‘Merica. Land of the free and home of the delicious fried food. 
For this Fourth of July, I decided to make something a little healthier than your typical fried chicken. I breaded the chicken in panko and baked it in the oven instead of frying in oil but it still came out with a crispy golden crust and juicy inside that we all love. Of course, being the 4th, I wanted to make it a very patriotic dish by adding three incredible red, white and blue sauces. Red – strawberry and sriracha sauce sound like a horrible combination but I cannot tell you how amazing those two ingredients go together. The sweet and the spicy balance each other out so perfectly that I could eat this off the bottom of a shoe and be happy. White – mayonnaise with a bit of mustard gives the chicken the creaminess and tang it longs for. Blue – blueberry, thyme, mayo and cayenne. Wow, just wow! The sweetness from the blueberries is given a more savory taste from the thyme and the mayo adds even more creamy goodness to the sauce. As I was eating the chicken, I kept trying to figure out which sauce I liked I better but couldn’t decide. They are all so delicious with the chicken and even towards the end of eating, when all the sauces got mixed together, it still tasted great!
Yield: Serves 2-6, depending on if side or main course
Ingredients for the chicken:
- 6 pieces of chicken – I chose 4 drumsticks and 1 breast cut in half
- ½ cup flour
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 tbsp sriracha sauce
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 2 chopped scallions for garnish
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 425˚F. Set up your dredging station – one dish with flour, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper; one dish with cream and sriracha sauce; one dish with bread crumbs. Dredge the chicken in flour mix, then into the cream mix, back into the flour, back into the cream and finally into the panko bread crumbs. Repeat with all pieces of chicken. Bake the chicken on baking rack at 425˚F for 30 minutes. Lower the temperature to 375˚F and bake for additional 15-18 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Enjoy with one or all three of the below sauces and top with chopped scallions.
Strawberry Sriracha Sauce
Yield: Makes 1½ cups
Ingredients:
- 1½ cups strawberries, roughly chopped (about 12 strawberries)
- 1 tbsp sriracha sauce
- ¼ tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp salt
- small splash of water
Preparation:
Blend everything together until smooth. Serve chilled.
Dijon Mayo
Yield: Makes ¾ of a cup
Ingredients:
- 5 tbsp mayonnaise
- 3 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp paprika
- 1 tsp salt
- pinch of pepper
Preparation:
Mix all ingredients together. Serve chilled with the above chicken recipe.
Spicy Blueberry Thyme Mayo
Yield: Makes 1½ cups
Ingredients:
- 1½ cups blueberries
- 1 tbsp butter
- ¼ cup chopped shallot
- ¼ tsp thyme
- ½ tbsp flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
- couple pinches of cayenne
- ½ cup mayo
- 1 tbsp water
Preparation:
In a small saucepan, cook the shallot in the butter for 2 minutes on medium low heat. Add the salt, pepper, flour and thyme and cook for 1 minute. Turn heat to low and add the blueberries, cayenne and water. Cook for 10 minutes on low heat stirring every once in a while and gently smashing the blueberries. You can use an immersion blender to get rid of the blueberry lumps but I like the sauce with a few whole blueberries so you get a burst of sweetness as you’re eating the sauce. Let the sauce cool and add the mayo. Serve with the above chicken recipe.
Flag Waving American on Disney Cruise Line. This will always be my favorite way to celebrate the Fourth of July.
