Chicken nuggets and fries redux

I went to college with a woman who had previously had a summer job at a chicken nugget factory. The stories she told were not pretty. In fact, I’m kind of amazed that I listened to her and we remain friends to this day. It was soul-destroying, to anyone who appreciates crispy, greasy, chicken goodness with a pot of ketchup on the side (and don’t start telling me what they do to tomatoes to make ketchup – I can’t take it). To be honest, anyone with an even vaguely sensitive disposition would have been put off chicken nuggets for life by Julie’s tales of what’s really in those nuggets, and feel righteous in their subsequent life of self-denial. But why do they make them so delicious, dammit?! They are crispy, greasy, and chickeny – the golden trifecta. Sheesh.

Now I wish I could tell you that I have come up with a way of creating the same trifecta of deilciousness and made it take only as much effort as it takes to drive up the window, place your order, hand over some crinkled bills and then indulge in some finger-licking munchery. Not quite. Although, let’s be honest: most drive-through take-out trips seem to involve a long queue, an intercom that makes the person on either end sound like a drunk with a heavy foreign accent, minimal English, and an anger problem, resulting in placing your order at least 5 times, and then not being entirely sure that you’re going to get what you wanted, AND the obligatory ketchup down the front of the shirt and ensuing session in the laundry room with a bottle of Zout and a Tide Pen,  so it isn’t exactly time-saving, is it. If you add up all of this time expended, then the recipe below seems quite speedy to put together, now doesn’t it?

And what to have with your chicken? Well, you’ve got to have fries, if for no other reason than to make your car smell like a deep fat fryer for the next few weeks, and to leave a greasy fingerprint trail all over the steering wheel. Ah the joys of drive-through! Well, fries are all very well, but I am going to go out on a limb here and claim that the potato recipe below is way tastier. And all you need to go alongside these two dishes is a green salad and something to dip the chicken in. Now, you could go all traditional , ignore the stories about those poor mistreated tomatoes in factory farms, and bring out the ketchup, but personally, I love this chicken when dipped in a dollop of ranch dip on the side.

Crispy Chicken Strips
Adapted from Doris Christopher’s Stoneware Sensations from Pampered Chef
Serves 5

2 cups seasoned croutons, crushed to small crumbs
1/2 cup grated parmesan
2 TBSP finely chopped fresh parsley (or 1 tsp dried)
½ tsp onion powder
½ tsp garlic powder
2 egg whites
1 TBSP water
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast
Prepared ranch dip

1.       Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). NB, if you are cooking this alongside the potatoes below, then 400 degrees is fine for both, just cook the chicken for 5-10 minutes longer at the lower temperature.

2.       Cut each chicken breast into 3-4 pieces, and then place pieces, one by one, between two pieces of plastic/cling wrap and pound to ½” thickness.

3.       Put the egg whites and the water into a bowl and whisk to combine.

4.       In another bowl, mix together the crouton crumbs, cheese, parsley, onion and garlic powder.

5.       Dip each chicken piece first into the egg white mixture, and then into the crumb coating, patting them so that the coating sticks all over.

6.       Place the chicken pieces on to a baking sheet sprayed with oil spray.

7.       Bake in oven for about 15 minutes, or until crisp and golden.

 

Roasted Potato Salad with Creamy Dijon Vinaigrette
Adapted from Cooking Light magazine
Serves 6

3 lbs Yukon gold potatoes, cut into ½” wedges
3 TBSP olive oil, divided
3 large garlic cloves, minced
½ tsp chopped fresh thyme leaves
½ tsp salt, divided
½ tsp ground black pepper
1 ½ tsp white wine vinegar
2 TBSP finely chopped shallots
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 ½ tsp chopped fresh tarragon

1.       Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

2.       In a large bowl, combine potatoes, 1 ½ TBSP oil, garlic, ¼ tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper, and thyme so that potatoes are coated.

3.       Arrange potatoes on a large baking sheet, and bake in oven for 30 minutes or until brown and tender, turning once after 20 minutes.

4.       Combine remaining 1 ½ TBSP oil, remaining ¼ tsp of salt and ¼ tsp of pepper, vinegar, shallots, mustard and tarragon with a whisk in a small bowl.

5.       Drizzle dressing over cooked potatoes and toss to coat.