Chef Joel & Jenn: Crispy Baked Honey Garlic Chicken

We're doing it! After starting the year off slow, Jenn and I have regained our momentum and have now tried three new recipes in three weeks. Sure the first two didn't pan out that well. We had the Kung Pao Spaghetti which was delicious but just got old pretty quick. Then two weeks back we had the Chicken Tikka Masala which had the right flavor but the chicken completely dried out. This week we went back to yet another chicken dish, this time a Crispy Baked Honey Garlic Chicken, basically something you would get at a Chinese Takeout. 

One of the reasons to go with this as our next recipe is that the Crispy Baked Honey Garlic Chicken used a lot of the same ingredients. Making this dish wasn't to difficult but a little time consuming. We started out putting Panko (Japanese bread crumbs) in one bowl and some beaten eggs in another. Then Jenn masterfully took the chicken breast I chopped up, dipped it in egg, and then the Panko and then put it on a baking sheet.

Once Jenn was done we put it in a 400 degree oven and baked it for 15 minutes. While that was going we made the honey garlic sauce. For some reason there was no where near enough sauce for the dish, so we had to make 2 servings of it. Once the sauce was made and the chicken was out of the oven we combined the two and like magic we had dinner. 

It turned out really good. With the extra sauce it turned into an extremely flavorful dish. The garlic and honey came through brilliantly. It was a really good recipe. It was also a lot more work then the recipe sounded like and as such I'm not thinking this recipe will make the rotation. But at least we got a really good meal out of it. 

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch chunks
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1 cup panko breadcrumbs

For the Honey-Garlic Sauce:

• 1/3 cup honey
• 2 Tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 Tablespoon Sriracha sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/3 cup warm water
• 1 Tablespoon cornstarch

For serving (optional):

• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
• 2 teaspoons sesame seeds

INSTRUCTIONS

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease a large baking sheet, or cover with parchment paper.
• In separate shallow dishes, place beaten eggs and panko breadcrumbs. In batches, dip chicken into eggs (shaking off excess), then coat in crumbs, pressing to coat.
• Place pieces on baking sheet. Bake until golden brown and crisp, about 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan set to medium-high heat, whisk honey, soy sauce, Sriracha and garlic powder. In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and 1/3 cup water. Stir mixture into saucepan until thickened, about 1-2 minutes. Pour over chicken and gently toss to combine.
• Serve immediately over rice, topped with green onions and sesame seeds, if desired.

Recipe Source: The Comfort of Cooking