You will never want to buy supermarket chicken goujons again once you’ve tasted homemade! Why not involve the kids in making them too? They will love the messy bits and can learn about what they are eating at the same time!
Makes approximately 4-6 servings
Preparation time is approximately 10-15 minutes
Cooking time is approximately 20-25 minutes
ingredients
5 - 6 cups of breadcrumbs (approx. 300g)
3 - 4 boneless and skinless chicken breasts cut into strips
4 cups of plain flour
½ teaspoon of mild chilli powder
½ teaspoon of mild garlic granules
½ teaspoon of salt
3 – 4 free-range eggs, beaten
2-3 teaspoon of olive oil
How to make your chicken goujons
Preheat oven to 180°C (Gas mark 4 or 160°C for a fan oven).
Slice the chicken breast into thin strips or chunks, roughly all the same size.
Season the flour with salt. Add chilli powder and garlic granules to the flour if using, and mix thoroughly.
Place breadcrumbs and eggs in separate shallow bowls. TIP: Make it easy – place them in the right order! Chicken…Flour… Egg… Breadcrumbs.
Coat each strip of chicken in flour then egg and finally the breadcrumbs making sure they are evenly coated.
Place on lined baking sheet, drizzle/spray with olive oil and bake for 20 – 25 minutes until the breadcrumbs are golden brown and the chicken is cooked through. TIP: Check they are cooked through by taking one of the bigger goujons and cutting it in half. If there is no pink flesh, they are cooked!
Serve with with rice and vegetables, a colourful salad or even with mashed potato and beans ….in fact the list is endless!
HOMEMADE Breadcrumbs
Homemade breadcrumbs are so easy to make and they help reduce food wastage so it’s a win win!
You can use any bread that you have left over – wholemeal, white bread, French stick, rolls, in fact anything that is past its best. (My daughter is gluten intolerant and the bread is SO expensive so I always blitz them up too).
Here’s several options of what you can do….. Grind down your ‘leftover’ bread in the food processor and spread in a single layer on a baking tray covered in grease-proof paper. Bake at about 150 C for 10 mins (stirring around after 5 minutes). Completely cool down on the baking sheet then pop them in a freezer bag and freeze until needed.
Although it’s best to use ‘old’ bread, you can use fresh bread but you need to prepare it before blitzing! Heat it in a toaster to dry off the moisture for a few minutes, and then cool before using.
If you don’t have a food processor – NO PROBLEM! You can cut the toasted bread into small cubes and once cool, add them to a large resealable bag that is partially sealed. Use a rolling pin to crush the toasted bread into tiny crumbs.
HINTS & TIPS
Swap plain flour for gluten free flour and breadcrumbs for gluten free breadcrumbs!
Why not make more than you need and freeze some to use when you’re struggling for time?
If you have any bread that is past its best (bit dry but no mould!) making the breadcrumbs is VERY easy and it saves food waste too! You can pop them in the freezer and use for this, and lots of other, recipes.
Leftovers can be kept in the fridge in an airtight container for a couple of days. As soon as they are cooled, refrigerate as soon as possible. They are lovely served cold (in a wrap with some lettuce perhaps?) but if you want to reheat, you must ensure they are piping hot and remember NEVER reheat any food more than once.
This recipe can be frozen, but please remember to freeze them as soon as they are cold enough to handle. And remember to use a container or bag that is suitable for freezing. Please defrost thoroughly before reheating and make sure they are piping hot before serving!
Please click HERE to see Cooking Good’s statement on allergens and substitutions within recipes.
Don’t forget to look at our useful articles on a variety of family topics including batch cooking, leftovers, hydration, fussy eaters and more! Here is the LINK.