These chicken fingers are so amazing. Enrobed in gluten free panko bread crumbs and parmesan cheese. Baked to perfection. You won’t believe they aren’t fried!
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Wow, I can’t believe it is already March! Soon it will be St. Patrick’s Day and then Easter … and after Easter all of the Northerns will start to go back home and our traffic will die down. Traffic is crazy here during Season.
I created these baked Panko-Crusted Chicken Fingers awhile ago, but am now just getting around to share them. It seems that all of my posts have been sweet related — like these Strawberry Buttermilk Pancakes or this Blender Lemon Curd Whipped Cream (yes it is made in a blender in less than 30 seconds — trust me this is an excellent recipe to have on hand for those pies that need whipped cream) and Orange Candied Peel.
I didn’t want you to think that all we eat were sweets around here. So, here is my recipe for Baked Panko-Crusted Chicken Fingers.
Delicious, crunchy, juicy, chicken fingers! These guys are full of flavor, but only contain a fraction of the fat that you would have if they were fried. Baked, not fried – I know, mind blowing.
These are based on this recipe. I decided to try to bake them instead of frying them in coconut oil. I baked completely on top of wire rack. Doing this helps the hot air to circulate around the chicken helping to get these babies nice and crisp.
Next, I decided to add gluten free Panko breadcrumbs. I use a fair about of bread crumbs (I even make my own homemade bread crumbs) and you could substitute bread crumbs for the panko. But Panko is amazing. It is so light.
Panko is a Japanese-style breadcrumb traditionally used as a coating for deep-fried foods. The biggest difference between panko and standard breadcrumbs is that panko is made from bread without crusts.
These little guys go with everything. Eat them straight up. Dunk them in your favorite sauce or dip (we paired it with Spicy Zucchini Sesame Seed Hummus). Make them into a sandwich. Use them to top a salad. Go crazy! We did.
Baked Panko-Crusted Chicken Fingers
Yields 2-4 servings depending on if appetizer or main course
Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts – boneless, skinless cut in strips
1/4 cup dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, grated
1/2 cup gluten free panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons paprika
1 Tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Coconut oil spray
Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 475°F. Place a metal cooling rack flat on top of a baking sheet. Spray cooling rack with Coconut oil spray and set aside. (See Notes 1 & 2)
In a small bowl, combine mustard and grated garlic.
In a shallow bowl, use fork to combine gluten free panko, parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, paprika, parsley and olive oil.
Using a small pastry brush, thoroughly coat the garlic-mustard to the chicken strips. Working in batches, add mustard coated chicken to the panko mixture and press to evenly coat all sides. Place panko covered chicken strips on metal rack lined baking sheet.
Bake for 12-15 minutes or until browned, turning once halfway through.
Serve with zucchini hummus (regular or spicy) or dipping sauce of your choice.
Notes:
For even less clean-up, place a piece of parchment paper on the baking sheet as some of the crumbs will fall during the cooking process.
Baking the chicken on a wire rack allows hot air is able to circulate around the chicken helping to create a nice, crunchy crust.
