Standalone Cooking Segment: Tendies (Patreon)

Hey Saucy Ones, This one's actually from this week's upcoming video!

Chicken Strips.

Ingredients:

-3 chicken breasts

-2 cups flour plus a couple more teaspoons for crumb mix

-1/2 to 1/4 loaf of bread, preferably a little stale

-6-8 eggs

-1/2 gallon of high-heat oil

-3Tbsp lawry's seasoning salt

-2Tbsp Paprika

-1Tbsp chili powder

-(optionally) 1tsp each thyme and parsley, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Prep (the night before)

-thaw chicken breasts and use a knife to remove all fat and dangly bits from them, cut across sideways into 3/4 inch strips and arrange on meat-safe cutting board

-liberally salt chicken strips and then place salt side down into a paper towel lined half-sheet pan. Liberally salt the other side of the strips, cover them with more paper towels, and place another half-sheet on top of them before placing chicken in the fridge. For best results, put some stuff on top of the pans so that excess moisture is pressed out

-Take your stale bread and tear into small pieces. Place pieces into a food processor with 1 heaping teaspoon of flour and a liberal pinch of salt per load and pulse until you've got as fine of a crumb as you'd like. Repeat until all bread is used.

-(Optional) spread crumbs onto a parchment paper-line baking tray and cook for 10-20 minutes at 225 degrees Fahrenheit or as low as your oven will go. Longer cook times will mean crunchier breading but also darker looking strips (they kinda get doodoo-colored in the end if you do it too long)

-(Optionally to the Optional step) Take toasted crumbs and put them back into the food processor. Pulse them again for extra fine breading. You'll sacrifice crunch but you'll be able to be much more efficient with your breading.

-place breadcrumbs into sealed container and put away. They don't really need to be refrigerated or anything

Day-of Prep:

-Beat you eggs and place them into a container that's easy to drunk your strips into

-place your bread crumb mix into a similar container on the far side of your egg wash

-make your chicken dredge by combining 2 cups of flour with the 3 tbsp. of Lawry's, 2 tbsp. of paprika, and 1 tbsp. of chili powder. Optionally add parsley, thyme, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. mix well with a whisk or small fork and place on the opposite side of the egg wash from the crumbs.

-remove chicken from the fridge and place next to the side of the dredge mix. On the opposite side, place your raw meat-safe cutting board and begin to bread the strips. Using the wet-hand, dry-hand method, dredge your chicken in the flour mix, dunk them into the egg wash, and then coat them in the bread crumbs. for extra breading, re-dunk the strips into the egg wash and cover in crumbs again before placing onto cutting board.

-once all strips are breaded, let the chicken rest in the fridge for 20-30 minutes before frying.

Cooking and serving:

-In a large, high-walled saucepan, pour your oil until it's a little over 2 inches deep, leaving plenty of room for fluid displacement and then affix your candy/fryer thermometer to the side of the saucepan. turn on the head to medium-high and wait for the oil to come to 360 degrees Fahrenheit. While the oil is heating, place a couple layers of paper towels underneath a wire drying rack and set aside for cook strips.

-Place strips in one at a time, laying them in the oil away for you and without EVER breaking the surface tension of the oil! Let them fry for 4-5 minutes, turning at the halfway point.

-remove cooked strips onto drying rack and allow the oil to come back up to the desired temperate between batches.

-when all strips are cooked, move the saucepan to the back of the cooktop if not already there and do not handle until the thermometer reads the oil to be room temperature.

-serve on a paper towel lined plate with some fries and the dipping sauce of your choice.