(HEALTHY) Crunchy Chicken Fingers

Chicken fingers. Breaded, deep-fried, covered in grease, dipped in ranch….they are my weakness, and if I gave in to them, would very quickly gain back the ten pounds I have recently lost, as well as head towards an early heart attack. This recipe, however, is A GOLDMINE! These fingers are quick, easy, cheap, oh-so-freaking-good, and healthy! When we first made them, I was hard-pressed not to eat them all =)

And the flavor possibilities are endless! You can add different spices and liquids to the buttermilk, and add different spices and herbs to the breading. This version is my favorite, but as these will quickly become a staple in our house, you can bet I’ll be trying it many different ways. (In case you can't tell, I love that blog!)

Crunchy Chicken Fingers

1 lb chicken tenders

1-2 cups buttermilk (just enough to cover)

½ cup whole wheat flour

3 cups panko bread crumbs

1 cup cornflake crumbs (probably 1 ½ cups uncrushed)

1 tsp sea salt (can use regular salt – half as much, I think)

1 tsp black pepper

1 packet ranch seasoning

½ cup parmesan cheese (optional) 

Place (thawed) chicken tenders in a large, re-sealable plastic bag, and cover with buttermilk. Marinate at least 2 hours, but anywhere between 2 and 24. The longer you have to marinate, the better.

Combine the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl. With the amount of crumb mixture this makes, you could make this at least three times, probably more like four or five. I store it in my cupboard in a large plastic bag, and I just take out what I need. That way I don’t over-use it, and it lasts as long as possible.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Place a wire cooling rack on a baking sheet. Spray with cooking spray.

Pour one cup of crumb mixture in another large, re-sealable plastic bag. Going one at a time, take the tenders from the buttermilk, shaking off the excess, and place in the crumbs. Shake around to completely coat in crumbs, pressing them on if needed. Place on wire rack (please ignore my sad and destroyed cookie sheets). Add more crumbs to the bag as you go, if you need to.

Once all the tenders are coated, lightly spray each with cooking spray. The cooking spray isn’t absolutely necessary, but it helps the crumb coat stay on and crisp up a bit more.

Bake for 12 minutes. Flip them once, spray again with cooking spray (if desired), and bake for another 12 minutes.

Remove from the oven, and serve warm with some raw veggies and your favorite dip. Mine is ranch, but my hubby’s is BBQ sauce mixed with ranch. Yum.

I’ve had some of my single, college-student friends ask me about meals, and I imagine this one would be really great. The buttermilk will last in the fridge for at least a couple of weeks, the ingredients for the crumbs are really cheap and make so much, and these keep in the fridge pretty well. Just re-heat on a baking sheet in the oven.