Breaded Chicken with Buttermilk Marinade (Oven Baked)

The chicken is marinated in buttermilk and spices so it becomes super tender as it soaks up all the spicy goodness and then the breading isn’t just flour but a harmony of flour, panko breadcrumbs and cornmeal that has been spiced to perfection for extra crispiness and flavor then baked in a little butter (a fraction of the fat from frying) resulting in moist chicken on the inside, crispy breading on the outside but without the guilt or soggy grease of their fried counterpart.

Chicken:
10 chicken tenderloins
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup all-purpose flour, unbleached
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
¼ cup fine cornmeal
3 Tbsp. butter

Spice Mixture:
1 Tbsp. sea salt
2 tsp. chili powder
2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. black pepper, freshly grated
1 tsp. ground smoked paprika
1 tsp. onion powder

Mix Spices together in a small sealable bag. Add 1 Tbsp. spices, 1 cup buttermilk and chicken to a large freezer bag and marinate 6-24 hours. Store remaining spices.

Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C/180°C fan, Gas Mark 6). Line a rimmed baking tray with parchment paper (foil will NOT work because the chicken sticks to it). Add butter to baking tray and melt in oven while it preheats. Remove baking tray once butter is melted.

Mix together flour, panko, cornmeal and remaining spices in a large bowl. Add half of this breading mixture to a large freezer bag.

Remove chicken tenders from buttermilk and dab off excess marinade with paper towels.

Add half of the chicken to the breadcrumb bag and shake until well coated, pressing the breadcrumbs into the chicken with your fingers through the bag. Lay breaded chicken in butter on baking tray. Add remaining breadcrumb mixture to bag along with remaining chicken and repeat.

Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden then carefully flip chicken and bake another 5 minutes then broil to desired crispiness.

Serve with your favourite dipping sauce.