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Easy dinner? Picnic meal? Make ahead lunchbox filler? Southern Fried Chicken ticks so many boxes.
But my days of dancing with The Colonel are over. This recipe combines the juiciness of buttermilk brined chicken pieces with the crunch of smoky, spiced coating and it’s oven baked so you don’t have to stand over a pot of hot oil.
Could it be any more perfect?
You can really experiment with the herbs and spices that you have on hand, or that you know suit your tastes. Make it your own. The “buttermilk” in this recipe is a dairy-free alternative, but by all means use buttermilk if it fits your requirements.
I love to throw together a batch of these on the weekend for easy snacking or lunches during the week.
Note: Nutrition facts for ingredients used as marinade are included partially (25%) as they are only used for marinating. Buttermilk can be used in place of almond milk and lemon juice if you do not require a paleo, dairy-free version.
Hands-on Overall
Nutritional values (per serving)
Net carbs2 grams
Protein32.3 grams
Fat17 grams
Calories318 kcal
Calories from carbs 3%, protein 44%, fat 53%
Total carbs3.8 gramsFiber1.7 gramsSugars0.6 gramsSaturated fat6.3 gramsSodium752 mg(33% RDA)Magnesium39 mg(10% RDA)Potassium476 mg(24% EMR)
Ingredients (makes 6 servings)
- 12 chicken drumsticks, or pieces to taste (1.6 kg/ 3.5 lb) - will yield about 50% meat
- 4 cups unsweetened almond milk (960 ml/ 32 fl oz) - see note below for a nut-free alternative
- 4 tbsp lemon juice (60 ml/ 2 fl oz) - can be substituted with vinegar
- 2 tbsp pink Himalayan salt or sea salt (used in the brine)
- 2 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- Optional: 1/4 tsp chilli powder
- 1 1/4 cup pork rinds (63 g/ 2.2 oz) - you can make your own
- 1/4 cup coconut flour (30 g/ 1.1 oz)
- olive oil or coconut oil cooking spray
Instructions
- Combine almond milk, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of salt, 1 teaspoon of pepper and 1 teaspoon of dried oregano in a bowl. (Note: The amount of salt sounds like a lot but remember, this is only in the brine. You won't actually be consuming this much salt. You can use half if you prefer.)
- Submerge chicken pieces and leave to brine for a minimum of 90 minutes and a maximum of overnight.
- Once brining is complete, add remaining ingredients, except cooking oil, into a food processor and pulse until combined into fine crumbs.
- Preheat oven to 180 °C/ 355 °F (fan assisted), or 200 °C/ 400 °F (conventional). Shake crumbed coating out onto a tray. One at a time, remove chicken pieces from brine solution and roll in coating until evenly coated.
- Place coated pieces on a lined baking tray. Once all pieces are coated, bake for approx. 45 minutes depending on the size of your pieces. Mid-way through the baking time, remove from oven and spray with olive oil cooking spray.
- Serve with Keto French Fries!
Ingredient nutritional breakdown (per serving)
| Net carbs | Protein | Fat | Calories |
|---|
| Chicken drumsticks, raw |
| 0.1 g | 24.1 g | 12.3 g | 215 kcal |
| Almond milk natural (unsweetened) |
| 0.2 g | 0.2 g | 0.5 g | 6 kcal |
| Lemon juice, fresh |
| 0.1 g | 0 g | 0 g | 0 kcal |
| Salt, pink Himalayan rock salt |
| 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | 0 kcal |
| Pepper, black, spices |
| 0.2 g | 0.1 g | 0 g | 1 kcal |
| Oregano, dried |
| 0.1 g | 0 g | 0 g | 1 kcal |
| Paprika, smoked (spices) |
| 0.1 g | 0.1 g | 0.1 g | 2 kcal |
| Garlic powder, spices |
| 0.3 g | 0.1 g | 0 g | 2 kcal |
| Onion powder, spices |
| 0.3 g | 0 g | 0 g | 1 kcal |
| Pork rinds (pork skins), dry, plain (for "breading") |
| 0 g | 6.8 g | 1.1 g | 51 kcal |
| Coconut flour, organic |
| 0.5 g | 0.9 g | 0.8 g | 18 kcal |
| Coconut oil, extra virgin |
| 0 g | 0 g | 2.2 g | 20 kcal |
| Total per serving |
| 2 g | 32.3 g | 17 g | 318 kcal |
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