Dinner on the Quick: Chicken Fingers

I've always loved chicken nuggets - salty, crisp on the outside, moist on the inside - the perfect bite-sized delights.  But nuggets are, by its very definition, unnatural... Come now, where on the chicken is a nugget?!?  And I know that delightful, crunchy coating on most nuggets gets a lot of help from processed ingredients.  But what to do?  Kids LOVE chicken nuggets and they do make for a quick and easy meal.  When the kids are happy, this momma is happy.  So here's to making our own!  

I've been able to convert my kids to "Chicken Fingers".  Another catchy chicken name that doesn't really make any sense, but somehow my kids love the idea (and taste!) of homemade chicken fingers.  The process is really very simple - cut up skinless, boneless chicken breasts into finger-sized strips, dredge in seasoned flour, then egg, and then seasoned bread crumbs.  Place in the oven and 20 minutes later... voila, you have your own chicken fingers.  We served our chicken fingers with organic ketchup and homemade thousand island dressing.  Side dishes included carrot sticks, broccoli florets, sliced apples, and steamed spaghetti squash seasoned with parmesan cheese and butter.  We were a happy, satisfied family by the end of the meal. 

I'm going to experiment with freezing the leftover chicken fingers to see if they can be reheated easily and successfully for a quick dinner. 

Chicken Fingers

Thanks to a recommendation by my friend Robin,I used the bag of frozen chicken tenders from Trader Joe's.  No sketchy additives - just chicken - and a nice shortcut since they are already cut up into chicken finger sizes.  This makes about 8 servings.  We each had a serving and then plenty of leftovers for lunch tomorrow. 

Ingredients:

2 1/2 lbs. chicken breasts, cut into finger-sized strips, or chicken tenders

1/2 cup flour

2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

3 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup water

2 cups bread crumbs (seasoned or plain*, as you wish)

*if using plain breadcrumbs, season with salt, pepper, your favorite dried herbs, and grated parmesan cheese. 

• Place the flour, salt, and pepper in a resealable plastic bag.  Seal and shake the bag to distribute the seasoning. 
• In a separate shallow dish, combine the eggs and water.
• In a separate shallow dish, combine the bread crumbs and seasonings. 
• Place the chicken in the resealable plastic bag of flour and seal and shake until the chicken is well coated.
• Remove each piece of chicken from the flour and shake off the excess flour. 
• Place the floured chicken in the egg, making sure both sides are coated.
• Then, place the egged chicken in the bread crumb mixture, pressing down to coat evenly.
• Place the coated chicken pieces on a sprayed cookie sheet.  Spray the tops of the chicken pieces with canola oil or olive oil.  Place under the broiler for 15 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through and golden brown.