I’m a fried chicken sandwich lover. I love the crunchy chicken, the cool sauce, a crispy pickle, and a toasted roll…there’s just something about it. And honestly with a sandwich like this, the simpler the better. I don’t even add cheese….I KNOW! Hard to imagine making *any* sandwich without cheese. But you want the chicken to really shine here.
Fried Chicken, but make it healthy
I’ve been eating healthier these days. But I also need options in my life. I can’t eat grilled chicken salads every day. So I’ve been trying to “health-ify” things I love. Like this fried chicken sandwich. Normally, I would marinate in buttermilk, dredge in flour, and deep fry it. Use a mayo-based sauce and put it all on a delicious brioche bun. Instead, I marinated the chicken in non-fat Greek yogurt, use whole wheat flour, bake it, and put it on a whole wheat english muffin with a Greek yogurt based sauce.
I also need to invest in an airfryer. When I first posted about this sandwich, I forgot to spray the cooling rack, and it completely stuck. So many people messaged me that it would probably work in an air fryer – so that’s going on the Christmas List!! I use a cooling rack in a high-temp oven, hoping to get a similar effect as the airfryer. If you have made or seen my chicken cutlet recipe, you know I swear by cooling racks for when the chicken comes out of the fryer, it helps the air to circulate to keep the cutlets nice and crispy.
Make it your own!
You can really put whatever you’d like on your sandwich. I like to keep it simple with pickles and a sauce, but feel free to jazz it up with lettuce, cheese, tomato, bacon, avocado – whatever you’re into!
Oven Fried Chicken Sandwich
Equipment
- Baking Sheet and Cooling Rack
Ingredients
Chicken
- 3 Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs Cut in half
Marinade
- ⅔ cup Greek yogurt
- ½ cup of fat free half and half
- 1 tablespoon of Frank’s hot sauce
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- ½ teaspoon of pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon mustard powder
Seasoned Flour
- 1 cup of whole wheat flour or AP flour works too!
- ¼ cup of corn starch
- 2 teaspoons of salt
- 1 teaspoon of baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne
- Olive oil spray
Sandwich
- 6 English Muffins I used Thomas’ whole wheat
- Christina’s Special Sauce:
- 1 cup Greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon of mayo
- ¼ cup of hot cherry pepper mix I use Cento’s hot pepper hoagie spread
- Dill pickle chips optional
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the marinade ingredients: Greek yogurt, half and half, Frank’s hot sauce, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of pepper, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon paprika and 1/4 teaspoon mustard powder. Place the six pieces of chicken in the bowl so they are all submerged in the marinade. Cover tightly with saran wrap and place in the fridge for at least two hours, or up to eight.
- Pre heat your oven to 425 degrees. Prep your baking sheet. Place the cooling rack on top of the baking sheet, and generously spray with the olive oil spray. When the chicken is ready, prepare the seasoned flour by mixing all of the ingredients (whole wheat flour, corn starch, 2 teaspoons of salt, baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon paprika and 1/8 teaspoon cayenne) in a large bowl. When the oven is pre heated, place each piece of chicken into the seasoned flour, making sure it gets fully coated in the flour. There should be kraggly pieces – that’s good! It’ll help it get nice and crispy. Place each piece on the sprayed rack. Once all pieces are ready for the oven, do not forget the most important part! Spray each piece of chicken liberally, all nooks and crannies, with the olive oil spray – this will ensure each piece gets nice and browned. Place into the oven to cook for about 45 minutes or until the chicken is golden. Half way through, turn each piece over.
- While the chicken is cooking, prepare the Special Sauce by combining the Greek yogurt, mayo, and hot pepper spread. If you don’t like spicy, put less in (you can always add more!). Cut the English Muffins in half and lightly toast them. Spread as little or as much of the sauce as you’d like (I like A LOT). Place a few pickles on each, and when the chicken is ready, place a piece on and top with the other half.
