{Takes a bite} Crunch Hot, crispy, parmesan baked chicken fingers don’t usually last long around here. They’re one of our most favorite/ most versatile dinner items. Especially if there’s sweet sriracha honey mustard dipping sauce to accompany! I love serving these babies with a Big Salad. (side note: did you also think of that Seinfeld episode!) Or tucked inside a burger bun with a mashed up avocado, lettuce, and this sauce! And the best way, is along with healthy garlic fries or oven-baked sweet potato fries. And I triple dog dare you to not have your entire face covered in this sweet sriracha honey mustard sauce! Did I say face? I meant chicken fingers. Chicken fingers, your fingers, your face, a combination of all three. That’s the way God intended these chicken fingers to be eaten! True story. I love serving these baked chicken fingers in a miniature size for parties as well. Because, let’s face it, who doesn’t like eating with their hands? Possibly like 1 person on the planet. It’s not me. Really. Let’s get down to business. The first thing we’re going to do is let the chicken tenders sit in buttermilk. This ensures super moist chicken on the inside with all that yummy crunch on the outside. I usually let the chicken marinate in the buttermilk for 1-2 hours covered in the refrigerator. If you’re short on time, do it for 30 minutes. It’s a step you don’t want to skip though. Next we’re going to do a little dipping in a few different ingredients. Set up your work station with three different bowls. We’re dipping these fingers in seasoned flour, then beaten eggs, and lastly, a panko + parmesan mixture. What is Panko? Panko is Japanese-style bread crumb. It’s the stuff they usually coat the shrimp with in those crispy shrimp sushi rolls (can you say, yum). We’re using Panko instead of breadcrumbs because Panko doesn’t burn as easily as breadcrumbs. And since we’re baking these chicken fingers at a high 400 degrees F, it’s exactly what we need. The best way to go through this process quickly and hassle-free: have a dry hand and a wet hand. The dry hand should only touch the seasoning flour and the panko + parmesan mixture, aka dry ingredients. The wet hand should touch the buttermilk dipped chicken and the beaten egg mixture, aka wet ingredients. That way, you’re coating the chicken fingers and not your own! And its also nice when you don’t have to stop and wash/dry your hands a bajillion times. Make sure to dip chicken fingers in all 3 of these mixtures. Leaving any steps out won’t produce the same results! Into a 400 degree F oven they go. The baking time with depend on the thickness of your chicken fingers. Mine took about 24 minutes. After the first 12, I flipped them over and continued to bake. That. is. it. It’s so simple to make these baked chicken fingers. And the crunch. I LIVE for that crunch! The best part: I can have it anytime I want. You know, with it being healthy and all!
