My family called me a bean pole when I was growing up. When I was in high school, I was 6’1″ tall, and I weighed in at a whopping 130 pounds. I got all the jokes, including “when you turn sideways you disappear” and “you have to run around in the shower to get wet”!
Obviously, I was blessed with an over-the-top metabolism because I had a ravenous appetite. From the time I came home from school until dinner time, I was munching on something. It wasn’t unusual for me to devour a whole bag of Nacho Cheese Doritos in one sitting. I was even known to make a full, late-night meal for myself before bedtime.
On Saturday nights, we would typically eat out, most often at Shelaine Restaurant, one of the only restaurants in town. My usual order was either two (not one, but two) hamburgers, or a half of a fried chicken. The kitchen at Shelaine had very low turnover and the ladies who cooked were at the top of their game when it came to fried chicken. Theirs still rates as some of the best I’ve ever had, and I’ve had a lot in my day.
These days, fried chicken is a special occasion kind of meal for us. It’s still my favorite comfort food, so I’ve gotten pretty good at making a healthy, oven-fried version. For today’s post, I’ve combined my version of “fried” chicken with one of my other favorite comfort foods: cornbread. Instead of the usual preparation, though, I added sliced okra, sun-dried tomatoes, and Vidalia onion to the batter and made corn cakes. To go along with the chicken and corn cakes, I combined fresh peaches, chipotle peppers, and cilantro.
This dish is actually fairly low in fat. If you want to make it even healthier, you can use whole wheat panko. Serve this dish with you favorite fresh summer vegetables for a hearty, guilt-free meal.
Ingredients
2 cups buttermilk
1 teaspoon paprika, divided
1 teaspoon garlic powder, divided
1 teaspoon onion powder, divided
1 teaspoon salt, divided
1 teaspoon black pepper, divided
4 medium boneless chicken breasts
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups panko bread crumbs
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Cilantro leaves (for garnish)
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped Vidalia onion
2 cups plain yellow corn meal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups low-fat buttermilk (more if batter is too thick)
2 eggs
1/2 cup finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1 cup thinly sliced (about ¼ inch) fresh okra
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Vegetable oil
1 teaspoon chopped and seeded chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
2 large ripe peaches, peeled, pitted. and cut into 1/2 cubes
2 teaspoons minced cilantro leaves
Instructions
1. In a medium bowl, whisk together buttermilk, 1/2 teaspoon paprika, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Transfer chicken to bowl. Cover and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a shallow dish, combine flour, 1/2 teaspoon paprika, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
3. In another shallow dish, combine bread crumbs, olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Using your fingers, mix oil into bread crumbs thoroughly. Transfer mixture to a small skillet and heat over medium high heat. Stirring continuously, cook bread crumbs for 3 to 4 minutes until golden brown. Remove from heat and return to shallow dish.
4. Remove chicken from buttermilk, wiping off excess. Reserve buttermilk.
5. Place a rack on a large baking sheet. Set up flour, buttermilk, breadcrumbs, and baking sheet in that order from right to left. Working one at a time, coat chicken breast in flour, dip in buttermilk, coat with bread crumbs, and place on baking sheet. Repeat with remaining breasts.
6. Transfer baking sheet to oven and bake for 20 to 30 minutes until internal temperature reaches 160 to 165 degrees. Cooking time may vary according to thickness of breasts.
1. Heat olive oil in a small skillet over medium high heat. Saute onions in oil for 3 to 4 minutes until translucent. Remove from heat.
2. Whisk corn meal, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl. Add buttermilk and eggs and whisk until batter is lump-free. Stir in onions, tomatoes, and okra. Stir until well-combined. Add melted butter and stir to combine.
3. Heat about 1 to 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil in a small non-stick skillet over medium high heat. Ladle approximately 2/3 cup of batter to skillet, spreading to form a circle. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes until lightly browned. Using a large spatula, carefully flip cake and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from skillet and transfer to a plate. Cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. Repeat to create four corn cakes.
Toss peaches, chipotle peppers, add cilantro together in a small bowl.
Place corn cake on plate. Top with chicken breast and chipotle peaches. Garnish with fresh cilantro leaves.
https://southernboydishes.com/2015/08/22/fried-chicken-okra-and-tomato-corn-cakes-and-chipotle-peaches/You may also like:
Bill Harris
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I am absolutely thrilled to find your blog!!!!!! THANK YOU!
Now that’s a southern creation if I’ve ever seen one! So delicious! I would even eat my okra with this. Thanks for incorporating them into the corn cakes. 🙂
Thank you, MJ! They were pretty tasty!
Okra – good in any form… boiled (done properly), fried and pickled.!!!
I agree, Glenn! One of my favorite vegetables. Thanks for dropping by!
I love a good fried chicken dish too Bill, and definitely am inspired to whip one up soon after seeing this post! I’ve never tried okra before either – think its a very American thing?
Thanks, Thalia! Yes, okra is a common vegetable, especially in the southern U.S.