Conquering a Fear!

Is there a fear or something that you just haven’t been able to get the courage up to do in the kitchen? Well, I overcame my kitchen fear just recently! Want to know what it was?

It’s fried foods! I have always been a nervous wreck around hot oil. I either get it too hot or don’t use enough and end up burning the food. I’m not even a real fan of fried foods but there is something about homemade fried chicken that is so darn good! I blame this on my mom for knowing how to make some yu-m-m-y fried chicken! Honestly, I probably haven’t tried very hard to overcome my fear due to the obvious health reasons. But, you can do things in moderation right? Of course you can! Fried foods are almost never in our diet as it is, so I’m not going to start highlighting a bunch of fried foods on this site now. What I want to do is show you that you can make those fast food items at home in a healthier way.


First off, I used peanut oil to make these chicken nuggets. I chose peanut oil for the health benefits. See peanut oil is a monounsaturated fat, a healthy fat that can actually help with cholesterol levels; making it a better choice over vegetable oil. And peanut oil adds a nice flavor to your foods.

The other factor that I’d like to point out is that these nuggets did not come from a box full of unnecessary added ingredients. Including the seasonings and cooking oil, they only have 8 ingredients. These even have fiber included with the whole wheat flour I used. Many nuggets that you buy in the frozen foods section in the grocery have so many added preservatives or hidden trans fats.


Nor did they take a long time to prepare. From the soaking in buttermilk to cooking process, it took only 30 minutes! And I haven't even mentioned the comments from my family! My youngest gal exclaimed- "Homemade chicken nuggets, mommy you're the best cooker!" My husband was very shocked to see a fried food on his plate but was very impressed with the taste. A real success. Hooray! Proved I could fry something without burning down the house and make a better option to fast food.


Warning: if you or any one in your house has a peanut allergy, then please do not cook with this oil. You would want to substitute canola and just watch and make sure it doesn’t get too hot and burn.

Southwestern Chicken Nuggets
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into small 1-2 inch chunks
1 cup buttermilk (I like to make my own with 1 cup of milk and 1 tbsp vinegar, stir and let sit for 5 minutes)
1 cup whole wheat flour
½ cup bread crumbs
2 tsp coarse salt
2 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
¼ cup peanut oil


Directions:
In shallow bowl add buttermilk and chicken allowing it to soak for about 10 minutes. Add all dry ingredients to another shallow bowl. Heat oil in skillet. Once chicken is ready, shake off piece by piece and dip in flour mixture and coat well. Let cook approximately 5-7 minutes on each side or until juices run clear.

Add some salsa on the side to dip instead of traditional catsup.

**By the way, I might not crop much from my kitchen pictures in the next few months to see if you can figure out what is going on in the McD kichen!