Panko Chicken Strips

Posted by Kimberly:

One thing that my kids really like to eat is chicken strips. Because we try to eat healthy, I have tried many recipes for chicken strips but never really was that crazy about any that I had attempted. The seasoning never seemed to be that great and they were never that crunchy. Back in the fall, I came across this recipe on foodnetwork.com. It caught my eye because it used panko bread crumbs. I wasn't disappointed.... The seasoning was really good, and they had the crunch that I had been wanting.

Panko Chicken Strips

1 large egg (I omit this to make the recipe healthier.)
1/3 cup buttermilk
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into strips
1 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs (These are found in the Asian food aisle of your grocery store.)
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper

Whisk the egg and buttermilk in a medium bowl. Soak chicken strips in egg mixture while you gather remaining ingredients. (As I said above, I don't use the egg. I just put my cut-up chicken in large Ziploc bags and cover the strips in buttermilk. I let them soak in the buttermilk in the fridge for 2-4 hours.) Meanwhile, in another shallow bowl combine panko with paprika, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, and salt and pepper, to taste. Lift chicken from buttermilk, letting excess liquid drain back into the bowl, then dip into panko and turn to coat all sides. Place chicken on a foil-lined baking sheet that has been sprayed with a cooking spray. Bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes or so. (The original recipe had you fry them, but I chose to bake mine to make them even more figure-friendly.)

My family likes to dip these in different sauces/dressings. I prefer honey mustard dressing. My husband and son like to use barbecue sauce, and my daughters like ranch dressing. Also, I always make extra, so we can have them for another meal. They are better reheated in the oven instead of the microwave, though. The microwave makes the bread crumbs soggy, while the oven will return some of their crunch.