Crispy Coconut Chicken Strips

Crispy Coconut Chicken Strips with Peach Curry Sauce are a great dinner solution that comes together in just a few minutes. With a delicious panko coconut crust and the perfect sauce, this is a dish your whole family will love!

I have been making these Crispy Coconut Chicken Strips with Peach Curry Sauce for at least five years now. They are always a family favorite and people ask me to make them all the time. I used to make them all the time at work, and my boss absolutely loved them. The coconut chicken strips are covered in a mixture of panko and coconut, flash fried for a crispy coating, then finished off in the oven. It takes less than 5 minutes to prepare and then about 15 minutes to bake. These Crispy Coconut Chicken Strips make the perfect weeknight dinner!

I looooove coconut crust on pretty much anything...shrimp, tofu, chicken, turkey...you name it, if it has a coconut crust, I bet you anything it tastes delicious. It's almost like eating a little bit of dessert for dinner! I adapted this recipe from a Weight Watchers Cookbook, so I will tell you that with the modifications, it's still fairly healthy. If you wanted to go all out healthy, skip the flash frying and just bake them. They won't have the same super crispy crunch on the outside, but they will still be delicious and you will save yourself some calories from not frying them. 

You also have a couple options for the sauce. I've made the sauce with both peach preserves and apricot preserves and they both make delicious sauces. You are going to mix the preserves with curry powder which cuts down on the sweetness and adds the perfect flavor pop! You can serve the sauce along side the coconut chicken strips for dipping, or you can drizzle it over the top and serve immediately. It's up to you!

These Crispy Coconut Chicken Strips are quick, easy, and cheap!  It's likely you have half of the ingredients in your pantry already!

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Crispy Coconut Chicken Strips with Peach Curry Sauce

Crispy Coconut Chicken Strips with Peach Curry Sauce are a great dinner solution that comes together in just a few minutes.

Ingredients

• ½ cup peach or apricot preserves
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 lb skinless, boneless, chicken breast (pounded evenly then cut into 3-4 strips per breast)
• ¾ cup flour
• ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• 2 medium eggs
• ½ cup sweetened coconut flakes
• 1 cup panko breadcumbs
• 3 cups vegetable, canola, or peanut oil (good frying oil)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.

2. In a food processor, add coconut and panko. Pulse to combine and chop coconut. Place into a shallow bowl and set aside

3. Place flour, salt, and pepper in a shallow bowl and stir to combine; set aside.

4. Place eggs into a shallow bowl; whisk to combine; set aside.

5. In a high sided skillet add 3 cups of vegetable oil (should be about 2 inches deep). Heat over medium heat.

6. In an assembly line fashion, dunk chicken strips into flour mixture, then into egg wash, then into panko/coconut mixture; set aside. Repeat for all strips.

7. Add coconut chicken strips into hot oil, careful not to crowd the skillet. Fry for 1-2 minutes per side, just to get a golden brown crust. Then transfer the strips to a parchment lined baking sheet. Continue until all strips have been flash fried.

8. Place fried chicken strips into the oven on the baking sheet. Cook at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until cooked through. 

9. For sauce: Combine preserves with curry powder and mix well with a fork. Serve alongside the chicken strips or drizzle over the top. Serve immediately!

Recipe Notes

I just use regular curry powder for this recipe. 

 

This recipe modified from the Weight Watchers Points Plus Just 5 Cookbook.  It has a lot of quick and easy recipes.  The book has 125 recipes all with 5 ingredients or less.

Like easy chicken dinners as much as I do?! Check out these other recipes as well!

Spicy Thai Chicken Tenders

One Pot Chicken Teriyaki Noodles

Spicy Basil Chicken

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- Allyson