1 1/2 tsp seasoning salt
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 ½ - 2 lbs of boneless and skinless chicken breasts see notes on quantity
- lollipop sticks only use white!
Instructions
- Mix together breadcrumbs, parmesan (or nutritional yeasand seasoning salt in a bowl or shallow dish
- Pour oil into a separate bowl or shallow dish
- Line your sheet pan with parchment paper
- Pre-heat oven to 400 (note: sometimes I prepare the chicken earlier and put it in the fridge and cook it closer to dinner time)
- Leave the chicken breasts whole or cut into strips or 1.5 inch nuggets (however your family prefers, my children prefer strips and nuggets or lollipop nuggets)
- Place each strip/nugget/breast into the oil, let the excess drip off, and then into the bread crumb mixture and then onto the baking sheet
- Bake at 400:Nuggets and Thin Strips about 12-15 minutes. Cook them for 7 minutes on the bottom rack and then move to the top rack for the remaining time and broil for the last 2 minutes.Breasts: about 20 minutes(it will depend how thick they are, always cook to the internal temperature reaches 165). Cook them for 10 minutes on the bottom rack and then move to the top rack for the remaining time and broil for last 2 minutes.
- Let cool 5 minutes before serving
Notes
- If making all nuggets you will have enough breading for 1 1/2 lbs of chicken
- If you are making a combination or nuggets and breasts or strips you will have enough breading for 2lbs
- Gluten Free Version
- Simply replace the breadcrumbs with a gluten free version or nuts that are processed in food processor until they are very small
- Dairy Free Version:
- Simply replace the parmesan with nutritional yeast
- Dairy Free & Gluten Free Version:
- ½ cup of gluten free bread crumbs or ground nuts
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp seasoning salt
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 1/2 - 2 lbs of chicken breasts
- Paleo Version:
- ½ ground nuts (about 3/4 cup before you grind up)
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp seasoning salt
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 ½- 2 lbs of chicken breasts
- Freezer Instructions
- 1 lb may be enough for your family so if you make 2 lbs you can freeze the remainder for an easy meal another night. 2 lbs may be perfect for your family, but you may want to double the recipe while you are in the mess and make enough for easy meal another night.
- Follow all of the steps above and cook your chicken and let it cool.
- After it has completely cooled place them on a parchment lined sheet pan and freeze for 1 hour. You can skip this step, but they may stick together. I have done it without them sticking.
- Then transfer them to an airtight bag or container and store them in the freezer until you are ready to bake. You can bake as few or as many as you like for up to 3 months.
- When you are ready to eat: bake them on a parchment lined pan for 12-15 mins in an oven pre-heated to 375.