Do you even get into a rut when it comes to cooking dinner? Well, I do. I seem to have this cycle of 7 to 10 recipes. I keep cooking them over and over and over. When I realize that I’ve been making the same group of recipes, I start switching it up. I find 7 to 10 more recipes to cook. Then I cook those over and over. When I try to recall what I made in the previous batch of 7 to 10 recipes, I can never remember. It’s like I have recipe amnesia. So I came up with a genius solution – put my savory recipes on the blog! I know. It took me long enough to figure it out…
This Bang Bang Chicken is a HUGE hit with my kids. I mean, they love it so much that it’s been put in heavy rotation around here. The bite-size pieces of chicken are coated in Panko breadcrumbs and deep fried. And then there’s the sweet chili dipping sauce. It’s sweet, spicy, and tangy, and it is the perfect dipping sauce with the crispy, crunchy chicken bites.
If your kids like chicken strips, chicken nuggets, or any form of fried chicken, then they will go nuts over this recipe. Plus, it only takes half an hour to make! When I buy my chicken, I ask the butcher to chop it into small pieces. That way it’s ready to go when I get home.
If your nervous about frying food, I totally hear you. It can feel intimidating. Who wants to deal with splashing, hot oil? Not me, for sure! So here are my tips on deep frying food:
1 – I always use a very spacious pot in which to fry the food. When you place food into the oil, the level of the oil will rise (as will the level of any liquid when it’s displaced by an object being submerged into it.) Thus, make sure to use a large vessel to fry foods.
2 – The oil temperature is key to reducing splashing oil when frying food. So invest in a good thermometer. I use a ThermoWorks brand instant read thermometer. It’s waterproof, and it reads the temperature of anything in 3 seconds.
3 – A consistent oil temperature also ensures a crisp exterior with a fully cooked interior. If the oil is too hot, you get a burnt exterior with a possibly raw interior. If the oil isn’t hot enough, by the time the food is actually cooked, it’s probably going to be saturated with oil, making for a greasy end result.
4 – Don’t over-crowd the pan! If you place too much food into the oil, the temperature will drop very quickly, resulting in soggy, oily food. Fry the food in numerous, smaller batches.
5 – Use a spider or slotted spoon to remove the food from the oil. This ensures that the excess oil will be left in the pan, not pooled around the food.
6 – Hot oil doesn’t wait for anyone. Make sure all of your food is prepped and ready to go before starting the frying process. Also make sure that you have a space to place the food after it comes out of the fryer. My favorite set up is a half-sheet pan lined with paper towels and fitted with a wire drying rack.
Hopefully these tips will make frying less intimidating, and you can enjoy crispy, crunchy fried food like this darn delicious Bang Bang Chicken with Sweet Chili Sauce!
- For the Chicken: 1 to 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1 inch cubes
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 3/4 cup of all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup corn starch
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tbs hot sauce (I used Tabasco)
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 2 cups Panko breadcrumbs (or as much as necessary)
- For the Sauce:
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tbs sweet chili sauce
- 1 tbs honey
- 2 tsp hot sauce
- To make the sauce, mix all the sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Set aside.
- For the chicken, wash and dry the chicken thoroughly.
- Heat the oil over medium heat to 350 degrees F.
- In a large bowl, mix the buttermilk, flour, corn starch, egg, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and hot sauce.
- Place the Panko breadcrumbs in a shallow, wide-mouthed dish (I used a pie plate.).
- Dip the each piece of chicken in the buttermilk mixture.
- Then dredge the chicken in the Panko. Pressing the breadcrumbs into the chicken.
- Fry the chicken in small batches for about 5 minutes a side. Turning once.
- Before adding the next batch of chicken, make sure the oil returns to 350 degrees F.
- Drain the fried pieces on a paper towel lined baking sheet fitted with a wire rack. (See the post for more tips on frying.)
- Allow to cool slightly, and enjoy immediately.
This recipe is linked to these parties.
Aida, this looks delicious! Do you think the same recipe would work in the oven?
Naheed, thanks so much! So, make baked chicken fingers (a healthier version of fried chicken fingers). If you want to try to bake them, here’s what I’d do:
1 – Soak the chicken pieces in the buttermilk overnight (that way it will stay moist while baking).
2 – Bake the chicken in a hot oven around 450 degrees.
3 – After dredging the chicken in the panko, spray each piece of chicken with oil before baking.
4 – Bake the chicken on a baking sheet lined with a rack. That way the chicken will be crisp on all sides (including the bottom of the chicken pieces).
5 – As for the baking time, I would keep it relatively short – maybe 10 to 12 minutes.
Good luck, and please let me know how it turns out!
I love this idea and appreciate your tips on frying. Thanks!
Thanks so much Sarah! I think I’ve read so many tips on deep frying, and the ones I included are the ones I’ve found most helpful. I hope they’re helpful to you as well!
Love these crispy chicken bites Aida! The dipping sauce looks incredible too. So glad you shared some tips for deep frying, I’ve always been so afraid to try it.
Thanks so much Danae! Deep frying can be so intimidating, but if it’s done properly it’s easy and the end result is not greasy – just crunchy and delicious!
I need to make this ASAP!
Lauren, try it! It’s so delicious and easy to make. A friend make this last week for her family, and she said that they loved it so much that she’s afraid that it may be on the menu every week!
Wow chicken looks so good,will try,nice recipe
Thanks so much Jayanthi! Definitely give it a try! It’s so worth it!
I love anything Bang Bang. I am going to pin this recipe.
Thanks so much for pinning, Melissa! They are such great flavors!
Love love love this! I started my blog because I wanted to get out of a cooking rut too 🙂
Thanks so much Deseree! Isn’t it crazy how recipe amnesia can just kick in? I mean, I cook dinner almost every night, but I can’t remember anything!!
Excellent post! Great photos with wonderful photos and most of all, delicious chicken. Nice job!!
Thanks so much Dan! It is really a delicious recipe. It’s a family favorite!
Lovely tips,nice chicken fry
My kids would love this recipe too. I try to throw in at least one different recipe each week to mix things up. Pinned this. Thanks for bringing this by Weekend Bites.
Mmm… I can just taste these little crispy bites! Thanks so much for sharing at Saturday Night Fever!
Can’t wait to munch on these fried chicken…Looks totally good!
Sindhiya, they are so good! You’re exactly right – they’re little bits of chicken fried until just golden. They’re so crisp and juicy. So worth it! Thanks so much for stopping by!