Healthy & Skillet Fried Chiken

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Skillet-Fried Chicken

Skillet-Fried Chicken
  • Prep10 Min
  • Total45 Min
  • Servings6
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To start a perfect chicken recipe, start with pantry staples like flour and spices to fresh chicken–but no need to use a deep fryer. A sturdy skillet is all it takes to make this juicy, crispy pan-fried chicken. You can prep it in just 10 minutes and be ready to eat in under an hour.
by Betty Crocker Kitchens
Updated Dec 20, 2019

Ingredients

  • 1/2cup Gold Medal™ all-purpose flour
  • 1tablespoon paprika
  • 1 1/2teaspoons salt
  • 1/2teaspoon pepper
  • 3- to 3 1/2-lb cut-up whole chicken
  • Vegetable oil
Make With

Make With
Gold Medal Flour

Steps

  • 1
    In shallow dish, mix flour, paprika, salt and pepper. Coat chicken with flour mixture.
  • 2
    In 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat oil (1/4 inch) over medium-high heat. Cook chicken in oil, skin sides down, about 10 minutes or until light brown; reduce heat to low. Turn chicken skin sides up.
  • 3
    Cook uncovered about 20 minutes, without turning, until juice of chicken is clear when thickest pieces are cut to bone (at least 165°F).

Tips from the Betty Crocker Kitchens

  • tip 1
    Cook until the juices run clear when you pierce the meat close to the bone runs clear. The internal temperature should be 165°F, which is easiest to check with an instant-read thermometer.
  • tip 2

Healthy Fried Chicken

Breaded chicken doesn’t have to be greasy – this oven-baked version is low fat and packed full of flavor!

Recipe Video Print  

TOTAL TIME:1 hour
SERVES:

Author:

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This low-fat recipe for healthy fried chicken makes a delicious, crispy coating that’s baked making a healthy alternative to deep-fried.

Serve with a side of  Crispy Roast Potatoes and Garlic & Parmesan Roasted Brussels Sprouts for a meal everyone will love!

Three pieces of Easy Oven Fried Chicken speckled with parsley

Don’t you just love fried chicken?  I know I do, but dragging out the deep-fryer every time I want to make it is not ideal.  Plus, who needs all that fat?

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Why This Recipe Works

  • Using skimmed milk instead of egg to coat the chicken keeps the fat content down.
  • Using low-fat cooking spray allows the crispy coating without deep frying.
  • Using legs and thighs assures the chicken is moist and juicy.

The Breading

For the breading, I use a mixture of plain breadcrumbs that I season with oregano, garlic powder, paprika Parmasean Cheese, salt, and pepper.

You can alter the recipe in any way that suits you and your family.  Make it your own like I have or take the shortcut of buying pre-seasoned breadcrumbs from the grocery store.

How to Healthy Fried Chicken

Put the bread crumbs in a bowl with seasoning.

All of the breading ingredients added to a glass bowl

Mix it together and add it to a large zip lock bag.

The breading mixture added to a plastic zip-lock bag

Add the chicken to a bowl with the milk. This will help the bread crumbs stick to the chicken.

Raw Chicken Wings in a bowl with milk

Then add the chicken to the bag with the bread crumbs. Seal the bag and give it a good shake to seal.

Three pieces of chicken being coated with bread crumbs in a plastic bag.

Place on a baking sheet (I line mine with nonstick foil). and spray with low-fat cooking spray.

A pan of chicken pieces coated with breadcrumbs being spayed with cooking spray.

Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes.

The Fried Chicken fresh from the oven still on the pan

Check to see if the chicken has browned. If needed, spray with more cooking spray and bake for another 15 minutes. Remove from oven and rest on paper towels. Enjoy!

Three pieces of Easy Oven Fried Chicken speckled with parsley

Erren’s Top Tips

  • Use Chicken pieces that are uniform in size.  When oven frying chicken, use one cup of chicken or two similar-sized cuts so they have the same cooking time.
  • Always use bone-in chicken pieces with the skin on.  Using boneless chicken without skin will come out dry.
  • Season Generously.  When making oven-fried chicken, season your chicken with salt at every stage. Add salt and pepper to the flour and egg mixture. It’s hard to get any seasoning into the meat, but seasoning throughout the entire process will help ensure it’s extra flavorful.
  • Don’t Crowd the Pan. Overcrowding the pan will cause steam and make your breading soggy.  If necessary, cook on two sheets.
  • Don’t Cover with Foil.  Many people think that covering a pan with foil during cooking will keep it from browning too much, but this will create a seal and cause condensation which will make the chicken soggy.

Winner, Winner Chicken Dinner

Three pieces of Easy Oven Fried Chicken speckled with parsley

Let’s MakeHealthy Fried Chicken

Breaded chicken doesn’t have to be greasy – this oven-baked version is low fat and packed full of flavor!
4.8 from 30 votes
PREP15 minutes
COOK45 minutes
TOTAL1 hour
Serves:
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Ingredients

  • 12 chicken peices dark meat
  • 2 cup skimmed milk
  • 1 cup breadcrumbs
  • 2 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 2 teaspoons garlic powder
  • 2 teaspoons dried paprika
  • 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
  • salt and pepper to taste
Cups – Metric
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Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400F/200C.
  • Put the bread crumbs in a shallow bowl and mix in the oregano, garlic powder, paprika, Parmesan cheese, salt & pepper.  Add the breadcrumb mixture to a sealable food storage bag.
  • Add the chicken to another bowl and pour over the milk.
  • Add the chicken piece by piece to the bag with the bread crumbs (three pieces should be added to the bag at a time).  Seal the bag and shake to coat with the breadcrumbs.
  • Place the chicken in a dry 9×13 inch baking dish lined with nonstick foil. Spray with cooking spray.
  • Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Check to see if the chicken has browned. If needed, spray with cooking spray and bake another 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and drain on paper towels. Enjoy!

Tips + Notes

  • Use Chicken pieces that are uniform in size.  When oven frying chicken, use one cup of chicken or two similar-sized cuts so they have the same cooking time.
  • Always use bone-in chicken pieces with the skin on.  Using boneless chicken without skin will come out dry.
  • Season Generously.  When making oven-fried chicken, season your chicken with salt at every stage. Add salt and pepper to the flour and egg mixture. It’s hard to get any seasoning into the meat, but seasoning throughout the entire process will help ensure it’s extra flavorful.
  • Don’t Crowd the Pan. Overcrowding the pan will cause steam and make your breading soggy.  If necessary, cook on two sheets.
  • Don’t Cover with Foil.  Many people think that covering a pan with foil during cooking will keep it from browning too much, but this will create a seal and cause condensation which will make the chicken soggy.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 316kcal (16%)| Carbohydrates: 13g (4%)| Protein: 21g (42%)| Fat: 20g (31%)| Saturated Fat: 5g (31%)| Trans Fat: 1g| Cholesterol: 112mg (37%)| Sodium: 175mg (8%)| Potassium: 306mg (9%)| Fiber: 1g (4%)| Sugar: 2g (2%)| Vitamin A: 307IU (6%)| Vitamin C: 1mg (1%)| Calcium: 67mg (7%)| Iron: 2mg (11%)

Nutritional Data Disclaimer