Just in Time for the Fourth
Lots of people eat grilled meat on the Fourth of July. It is a great time for all things grilled — that is for sure. But, if you are feeling like you want something different, and if, unlike me, you have not just returned from a trip to the South where you consumed way too much yummy fried stuff, then this might be a recipe that you would enjoy for your Independence Day celebration. And, of course, fried chicken is good 364 other days of the year, too.

1. 3 pound bag of (frozen) chicken tenderloins, defrosted and then patted dry
2. 2-3 inches corn oil in your biggest Dutch oven
3. 1 cup of flour in a clean paper bag (make sure it doesn’t have a hole in it)
4. 2 beaten eggs combined with 1/4 t pepper and 3/4 t salt and 1 T corn oil in a pie plate
5. Panko or Japanese breadcrumbs in a deep bowl. Start with 1 1/2 cup and add more as needed.

Defrost chicken and dry it off with paper towels. Meanwhile, heat oil to frying temperature in Dutch oven. Use a cast iron Dutch oven, if you have it. Oil should be approx. 2 inches deep. When the oil is ready to go, shake 4-5 or however many tenders you think will fit in the Dutch oven at one time (they should fit in one layer, with space between) in the paper bag. Shake excess flour off and then roll the tenders in the egg wash mixture. Next, one by one, dip the tenders in the panko and knock off the excess on the sides of the deep bowl. ( I use a big mixing bowl.) Fry, turning as needed, until done. Remove to a paper towel lined platter and repeat with remaining tenders until all are done. Make sure to keep watch on the temperature of the oil and adjust it so the tenders are frying and not cooking on a lower temperature — because cooking on a lower temperature means that they saute rather than fry and soak up too much oil. Also, make sure that the oil doesn’t get too hot, either. Burnt chicken ain’t no good, y’all. :))

Note: A good honey mustard dipping sauce can be made by combining 3T of Dijon with 5-6T honey. Also, you can make an emulsion by combining the mustard/honey mixture with about 1/3 cup canola/olive oil and have a good honey mustard salad dressing. As a salad, this fried chicken is good served with the honey mustard salad dressing, red onion, toasted pecans, cheddar cheese and lettuce mix of your choice.

Enjoy.