Crunchy Plantain Chicken

pounded chicken fillets coated in crushed chips on white plates on a white wooden table next to blue and white napkins, silverware and a brown bowl of plantain chips

5 from 11 votes

Juicy chicken is coated in a crunchy, crispy, salty shell. This Crunchy Plantain Chicken is so easy you'll be adding it to your weeknight dinner menu in no time.

Prep Time10

Cook Time16

Total Time26

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings: people

Calories: 582kcal

Author: Don Baiocchi

Ingredients

4-5 oz. plantain chips
1 large egg
2 teaspoons fine sea salt, divided
¾ teaspoon garlic powder
¾ teaspoon onion powder
¾ teaspoon regular or smoked paprika
2-4 tablespoons avocado oil or ghee
1-1½ pounds (about 3) boneless, skinless chicken breast fillets or chicken breasts pounded thin between two sheets of plastic wrap

Instructions

Pulse the chips in a food processor until you have rubbly crumbs. You don't want a fine powder or large chunks. To do this by hand, snip off a corner of the bag to let air out, place the bag on a cutting board use the bottom of a skillet or rolling pin to crush the chips. You can also crush them by hand in the bag. Either way, keep checking the chips to make sure you're crushing down any large chunks.
Break the egg into a wide, shallow pan, like a big pie plate or even a cake pan. Whisk with ½ teaspoon salt until liquid.
In another wide, shallow pan, mix the chips, 1½ teaspoon salt, garlic powder, onion powder and paprika.
Heat 2 tablespoons avocado oil or ghee in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat.
Use one hand to coat one chicken breast with egg on both sides and gently drop it into the chip pan. Use the other hand to press the chicken into the chips, flip it and press on the other side. (This technique will help your fingers not become completely coated in everything.) Be sure to press chips onto the sides of the chicken. Remove to a plate and repeat the process with the rest of the chicken. Occasionally shake the chip pan to redistribute everything into an even layer.
Once the oil is hot (it should be shimmering and quickly run around the pan when you swirl it), add the chicken. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side and remove to a new plate. Depending on the size of the skillet you might have to do this in batches, adding more oil as necessary. Make sure the oil isn't getting too hot by the time the second batch goes in. Turn the heat down a bit if necessary.
If the pan is relatively dry between batches, you can also carefully wipe the crumbs out of the pan with a paper towel before adding more oil.

Notes

This recipe can be doubled. If you want to make sure the chicken is warm when serving, place the cooked chicken in a low oven while you cook more batches. Keep an eye on the temperature of the oil.

Make ahead

The chicken can be coated ahead of time and kept in the fridge for up to 2 days. If cooking it straight from the fridge, add 1-2 minutes per side. Slice into the middle of one to make sure it's cooked through (or make sure it reaches 165° on an instant read thermometer).

To freeze it ahead of time, place the coated chicken on a parchment-lined baking sheet and place in the freezer. Once frozen, wrap in plastic wrap and place in freezer-safe container.

You can freeze it for up to 3 months.

Thaw overnight or cook straight from frozen, adding 3-4 minutes per side. Slice into the middle of one to make sure it's cooked through (or make sure it reaches 165° on an instant read thermometer).

Once cooked, Crunchy Plantain Chicken is best eaten immediately. Leftovers get soggy and there's no great way to make them crunchy again.

You can make the chip and spice mixture ahead of time and store it at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

Substitutions and variations

Feel free to add your own spices, like cumin, coriander, black pepper, ginger, etc.
You can add cayenne powder if you want to make it spicy.
The chip coating would also be great on thin pork chops.
You could also use coconut oil as your cooking fat but might impart a subtle coconut flavor.

Nutrition