Chicken Strips

This recipe is from one of my favorite blogs, Southern Plate. If you've never checked out Southern Plate, you should. Christy is so sweet and nice! I've tried a lot of her recipes and have rarely been disappointed. This recipe for chicken strips (or chicken planks as she calls them) is no different. I first made them a year ago. It was my first time ever frying anything and I was a bit concerned but they turned out great! Tonight was my second time making them and again, great. Very easy to make and very good for an occasional treat if you want something really simple and homey. After tasting them you wouldn't guess they're breaded with only egg and crushed saltine crackers. They're quite filling too so I usually just serve them with a veggie.

I tend to only buy chicken breasts every 3 or 4 months and get a big package so I can get all the goo cleaned off and cut it into whatever size pieces I'll need for recipes before freezing. It works very well to pound the chicken and cut it into strips at this time so when I'm ready to make the chicken strips, all I need to do is thaw and bread them.

Quick Note: This particular chicken strip has pretty big pieces of cracker. It was just fine but feel free to crush them more if you want! My sleeve of crackers popped open on the end before I could get them crushed really finely and I just went with it.

Also, this recipe can be easily doubled. Just cook half the chicken, then add more oil and let it heat up again before cooking the rest!


Chicken Strips

1/2 lb chicken breasts
1 egg
about half a sleeve of saltine crackers
vegetable oil

Lightly beat the egg in a bowl. Thoroughly crush the saltine crackers with your hands while still in the plastic sleeve (if you only crush half the crackers, the rest should remain intact for later!) and then pour into a bowl. Place the chicken into 2 Ziploc bags (one inside the other) and pound to 1/4 inch thick with a meat mallet. Cut the breasts into strips as big as you'd like. One at a time, dip the chicken strips into the beaten egg, then press into the crushed crackers and set on a plate. I like to use a fork to move the chicken around because things don't get as messy that way. Once all the chicken has been coated, pour 1/4 inch of oil into a large skillet and heat over medium. When the oil is hot enough that a little piece of crushed cracker sizzles when you toss it in, add the chicken strips. Cook on one side until golden brown, then turn the strips with a fork and cook on the other side, about 4 minutes on each side. I always cut one of the fatter ones open at this point to make sure they're cooked through but I haven't had a problem with them being under done. When the chicken strips are cooked, remove them to a paper towel lined plate and let drain for a minute or two. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce. We like barbecue sauce!

Yield: 2-3 servings