Chili-Crusted Chicken Recipe

To me, it's funny how the first thing I make new for my blog is a recipe instead of a craft. I had plenty of DIYs planned, but ever since my birthday dinner I've wanted to try and re-create the yummy dish I ate! My version is mild enough that children would probably enjoy it too. So without further ado, I give you: Chili-Crusted Chicken

 Chili-Crusted Chicken

Ingredients: 

• 2-3 chicken breasts
• 1 cup bread crumbs (any kind, including cornbread)
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 2 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp cumin
• About 1/8 tsp each of salt and pepper
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 tbs vegetable oil
• 1-2 tbs butter

Sauce (all to taste, but this is what I used): 

• 1 cup ketchup
• 2 tbs Sriracha sauce
• 2 tsp brown sugar

Directions: 

1.  Rinse off chicken and flatten a little, if you like, for a more consistent size. Cut each breast in half. Set aside. 
2. Combine bread crumbs, chili powder, paprika, cumin, salt and pepper in a large bowl and mix.
3. Dip chicken in eggs; shake off the excess. Then place it into the breadcrumb mix making sure to coat it very well. Set aside.
4. Heat oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook both sides until a dark brown. 
5. You can continue to cook the chicken this way until done with no pink in the middle, or you can place in a casserole dish and bake at 350° for 20-30 minutes or until reaching an internal temp of 160°
6. Combine the sauce ingredients and try it as you go along. Some people like more Sriracha, but I'm not that big a fan of spicy so I didn't add as much. Serve alongside the chicken for dipping. Tastes great on the green beans too!

During cooking, prepare your choice of sides. In my case, I made scalloped potatoes (from a box) and some French green beans. Then pour yourself a glass (or two) of a nice white wine (I had Riesling) and enjoy!

I have to admit that coming up with this recipe was a bit of a challenge. I did a search for it beforehand just in case someone had already made it. The few that I looked at gave me a couple of ideas, but they weren't quite right. These are the two that were closest to what I was looking for and gave me the best pointers: Chili and cornmeal crusted chicken and Chili-crusted chicken from Recipes for moms. I made a few mistakes, but I know what they were (mostly adding too much oil to begin with, which I remedied in the recipe.) But at the end of the day, it turned out to be alright :)

Oh, and it's boyfriend approved, so that's a plus! 

Please let me know what you think of this recipe if you decide to try it out! Also if you make any changes or substitutions I'd like to hear about that too. Let me know! :)

Thanks for stopping by ♥