Oatmeal Oven Fried Chicken

[Greg Who Cooks]

This oven fried chicken recipe is easy and fast to prepare. The chili powder and cumin add a delightful spicy taste, and the oatmeal provides a nice crunch!

1½ lb. whole chicken, cut up (or equivalent in thighs, breasts, etc.)
1½ C. quick cooking oats
1 T. paprika
1 T. chili powder
1 t. garlic powder
1 t. salt
1/2 t. cumin
1/4 t. ground pepper
1/2 C. milk
1 egg, beaten
3 T. butter or margarine, melted

Preheat oven to 350°. Mix the oatmeal, paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, salt, cumin and pepper and put the mix in a plastic bag. Mix the milk and egg in a dish. Dip the chicken pieces into the milk-egg mixture, then shake the chicken pieces one at a time in the bag. Discard any remaining mix and bag.

Place chicken pieces in a single layer on a foil lined casserole dish or cookie sheet. A wire rack may be used and will be a significant improvement since it keeps the chicken out of the grease. Drizzle the melted butter over the top of the pieces. Do not cover or turn chicken during baking. Bake at 350° for 40 minutes.


(This recipe was inspired by Country Chicken Cookbook although I have completely rewritten the directions in my own words, and I'm pretty sure I changed the ingredient list somewhat too.)

 

[buckytom]

ok, now we're talkin'. we love fried chicken, especially made at home, so i might just be able to convince dw to let me make it if i use oatmeal.

thanks greg!

 

[taxlady]

Do you think it would work with "quick oats"? I don't buy the instant kind.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

Use the kind you boil for 1-2 minutes. Don't use the traditional kind you cook for a long time. I don't even remember how long the traditional oatmeal takes to cook. My own oatmeal package says "quick cooks in 1 minute." Is that quick or instant?

If it says instant then it should be ready to eat as soon as it occurs to you that you want to eat oatmeal, right?

This recipe has been posted on my personal recipe website for ages but I hardly ever get visitor feedback. I'll appreciate any comments if there is a correct and unambiguous way to describe this ingredient, and if so then I can go back and revise my website so that new visitors won't be confused.

---

I like this recipe because it takes only about 5 minutes to prepare, and then you can just put it in your oven and forget it until it's almost done. Of course you'll want to check it a few minutes earlier since oven calibrations vary as do individual oven heating characteristics, particularly the surface you cook it on.

I really like using a wire grill for recipes like this because the grease drains off giving the chicken a better taste and makes it more healthful too. I use a wire rack that fits exactly in my cookie sheet, the kind of wire rack used for cooling cakes and other baked goods. It is often the case that recipes that suggest turning don't need it at all when cooked on a wire rack. However, as noted in the recipe above this version is not intended to be turned at all.

By the way, cover your cookie sheet or baking dish with aluminum foil and then when you're done you can just throw the foil and grease in the trash and put the sheet/dish back in storage. Of course if you use a rack it will take a few minutes to clean, but well worth it in my opinion, because it gives superior results for recipes like this.

 

[taxlady]

Use the kind you boil for 1-2 minutes. Don't use the traditional kind you cook for a long time. I don't even remember how long the traditional oatmeal takes to cook. My own oatmeal package says "quick cooks in 1 minute." Is that quick or instant?

If it says instant then it should be ready to eat as soon as it occurs to you that you want to eat oatmeal, right?

...
By the way, cover your cookie sheet or baking dish with aluminum foil and then when you're done you can just throw the foil and grease in the trash and put the sheet/dish back in storage. Of course if you use a rack it will take a few minutes to clean, but well worth it in my opinion, because it gives superior results for recipes like this.

My oatmeal is Quaker Oats brand and it says "quick" on the package. It says to cook for 3-5 minutes. I think "instant" is a kind you just add boiling water and stir. It will probably work. I'll give it a try. It might not work with thicker cut or rolled oats though.

Teehee. I'm not likely to use foil that I have to throw away. I'll probably just put a rack in a glass lasagna pan. The racks come clean with no effort in the dishwasher.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

Please let me know how it works out TL. The only reason I said not to use traditional is because it never occurred to me to try it. My own package directions say to bring one part of water to boil, add one part of oatmeal then cook for 1 minute stirring occasionally, then cover and serve in 2-3 minutes. So that's the kind of oatmeal I used.

When I give out recipes I only use recipes that I have personally cooked, to ensure that following my ingredients and steps will work all the time. When they're original recipes that I've developed myself I've often tested them a couple dozen times before sharing with others. There's too many recipes on the Internet and I see no point in adding my own recipes to the mix unless I think they're something special.

 

[Kayelle]

Sounds like a good recipe Greg, but I would change it to read "quick cooking oats" because the only "instant oatmeal" I've ever seen comes in a little envelope and contains sweetener. All it needs is boiling water poured over it in a bowl. It's truly nasty stuff by the way.

