Elevate your dinner options with this Coconut Chicken recipe, which adds a spiced twist to traditional baked chicken, perfect for a quick weeknight dinner or a special gathering. Enjoy the delicious flavors!
A Flavorful Transformation: Elevate Your Chicken Dish
This coconut chicken recipe transforms ordinary baked chicken into a special meal. With the perfect combination of sweetened coconut and jerk seasoning, this dish delivers a delicious hot and sweet flavor that is sure to delight your taste buds. Pair it with pineapple fried rice for a complete culinary experience!
Cooking Method for Coconut Chicken: Pan-Browned and Baked
For a lovely texture and flavor, the chicken is dredged in a mixture of seasoning, panko breadcrumbs, cornstarch, and coconut. Start by browning the chicken in an oven-safe skillet to develop a rich color on both sides. Then, transfer the skillet to the oven to finish cooking the chicken to perfection. If you’re using an oven-safe skillet, this method simplifies the cooking process and minimizes cleanup.
Cooking Tips for Coconut Chicken
Use a Food Thermometer
Sweetened coconut can burn easily due to its high sugar content. To minimize burning, cook the chicken in a preheated skillet with oil at 350°F, as measured with a food thermometer. Reduce the heat if the chicken browns too quickly. Otherwise, adjust your heat as needed to maintain the temperature.
Remember, it is not necessary to thoroughly cook the chicken in the skillet. You only need to brown each side and then finish cooking it in the oven.
Making Coconut Chicken Gluten-Free
If you’re looking to make this dish gluten-free, you can easily substitute the panko breadcrumbs with crushed Rice Chex cereal, and cornstarch or gluten-free flour for all-purpose flour. This change retains a similar texture while accommodating gluten sensitivities. Just remember to verify that your jerk seasoning is gluten-free by checking the ingredient list, as some brands may vary in their formulations.
Key Ingredients for Coconut Chicken
This dish primarily features chicken breasts, flour, jerk seasoning, egg whites, sweetened flaked coconut, and panko. Each component contributes to the dish’s unique flavor and texture, resulting in a delicious meal suitable for any occasion.
Only Use Sweetened Coconut
Only use sweetened coconut in this recipe to ensure the finished chicken has both sweet and spicy flavors. Unsweetened coconut will provide the texture of coconut, but doesn’t provide the taste that sweetened coconut does.
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Coconut Chicken
Equipment
- food thermometer
- a large oven-safe skillet (optional) If you don't have an oven-safe skillet, use a regular skillet for cooking the chicken on the stovetop, then transfer it to a baking dish to finish cooking it.
Ingredients
- (4) 6-ounce chicken breasts, skinned and boned
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon jerk seasoning
- 2 large egg whites
- 1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs (see Note below for gluten-free substitution)
- ⅓ cup canola or peanut oil
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F.
- Place each piece of chicken between plastic wrap and pound to 1/4-inch thickness with a meat mallet.
- Set up 3 shallow dishes. In the first dish, whisk together the cornstarch and jerk seasoning. Beat the egg whites until foamy and place them in the second dish. In the third dish, add the coconut and panko and stir together.
- Dredge each chicken breast in the flour mixture. Then dip each breast into the egg whites. Finish by dredging the chicken into the coconut mixture. Press the coconut to ensure that it sticks to the chicken.
- Add the oil to a skillet and heat on medium heat until hot (350°F). Add the chicken and cook on each side for 1-2 minutes until golden brown. Adjust the heat as needed to prevent the coconut from burning.
- Transfer the browned chicken to a baking pan. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Notes
Make it Gluten-Free
Flour
Substitute cornstarch or a gluten-free all-purpose flour to make this chicken gluten-free. I recommend a 1:1 substitution for wheat flour, such as Cup 4 Cup Gluten-Free Flour or Measure for Measure Gluten-Free flour.Panko Breadcrumbs
Crush Chex Rice Cereal and substitute it for panko breadcrumbs.Make Jerk Seasoning at Home
You can make homemade jerk seasoning for this recipe. Mix the following ingredients and store them in an airtight container to use as needed. You can also freeze the mixture, and it will keep for several months in the freezer. The jerk seasoning is expired if it loses its color and no longer has a pungent smell. If you use jerk seasoning frequently, consider doubling or tripling this recipe.- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar (packed)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon white pepper
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves