The Freshman Cook: Homemade Chicken Fingers with Ranch and Honey Mustard Dressing

Today we are talking chicken fingers. I love chicken fingers. As a matter of fact, when I was pregnant with my son, it was chicken fingers that I craved. I was waiting to crave watermelon or ice cream, but no, it was chicken fingers!! Crazy, huh?!! And the craving was not for just any chicken fingers, but bar chicken fingers. You know the kind served in bars. At the time, most bars in Las Vegas served some really good food. The wings were the popular item, but the fingers won me over. So, about 2 nights a week, my husband and I would go out in search of chicken fingers. So, here I am, 21 years later, still loving chicken fingers, and making them for dinner tonight.
I served them with the same ranch dressing we made last week, and some honey mustard sauce that is to die for. Both dressings need about 2 hours in the refrigerator before serving. To make the Ranch Dressing go to:http://thefreshmancook.blogspot.com/2011/05/red-white-blue-crudite-w-dried-herb.html

Chicken Fingers

1 cup Milk

2 Chicken Breasts(boneless & skinless)

1 Egg

20 Saltines

1 teaspoon Garlic Powder

 1/2 teaspoon Dried Basil Leaves

1/4 teaspoon Paprika

Salt and Pepper 1 cup Flour (not pictured~late arrival!!)

Honey Mustard Dressing (adapted from Escape from the Everyday Cookbook) 3/4 cup Sour Cream 1/3 cup Mayo 1/3 cup Dijon Mustard 1/3 cup Honey 1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon lemon juice Put sour cream and mayo in bowl.
Add Dijon Mustard.
Whisk mustard into the sour cream and mayo mix.
Slowly pour in the honey and whisk .
Pour in the lemon juice and whisk all ingredients together.
Isn’t it beautiful.!! Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

And Now for the Chicken Fingers:

Chop the saltines in a food processor, if you have one. If you don’t have one, put the saltines in a plastic zip lock bag.
Then smash them with a rolling pin until they are finely ground. Put them to the side for now. Start slicing your chicken. Make sure that you trim all the fat off of it first. Cut in thin 1/4″ wide slices. Cut along thelength of the chicken.
Let’s make an egg wash! Crack your egg into a bowl. Add a little water, and then whisk the egg to loosen the egg up and to incorporate the water into the egg. Put the crushed saltines in a bowl, and add 1 teaspoon garlic powder 1/2 teaspoon dried basil, and 1/4 teaspoon paprika. Mix well. Put your frying pan on medium heat and let it start to get hot.
While your pan is heating, set up an assembly line to dunk and dredge your chicken. Here is your line. I know it looks messy. But this is kind of a messy job~but worth it.!! First dunk your piece of chicken in the milk. Then dredge through the flour. Next dip in the egg, and then dredge this time through the saltines. Dredging through the saltines.
Fry the fingers in the hot oil until they are golden brown and cooked through. it will take 10-15 minutes. When you remove them from the oil, drain them   on a paper towel sitting on a plate.

Then transfer to a serving plate.

Enjoy my favorite craving!! Thanks for joining me today. I hope you enjoy making these chicken fingers and the dressing to dip them in. If you have any questions about anything just ask it in the comments, or you can email me at thefreshmancook@hotmail.com. I check it through out the day, so I won’t leave you hanging. Tomorrow we are making Grandmas Potato Salad. It really is grandmas. You will love it!

See you then!!

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