I love chicken legs. So does Marlboro Man. So do the punks. This means I’m always looking for new and interesting ways to cook them, since I’ve fried so many chicken legs in my life, I could fuel Airforce One for a year with the leftover oil. Plus, although fried chicken is delicious, I get a little tired of it. I do! Don’t tell Marlboro Man or Colonel Sanders, okay? I don’t mean no disrespect.
This is a yummy, quick way to spruce up chicken, and considering I threw the dish together with ingredients I already had on hand (translation: I had no food and was scouring the pantry and fridge for something warm and hot to fix for my ravenous family) it turned out beautifully. The two key ingredients are plain, unflavored yogurt—an ingredient I’ve started using more and more in my cooking lately—and Panko bread crumbs. Panko bread crumbs, if you’ve never tried them, are just delightful: extremely light and crispy and wonderful. And while I used to have to order Panko bread crumbs by mail back when I started using them in 2002, these days they can be found all over the place in most supermarkets—even The Wal Marts, for Pete’s sake.
The fact that I actually remember the year I started using Panko bread crumbs should give you some idea as to why I can’t remember my grandmother’s birthday or important things I have to mail. My mind is filled with useless, irrelevant facts, facts like the exact time in history I began using breading ingredients.
The Cast of Characters: Chicken (I used legs, but any piece of chicken will do), Plain, Unflavored Yogurt, Garlic, Parsley, Lemon Juice, Salt, Butter, and Panko Bread Crumbs.
Behold the Panko bread crumbs. Panko Bread Crumbs from The Wal Marts. Yum.
Speaking of Yum. Let us observe a moment of silence for the beauty that plain, unflavored yogurt has brought to our lives.
Butter, too. Let’s not forget its humanitarian contributions.
Oh! It wouldn’t be a Cast of Characters without my actually forgetting one of the characters, would it? Parsley. Fresh Parsley. Here it is, in all its verdant greenness.
I know “verdant greenness” is criminally redundant, but just work with me here.
Begin by throwing 2 cups of plain yogurt into a mixing bowl.
Now peel a couple of cloves of garlic…
And mince them very finely.
Now throw the garlic in with the yogurt.
Before.
After.
Now grab some parsley. It gives a nice, fresh flavor to the chicken. You can experiment with different herbs/seasonings here. It won’t hurt my feelings.
Chop the parsley finely.
Then throw it into the yogurt.
Give the mixture a little stir.
Now cut a lemon in half.
Then squeeze in the juice, stirring well to combine.
Now go thoroughly rinse the chicken, and salt it well. And if you don’t have Kosher salt in your kitchen, buy it today! It’s Morton’s…in the salt aisle. And it’s very, very forgiving.
Pour some Panko breadcrumbs into a second bowl. I start with about 2 cups.
Salt the breadcrumbs just to give them a little more flavor.
Now, in final preparation for our landing, go ahead and butter a baking dish. Everything’s better with a little smear of butter: Don’t you ever forget that.
Now it’s time to make the chicken, baby! First, place the chicken, one at a time, into the yogurt mixture. Turn it over to thoroughly coat…
Then roll in the Panko breadcrumbs.
They’ll adhere really well—just make sure to coat all the areas of the chicken thoroughly.
Repeat until all the chicken is breaded…
…And place in the buttered baking dish.
Then, place a slice of butter over the large part of the chicken. This is a very important step, as the Panko breadcrumbs tend to get pretty dry without the moisture of the butter.
I look for whatever butter rationale I can find in my daily life. It’s a hobby of mine.
Now cover in foil and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour, removing foil for the last 15 minutes to allow it to get nice and golden. I actually had to bake mine for almost 1 hour 15 minutes this time, so be prepared to keep going until it’s nice and golden and sizzling. You’ll want the breading on the underside of the chicken not to be soft and mushy, so pay attention to it.
Mmmm. It’s ready. It’s no fried chicken, but it’s a really nice, light substitute. Instead of the buttermilk, egg, and flour mixture I use to coat my fried chicken, this chicken’s breading is nothing more than yogurt and very light breadcrumbs. It just feels good goin’ down! Serve it with a big, green salad with Homemade Ranch Dressing, and your family will give you a pedicure right after dinner. I promise.
Try it this week! (Oh, and don’t forget to eat the crispy, brown bits from the bottom of the baking pan.)
(Crispy, brown bits are my life.)
Love,
Pioneer Woman