 

[chopper]

Ok...I just put some chicken in the oven. I only had rolled oats, so I processed them a little in the mini chopper before using. I think it will be fine (I will let you know). These spices smell great, and DH is excited to fund out what comes out of the oven. I am using boneless, skinless chicken tenders (would be better with skin-on thighs, but this is what I had). May need to serve with some sweet potato fries.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

Thanks Kayelle, yeah the sweetened kind is nasty. I'll change it to "quick cooking oats." It's funny how it seemed obvious to me back when I wrote it, but I can understand now why it's ambiguous.

Chopper I think skinless might be fine (although skin on is of course better) because the butter will provide some of the fats to make the coating taste good.

 

[chopper]

Thanks Greg. I used more butter and left the chicken right on the foil (no rack) to make up for the no skin. Smells great. Will be done soon!

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

It occurs to me that I should have mentioned to use some oil spray or other shortening on the casserole dish, cookie sheet or aluminum foil before placing the chicken, to prevent sticking. I hope this advice didn't come too late.

I'm a bit embarrassed that a recipe that I had thought was mature and ready for publishing needed two clarifications. I sure hope this is the exception and not the rule for my recipes.

 

[chopper]

No worries G Greg! I used enough butter that the chicken did not stick. It turned out great even with the rolled oats. I will have it again with a whole chicken or with thighs. DH liked it, and he can be a bit fussy at times. Thanks again for a new recipe. Yum!

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

Chopper, I'm happy it worked out for you. I enjoyed this recipe the first time I tried it, because it tastes good and because it's so easy. I know not everybody is committed to cooking as I am, and even amongst we enthusiasts there are times when we don't want to stand around the kitchen cooking for a long time, and this is a good one to get it over quickly and let it cook while you watch TV or post on the forum.

Yeah it's better with skin on chicken, like a cut up fryer or a package of thighs or legs or something. I can't recall if I've cooked it using skinless/boneless chicken but it's good to know that it works out okay with that too.

Somebody should try this recipe on pork chops!



** topic note: Thank you to Fiona who revised my OP at my request to clear up the confusion regarding "quick cooking oats."

 

[CWS4322]

I'm thinking buttermilk instead of the milk, but I always am looking for things to do with buttermilk (which I love)! Sounds great...but I am still having an issue with eating chicken because I now have laying hens!

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

I hope if anybody tries buttermilk that they will tell us how it came out.

Also, there's a buttermilk powder that might be added instead. The powder is nice because it has a long shelf life in your pantry. I've added it to other concocted seasoning mixes similar to the recipe in the OP and it worked out well.

CWS too bad with your issue with the laying hens. If you had a rooster you could also raise chickens for cooking, although from the sound of it I doubt you'd be comfortable with slaughtering, cleaning and butchering them. It's occurred to me a few times to try raising chickens but the part from having a live chicken until it reaches the same condition you buy it at the store bothers me too and I'm not sure I'd be up for it.

 

[chopper]

I hope if anybody tries buttermilk that they will tell us how it came out.

Also, there's a buttermilk powder that might be added instead. The powder is nice because it has a long shelf life in your pantry. I've added it to other concocted seasoning mixes similar to the recipe in the OP and it worked out well.

CWS too bad with your issue with the laying hens. If you had a rooster you could also raise chickens for cooking, although from the sound of it I doubt you'd be comfortable with slaughtering, cleaning and butchering them. It's occurred to me a few times to try raising chickens but the part from having a live chicken until it reaches the same condition you buy it at the store bothers me too and I'm not sure I'd be up for it.

Oh my gosh...we had chickens once when I was growing up to butcher and eat. Cleaning and plucking chickens is not something I want to ever do again! I didn't eat chicken for two years after that experience. I love chicken now, but I don't ever want to go through that again. It is not that I think it is bad for others to do, I just don't like doing it myself. Blaack!

 

[Claire]

This sounds both delicious and healthy. I wish I knew how to save, flag, or cut & paste. But hopefully I'll find it again.

 

[CWS4322]

I hope if anybody tries buttermilk that they will tell us how it came out.

Also, there's a buttermilk powder that might be added instead. The powder is nice because it has a long shelf life in your pantry. I've added it to other concocted seasoning mixes similar to the recipe in the OP and it worked out well.

CWS too bad with your issue with the laying hens. If you had a rooster you could also raise chickens for cooking, although from the sound of it I doubt you'd be comfortable with slaughtering, cleaning and butchering them. It's occurred to me a few times to try raising chickens but the part from having a live chicken until it reaches the same condition you buy it at the store bothers me too and I'm not sure I'd be up for it.

I have a very handsome Barred Plymouth Rock rooster...I just can't bring myself to make any of the hens (or Cocky Rocky) into stewing birds. They are too cute!

I am on with trying buttermilk--I have frozen buttermilk, fresh buttermilk, and powdered buttermilk. I like the fresh for drinking, the frozen and powdered for cooking.