Chicken Fingers
April 13th, 2009 by katie
One of the fastest, easiest meals you can make for picky kids is chicken. Chicken nuggets, chicken fingers: there is something about the familiar, buttery flavor of a chicken breast that puts kids at ease. Breading and pan-frying chunks of chicken breast takes very little time and served with some steamed veggies and my favorite sweet potato fries you’ve got a great, quick meal that everyone will eat.
Chicken Fingers
serves 4, prep: 10 min, cook time 30 min- 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of fat
- 1 cup flour (can sub all or part whole wheat flour or corn meal)
- 2 eggs
- salt and pepper
- oil for frying
- Cut chicken breasts into small pieces, either small strips or nuggets.
- Place egg in a bowl and place flour in another bowl, add any seasonings to flour like salt, pepper, garlic, or mustard powder.
- Dip chicken pieces in egg, allowing excess to drip off.
- Then roll chicken in flour until completely coated.
- Set aside and dip and coat all chicken pieces.
- In a heavy skillet, heat about 1 inch of oil until it bubbles when you toss in a bit of flour.
- Cook chicken nuggets in batches, turning several times, until golden brown and juices are clear.
- Drain on paper towels and serve.
I use light olive oil as my all-purpose oil. You can use it to fry your chicken and your potatoes if desired, then strain it into a clean jar and store it in the fridge or pantry for another meal. You can also omit the eggs and just soak the chicken in a bit of milk or buttermilk.
Cost Analysis:
- 1 lb all natural chicken breasts: $3.99
- 2 cage-free eggs: $0.37
- 2 cups organic frozen broccoli florets: $0.49
- 1 lb frozen julienned sweet potatoes: $3.39
- Total cost for 4 servings: $8.24 or $2.06 per serving
April 13th, 2009 at 7:40 am
I’ve got chicken tenders in my freezer and now I have a plan for them. My girls will love this.
April 13th, 2009 at 4:49 pm
OH man. I was just rereading The Omnivore’s Dilemma today and it was the McNugget section… I called my brother to yell at him for continuing to feed them to his kids… I guess I could be a bit more diplomatic and send this to him eh?
April 13th, 2009 at 6:20 pm
I haven’t made chicken like this in years, mostly because I’ve been on a roasted chicken bender and my kids have outgrown their McNugget phase. But these look great, esp. with a little bbq sauce for dipping.
(I always think of breaded meat as ugly, but you’ve managed to make these visually enticing. Nice.)
April 13th, 2009 at 11:19 pm
My youngest will pretty much only eat chicken fingers!
April 14th, 2009 at 7:55 am
Oooh yum … we don’t have kids but I think us adults will love this too. 🙂 Hehe.
Thanks for your comment on my post; I agree it’s totally strange for someone to pick up your child (even if he meant well!). I do think it’s inappropriate to handle strangers’ children if you haven’t received permission to do so!
April 14th, 2009 at 10:52 am
This is brilliant!
How cool is that to create a better and healthier version of fast food chicken fingers at home. Thanks for sharing!
Dan
Casual Kitchen
April 15th, 2009 at 10:35 pm
I loves me some chicken fingers. I can rarely justify frying, but I may make an exception tomorrow. Now I’m craving them…
April 21st, 2009 at 1:55 pm
Made these Sunday night for dinner with boneless chicken tenders. Mmmm. Just like fried chicken!
September 26th, 2012 at 2:52 pm
My youngest son is a very picky eater and will only eat Chicken Fingers/Nuggets, Fish Sticks, Pizza and Fries. These will be great for him.