If you eat chicken and like food, you probably like Fried Chicken. You probably love Fried Chicken! But you probably don’t want to use an entire day’s worth of Points on a single piece of chicken. Or lose the ability to button your jeans for the remainder of the weekend. It’s good and all, but not that good. Especially now that you can make this Oven Fried Chicken!
Fried Chicken and Oven Fried Chicken (mostly Bisquick or Cornflake) were staples in our house growing up. They were in heavy rotation, maybe even once a week. When my husband came into my family, he got turned onto Cornflake Chicken as well but it never quite did it for him like real Fried Chicken. Don’t get me wrong, Cornflake Chicken is good but it doesn’t have quite the right crunchy crust.
I knew I needed to keep experimenting and looking for the perfect solution. A recipe that would satisfy my hubby’s Fried Chicken cravings but not be deep fried, that would be easy enough to throw together for a weeknight dinner and would use clean ingredients.
We were doing a couple variations on Bran Flake Oven Fried Chicken last summer and while we liked that better than Cornflake Chicken, we just weren’t quite there yet. Until I found an old Cook’s Illustrated from 1999 that discussed Oven Fried Chicken technology and made a recommendation for using Melba Toast. The Corn Flake wasn’t quite crispy enough and the Bran Flake was just always too sweet. Enter Melba Toast.
Cook’s Illustrated broke down every possible cracker combo in their article and with Melba Toast a clear winner, I knew I needed to try it with my mom’s Cornflake Chicken spice mix.
And we have a serious winner! If you crave Fried Chicken, you HAVE TO MAKE THIS! It’s that good. Yes, I did leave my caps lock on that long. Make it (and let me know how you like it)!
NOTES:
- If you want to start making crispy things in your oven that are not fried but sort of taste like it, you need to buy these cooling racks. Even though they are called cooling racks, I use them for cooking/baking. Air circulates all around the food allowing it to get crisp instead of soggy.
- Yes, you can make this with all legs, thighs, breasts or any combo of the above. But if you go with a whole chicken, make sure to ask the Butcher to remove the skin and cut it into 8 pieces (2 breasts, 2 thighs, 2 legs and 2 wings). This is a major time saver!
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The Only Oven Fried Chicken Recipe You Need!
- 1 whole organic chicken cut up into 8 pieces, skin removed
- 5 ounce box Classic Melba Toast crushed
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 3/4 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 cup light mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- non stick cooking spray or oil mister
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Start by lining a baking sheet with tin foil and place cooking rack on top. Lightly spray cooking rack with non stick cooking spray.
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Now, lets crush the Melba Toast. If you are a patient person and want the best possible results, place the Melba Toast in a large ziploc bag and use a rolling pin to crush it. If you are crunched for time or slightly impatient like me, throw it in the food processor. Help the process a bit by crushing it in the package before tossing into the food processor bowl. You do NOT want the Melba Toast to be completely pulverized. Leave some little pebbles and texture for maximum crispy crunch!
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Add in salt, pepper, cayenne, paprika, garlic powder and oregano. Pulse a couple more times.
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Combine Dijon and light mayo in a shallow dish.
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Get an assembly line ready: chicken, a shallow dish or plate with mayo mixture, Melba crumbs and lined baking sheet.
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Coat one piece of chicken at a time with mayo mixture (just enough to lightly coat) and press into Melba toast crumbs, making sure the chicken is evenly coated. Repeat until all chicken is coated.
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Use an oil mister or non stick cooking spray to lightly spray each piece of chicken.
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Preheat oven to 400F. Place oven rack in upper middle position. Cook for 60 minutes, rotating the baking sheet one time at 30 minutes. Remove and allow to cool for 10 to 15 minutes. Serve and Enjoy!
Did you make this recipe? Tag @EverydayMaven on Instagram with the hashtag #EveryDayMaven and please give a star rating below.
No blender, no food processor,put melba toast in a food storage bag and drive over with the car on a hard surface,this works well with cookies you when you want crumbs for a dessert recipe.
Yep! My Mom used to do this with graham crackers to make a cheesecake crust!
Hahaha I absolutely agree with you
Thank you for checking for the latest comments in 2019. I want to make this in the next few days and was wondering if you could bake it in a toaster over! Would it just be a shorter time because of the heat in such a small space. Thank you!!
How did this turn out?
I love how this variation is the real key to crispy fried chicken. It helps that you cooled on a wire rack and not paper towels, as you see so often. One question for you; how did you buy Best Food mayo (Hellmann’s) East of the Mississippi? hahaha
Ha!!! I was living in Seattle, WA at the time I wrote the post – hence the Best Foods mayo lol!
I grew up on Southern Oven Fried Chicken with a much easier recipe that always gets raves. Melt a stick of butter in the middle of your roasting pan. You prep the chicken by washing the pieces and shaking them in a paper bag to coat with flour, paprika and salt and pepper. Place the coated pieces around the outside edge of the roasting pan. Cook 1/2 hour per side at 350/375 degrees. Quick and easy to prepare.
So I have a big family and none of them like bone in chicken. How should I change the timing for the cooking of the chicken? I haven’t tried this recipe yet but I’m excited to do so.
Hi! Are you going to try boneless breasts or thighs?
This is a real favorite in our household. When I asked my daughter what she wanted for dinner for her 6th birthday, this is what she asked for! Thanks for the great recipe!!
That is awesome Christine!! You totally made my night – thanks for taking the time to comment and let me know and also a HUGE Happy 6th Birthday to your little girl 🙂