Indian Spiced Fried Chicken

How do you kick plain old fried chicken up a notch and keep it semi respectable in the calorie department? Use skinless boneless chicken thighs and add some killer spices to the breading. That's what I did last night and talk about a winner, winner chicken dinner.

Inspired by a recipe on Epicurious, I simply cut the chicken thighs in half so they'd cook more evenly, then dipped them into an egg and milk wash followed by flour mixed with some Indian spices. Fried in a quarter inch of oil for 12 minutes and finished in a hot oven, the outside was crisp with a healthy hit of spice and the inside moist and juicy.

Served on a bed of Bengal Lentils courtesy of "Tasty Bite" along with some roasted cauliflower, the Indian Spiced Fried Chicken was a flavorful twist on an old favorite.

By the way, if I'd been "with it" in any way, shape or form I'd have used buttermilk and marinated the chicken overnight, but buttermilk wasn't on my shopping list so I couldn't; however, I honestly don't think it would have made a tremendous difference in the end result since the chicken was darn near perfect anyway. What can I say except I'm running a little short on modesty. Must have left it in Oregon - ya think I should go back and pick it up?

Indian Spiced Fried Chicken

2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs rinsed and dried

1 egg

1/2 cup milk

3/4 cup all purpose flour

2 teaspoons ground coriander

2 teaspoons garam masala

1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

1 teaspoon tumeric

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 425. Cut chicken thighs in half. Beat egg and milk together and set aside. Mix together flour, coriander, garam masala, pepper, tumeric, salt and cayenne. Dip chicken into egg/milk mixture then coat in flour spice mixture, pressing flour onto chicken and making sure it covers all sides. Set aside to dry for 10 minutes. 

Heat a quarter inch of vegetable oil in a large frying pan over medium heat until hot. Add chicken trying not to crowd the pan and cook for 6 minutes a side until well browned. Place onto a wire rack placed over a sheet pan. Bake in preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes until the chicken is cooked. Serves 4

For your convenience, here's the printable version Download Indian Spiced Fried Chicken

Comments

[Mags]

Modesty doesn't suit you....LOL

Great looking "winner, winner, chicken dinner!"

[June]

Hey Mags - when we say somethin's good, it's gotta be GOOD right? I had a piece of the chicken for lunch today and it was darn tasty.

[Jack Welsch]

Good recipe... I have just ordered my spices from The Big Indian Store. Wil try and cook up this chicken this weekend.

[June]

Hope you enjoy it Jack, and thanks for visiting!

[Nanan]

Yummy - I wish I would have been there - flavors right up my alley! Just wondering about buttermilk... you know how in baking we use powdered buttermilk as a substitute. I wonder if we could use the same for chicken - just add water to the powdered and marinate the chicken overnite for the same effect? That way we could have it on hand all the time? Must experiment!

[June]

Lea - I think that's a good idea re the powdered buttermilk although I've never tried it makes sense and it would be a good thing to have on hand. If you try it, let me know how it works, OK?