Pages

Tuesday, April 4, 2017

Easy Coconut Chicken Strips


I was in the shops the other day thinking of what to make for dinner and nothing was inspiring me. I tend to flock towards the chicken section in times like these as I know I'll find something I can work with. I often coat chicken breasts in sesame seeds as I find it keeps them moist and adds a lovely nuttiness, simple but effective. This was my plan.

I got home and realised I had no sesame seeds, but I did have some desiccated coconut...interesting...I decided to go with it and it turned out to be deliciously different. I've subsequently made coconut chicken pieces for catering functions and people adore them. You can serve them as a canapé with the dipping sauce or alternatively with a herb salad as a main, using the dipping sauce as a dressing.
Coconut Chicken


Ingredients: (serves 3-4)
4 large chicken breasts
flour
1 egg
80g desiccated coconut
Good pinch of salt and pepper
oil for frying

Dipping sauce:
80ml Sweet Indonesian soya sauce
30ml Rice vinegar
2 tbsp sesame oil
(If using as a dressing rather than a dipping sauce, add 20ml sunflower oil)

Salad:
A mixture of rocket, basil, coriander, butter lettuce and slivers of spring onion/red onion)
You can add some Danish feta, pumpkin seeds and cucumber too, if desired.


Method: 
Cut each chicken breast into 4-6 equally sized strips.
Whisk the egg in a bowl.
Spoon 1 cup flour into another bowl.
Pour the coconut onto a small plate and mix together with the salt and pepper.
Place a non-stick frying pan on medium heat and pour in a good glug of oil (about 4 tbsp).
Dip the chicken strips, one by one, into the flour, then the egg (allowing the excess to drip off) and then into the coconut. Cover and press into the coconut, ensuring each strip is well coated, then place away from you into the frying pan. Fry in batches, turning 2 or three times until the strips are golden and cooked through (about 6-8 minutes per batch).
Discard leftover coconut in the pan between batches and add more oil as needed.
Serve hot or cold.
For the dipping sauce/dressing: whisk together all the ingredients until emulsified.

No comments:

Post a Comment