Category: Lunch

How many ways can you cook chicken??? Here one more, Pickle Brined Chicken Tenders.

I adapted this from a recipe that I found on Epicurious. When I first started to really get into cooking, this my my go to site for whatever I wanted to cook. The recipes are all phenomenal and I was never at loss as to what to cook. I never had to ask What the Forks for Dinner?

When I first saw this recipe I thought maybe the recipe had pickle juice in it…….no, but it had the pickling spices for pickles……I was intrigued.

The original recipe called for chicken thighs, but friends were coming over to my brothers house to watch the Nascar and fried finger foods were on the menu. So, for my contribution, instead of the thighs……light bulb moment…….chicken fingers.

The only problem I had was when making the brine my salt never did dissolve, but that did not affect anything.

All and all the recipe, although a couple of steps was easy to make. During the brine period you can make other things or just set back and relax…..I chose option one, but whatever suits you is fine.

Breading was a messy process, but in the end well worth the mess.

Now, my brother’s friend Jeff manned the deep fryer so I got off easy in the actual cooking department. Jeff also made fried fish which was out of this world. So….. Thank you to Jeff for making this recipe so easy for me. And for the super tasty fish.

End result………so “forking” good…….not a crumb left. This picture of my nephew about says it all.

The meat was tender and juicy, and the coating was crispy. The addition of honey drizzled over the top and a dash of hot sauce. Lets just say nobody had a plate we just ate as it came out of the fryer.

Yeah it was that good!!

In the mood for chicken strips….a.k.a. chicken finger…… Pickle Brined Chicken Tenders are your bird!!!!!

Pickle Brined Chicken Tenders

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• Author: Adapted from Epicurious
• Yield: 6 1x

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Ingredients

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• Brine:
• 2 tablespoons yellow mustard seeds
• 1 1/2 teaspoons coriander seeds
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2/3 cup kosher salt
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
• Chicken:
• 3 pounds chicken tenders
• Vegetable oil (for frying; about 10 cups)
• 2 cups buttermilk
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• Kosher salt
• Honey, sea salt, sesame seeds, hot sauce (for serving)

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Instructions

1. Brine:
2. Toast mustard and coriander seeds in a dry medium saucepan over medium heat, tossing often, until mustard seeds begin to pop, about 3 minutes. Add vinegar, salt, and sugar and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring often, until salt and sugar are dissolved, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in dill and 4 cups water. Let cool.
3. Chicken:
4. Place chicken and brine in a large bowl, cover and chill for 3 hours. Remove chicken from brine, scraping off seeds, cover, and chill until ready to fry.
5. Heat oil in deep fryer until 350°F.
6. Place buttermilk in a large bowl. Place flour in another large bowl; season with kosher salt. Coat chicken in buttermilk, then dredge in flour, dipping your fingers in buttermilk as you pack flour on. Transfer to a baking sheet.
7. Working in batches fry chicken, until skin is deep golden brown and crisp and chicken is cooked through, 6–8 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack set inside a baking sheet.
8. Drizzle chicken with honey; sprinkle with sea salt and sesame seeds. Serve with hot sauce.

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