Skip to Content
Menu

Pecan Fried Chicken Tenders

  • Save Recipe
  • Prep 20 min
  • Total 45 min
  • Servings 4
  • Save
  • Print
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Email
Ready to make?
  • Save
  • Share
  • Keep Screen On
Fried chicken with a pecan breading that makes it extra crunchy and extra delicious!
by: Macheesmo
Updated Nov 25, 2014
  • Save
  • Share
  • Keep Screen On

Ingredients

  • 4 medium chicken breasts
  • 2 cups pecans, ground
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon paprika
  • 1 tablespoon granulated onion
  • 1 tablespoon black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon cayenne powder
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 3 large eggs
  • 3 tablespoons milk
  • 3 cups vegetable oil, for frying
  • Extra flour, for dusting

Steps

  • 1
    Cut chicken breasts into 4-5 pieces. Try to make them fairly even-sized so the pieces will fry evenly. Dust the chicken pieces lightly with flour to dry them out.
  • 2
    In a food processor, pulse pecans until they are completely ground. Then stir together pecans, flour, and seasonings.
  • 3
    Whisk together eggs and milk in a medium bowl.
  • 4
    Add chicken pieces to egg mixture, coat well and then transfer to the pecan breading. Press the chicken pieces down in the breading so there is a nice thick coating on the chicken.
  • 5
    Remove the chicken from the breading and let it dry for a few minutes on a wire rack or clean plate.
  • 6
    Heat oil in a large pot, preferably cast iron skillet over medium high heat.
  • 7
    Once the oil is hot, add chicken pieces and fry until they are golden brown, about four minutes per side. Cook the chicken in batches to make sure the pan doesn't get crowded.
  • 8
    When chicken is cooked, remove it to a plate lined with paper towels and let it drain briefly. Then serve immediately with biscuits and veggies on the side!

Nutrition Information

No nutrition information available for this recipe

More About This Recipe

  • In my humble opinion, it’s pretty hard to mess up fried chicken.

    Sure, you can overcook it a bit or under-season it a bit, but you’ll still have fried chicken.

    But, there’s good fried chicken and there’s excellent fried chicken – and luckily for you this Pecan Fried Chicken recipe is excellent fried chicken.

    The only tricky thing about this recipe is grinding the pecans and making sure you don’t burn them!  Here are some of the basics you need for the pecan breading.

    Pulse the pecans in a food processor until they are really ground up, then stir them into the flour and seasoning. The seasoning should be pretty strong since each piece of chicken will have a relatively small amount on it.

    Once the breading is mixed, pour it into a shallow dish. Whisk together the eggs and milk in a medium bowl.

    Meanwhile, you might want to get some biscuits ready – they just go great with the fried chicken. I cooked up some Pillsbury homestyle biscuits.

    I always bake mine on parchment paper for 15-17 minutes.

    Okay. Back to the chicken!  Cut the chicken breasts into 4-5 pieces and try to make them roughly the same size so they fry evenly. Then dust the pieces in flour to dry them out. This will help the breading stick on them.

    Dunk the chicken pieces into the egg mixture and then transfer them to the breading. Really press the chicken into the breading so a nice crust forms.  Remove the chicken pieces and let them dry for a few minutes on a wire rack or plate.

    Meanwhile, heat your oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. When it’s hot, add the chicken pieces in batches and fry them for about four minutes per side until they are golden brown and cooked through.

    The one thing about using pecans as a breading is that they will burn faster than an all-flour breading. No big deal though, just keep a close eye on them as they fry.

    These are almost like adult chicken nuggets. They are very crispy and have a rich, nutty, spicy flavor.

    Considering this isn’t much more work than normal fried chicken, it’s totally worth trying!

    Nick will eat almost any fried chicken, but this one is one of his favorites. Be sure to check out his blog, Macheesmo, and follow him on his Tablespoon Profile.
© 2024 ®/TM General Mills All Rights Reserved