Fish/Chicken Fingers
Notes:
Batter-dipped or breaded anything is a challenge for Planter kitchen, which is shooting for a one-size-fits-all batter for fish, chicken, and vegetables. Once this goal is reached, I will try Jalapeno Poppers. Some of the tips below may help.
Batter usually has only an egg and liquid coating and is deep fried. Breading adds an additional coat of bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, or crumbled corn flakes to make a crunchier coating and can be easily baked (for those like this cook who are on a low-cholesterol diet).
Whether it's Parade or Gourmet Magazine, ingredients for batters and breading are pretty standard: flour, egg, more flour, crumbs. This cook chose beer batter for its flavor and consistency. For an alternative, try Paul Prudhomme's approach for fried catfish and combine 1/2 cup each cornmeal, corn flour, and flour and blend in some Creole Seasoning for the batter mix. Many recipes marinate chicken pieces in the refrigerator for several hours in a buttermilk mixture before dipping in batter.
One recipe for Shrimp Po' Boys tosses cooked, peeled, and deveined shrimp with olive oil, rolls them in bread crumbs, salt, and pepper, and broils them in a single layer on a baking sheet for 4 minutes.
If you want to serve fish and chips, try haddock, cod, or catfish. Cut the fillets into 1" wide strips, dip according to instructions below, fry on each side for 4-5 minutes, then finish cooking in a low oven. Chicken fingers can be prepared similarly, after pounding till about 1/3" thick.
Baking instead of deep-frying has become almost respectable, now that plaque has become public enemy #1. Family Circle, Eat What You Love & Lose uses a yogurt-based marinade for the chicken and corn bread stuffing for the coating. Thin wedges of potatoes and sweet potatoes are dipped into whipped egg whites and corn bread stuffing and baked along with the chicken.
Some general rules of thumb from Joy of Cooking to make
fritter or tempura batters:
* Resting the batter for a couple hours in the refrigerator breaks down gluten before it
becomes too elastic for the coating mixture to adhere. Then it really won't stick!
Using fewer strokes when mixing also helps.
* Food and cooking surfaces, of whatever you're coating, should be dry to allow batter to
adhere.
* Egg whites should be beaten at the last minute before cooking, or coating becomes soggy.
* A general rule of thumb for baking batter-dipped fish seems to be 10-12 minutes in
a "very hot oven," or till fish flakes. (The editor is still trying to figure
out how to know when fish flakes without destroying the integrity of the batter coating.)
An author (unknown) of recipes for fried chicken from the Washington Post, 1/4/95, holds this principle sacred in both batter dipping and breading: lightly dust with flour before dipping in egg. If this important step is missed, he/she says, the breaded coating or the batter crust will roll or peel off. He also prefers soaking chicken in buttermilk or some other liquid before dipping in flour and egg.
This recipe formerly called for folding in two egg whites to batter after sitting. Tried without this step, the batter actually adhered better when making fish chips. Serve with one of our Dipping Sauces or with Mom's Dipping Sauces.
For batter:
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cp beer
1/2 cp flour
2-3 T Tabasco sauce
pinch of salt
1 cp flour
1-2 cp breaded corn flakes or bread crumbs
2 T spice mix (this cook's favorites are sage, thyme, sage, garlic poweder and black,
white, and red pepper)
1. Place flour, batter mixture and breading mixture on separate plates.
2. Dredge first in flour, then dip in batter, then dredge in corn flakes/bread crumbs.
3. Bake according to instructions below.
For baking:
Place on cookie or baking sheet, drizzle with 2 T melted butter or olive oil if you're feeling decadent, and bake at 425 degrees for about 45 minutes or til tender and no longer pink and coating is crisp and golden.
For frying:
3 T butter
3 T oil