Spicy Oven-Fried Chicken

Spicy Oven-Fried Chicken, originally uploaded by Sweet Sugarplums.

I love fried chicken with its crisp crust, moist meat, and particularly served with a flavorful gravy (post to follow sometime in the future...) Since I can't make traditional fried chicken very often without sacrificing our health, I usually bake it after removing the skin.

This recipe requires a little planning ahead. I've marinated the chicken for as long as 2 days. Baking it on a wire rack allows a lot of the fat to drip out. The chicken bakes up crispy and tender. The buttermilk gives a nice tang and keeps the meat moist. The original recipe says to bake at 425 degrees for 50 minutes after drizzling the chicken with butter. I found the chicken to be too brown and overcooked, and I don't miss the extra butter.

SPICY OVEN-FRIED CHICKEN
12 pieces

1 1/4 cups lowfat buttermilk, or use 5 tbsp buttermilk mix and 1 1/4 c. water
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, optional
3 tablespoons hot pepper sauce
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 large onion, sliced
12 skinless chicken thighs, with or without bones, or a combination of thighs and drumsticks
1 cup dry bread crumbs
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup flour
2 teaspoons thyme
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne


Whisk buttermilk, oil, pepper sauce, mustard, garlic and 1 tsp salt and pepper in large baking dish. Add onion, then chicken and turn to coat. Cover and chill for 3 hours or up to 1 day, turning chicken occasionally.

Line a large jelly roll pan with foil and set a large wire rack into the pan.

Combine breadcrumbs and seasonings and remaining 1 tsp salt in a plastic bag. Remove chicken from marinade. Place a few pieces of chicken at a time in bag and shake to coat evenly.

Set chicken on the rack for 30 minutes to set.

Reapply more breadcrumb mixture to the chicken if the coating looks thin by either shaking the chicken again or sprinkling on some crumb mixture and pressing it gently into place with your fingers. The boneless chicken should be "rolled" into a thigh-shaped piece, not set out flat.

Adjust oven rack to the lower 1/3 position (any higher and the crust scorches). Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes.

Adapted from a recipe in Bon Appetit, June 2000