Cooks Illustrated didn’t fail me again with this recipe.  It tasted fried!  Our only criticism is that it needed a little more spice – more black pepper and maybe soaking the chicken in a spicy buttermilk bath overnight like Martha Stewart does with her oil fried chicken.

But first, I went to the doctor, and he said that he believes my bronchitis is gone, doesn’t want to start me on round three of antibiotics, so I have a steroid, another medication and an inhaler.  He said there is “debris” in my bronchial tubes and this should flush everything out.  If I am not significantly better by Friday and I have to call him.  I took the inhaler as soon as I got home and I feel better already! 

The secret ingredient for the coating of the chicken?

pulsed in a food processor and then mixed with 1/4 cup vegetable oil
pulsed in a food processor and then mixed with 1/4 cup vegetable oil

Here’s how the crumb mixture looks after combined with the oil:

don't pulse it too fine, because the finer it is the less crunchy it is after its baked
don't pulse it too fine, because the finer it is the less crunchy it is after its baked

Here’s how they look before going in the oven:

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I had Hannah bake potatoes before I got home since she didn’t have school today.

small rub of oil, then baked at 400 for 1 hour
small rub of oil, then baked at 400 for 1 hour

After the potatoes cooled, I sliced them in half and scooped out enough flesh to only leave about 1/4 inch of potato.   Then brush both the front and back with canola oil (I used a total of about 1 tablespoon of oil).  Then bake both sides for 10 minutes at 450 degrees.  Remove and then sprinkle with salt and pepper, cooked bacon and cheddar cheese, and then put under the broiler until crispy and cheese has browned.

not seen is the 1 tablespoon of ff sour cream I dipped these babies in!
not seen is the 1 tablespoon of ff sour cream I dipped these babies in!

My chicken:

Nice and crispy and the meat was very tender and juicy - yum!
Nice and crispy and the meat was very tender and juicy - yum!

I think I’ll use this method the next time I make wings and to make chicken tenders (Hannah would have preferred chicken tenders – she’s not a huge fan of meat on the bone!).

The Best Oven-Fried Chicken

  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil (don’t use olive oil because the oven temp is too hot for olive oil – canola would work too)
  • 1 box plain Melba toast (5 ounce box), processed to sand and pebble texture
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon musard
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • (would have loved to add Tabasco to this, but I didn’t!)
  • 9 chicken legs

Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Place cookie rack on baking sheet and spray with Pam.

Drizzle the oil over the toast and using your fingers incorporate the oil into the processed Melba toast.  Mix the eggs, mustard, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, oregano, garlic powder and cayenne and mix well with a fork.

At this point I put my Melba toast mixture in a large ziploc bag to shake and bake.  Coat chicken all over in the egg mixture, drop in bag and shake until coated.  I used my fingers to press the coating into the chicken.  Repeat until done.  Cook for 40 minutes, or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165.

Looking forward to trying this with chicken breasts! 

Off to relax with Tony – see you tomorrow!