Healthy Oven-Fried Chicken

The Plan's Spicy Oven-Fried Chicken is a tasty way to have crunchy skin on your chicken without deep frying it.  It leaves the  meat on the bird tender and juicy and creates a crispy coating surrounding outside.  Its fun to eat with your fingers and lends itself well to smaller cuts of chicken as nuggets. Include this in your Weight Loss and Stay Healthy Plan!

Inside a large paper sack or deep bowl combine the following ingredients:

1/2 cup of sprouted flour (any kind) or double the cornmeal below

1/2 cup of masa flour (corn flour) or cornmeal

1/2 cup of cracker meal, or anything crunchy in your pantry you can crush. (I've even used cereal)

1 1/2 tablespoons of paprika

1 1/2 teaspoons of ground sage

1 teaspoon of sea salt

1 teaspoon of ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon of dried red pepper flakes (chili pepper flakes)

Shake or stir that up to combine.

Melt 1/2 cup of butter in a shallow cooking pan in the oven while it is heating to 375 degrees.  

Remove the melted butter from the oven.  Line a large baking sheet with parchment.  Roll each piece of chicken in the butter and then add it to the bag.  Give it a shake to ensure it is well covered and place skin side down on the baking sheet.  Continue on until all the chicken is coated and on the baking sheet.  Arrange the pieces of chicken to ensure they are well spaced and not crowded.

Bake for 45 minutes, then remove them from the oven and turn them over.  Return to the oven and bake for another 10 minutes.  Serve hot or cold.  Drippings can be used to make a delicious gravy for biscuits or potatoes.