Mmm! Love that chicken from Popeyes! Remember that little jingle you would hear when the commercial came on? Seeing all that mouthwatering crispy chicken would make me hungry and I’d think about getting a three-piece with a biscuit in a hurry! But we all know eating fried foods all the time aren’t good for you, even if they do taste good. So here’s a homemade recipe for Popeye’s Chicken that’s guaranteed to taste like your local fast food joint. And here’s the kicker: it’s healthier for you!
While a mild chicken breast from Popeye’s contains 1,130 milligrams sodium and 420 calories, a spicy chicken breast contains only 760 milligrams. A spicy chicken wing contains less than half the amount of sodium in a mild chicken wing, totaling 290 milligrams and 690 milligrams. But our recipe has 1/3 of the total sodium! And we’ve taken it a step further by also lowered the calories by nearly half! Get your taste buds ready!
Prep Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Calories: 230
INGREDIENTS
8 pieces of chicken (1 full chicken cut into pieces)
2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon dry buttermilk (SACO)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 teaspoon Accent seasoning
1/2 teaspoon ground mustard
1/2 teaspoon superfine sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground dill seed (not dill weed)
1/4 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/4 teaspoon dried chipotle powder
Batter
6 large eggs, beaten
1 tablespoon white pepper
1 teaspoon fine salt
1 teaspoon fine sugar
1/2 teaspoon Accent seasoning
**3 cups all-purpose flour to roll (dredge) your battered chicken in**
DIRECTIONS
- Place chicken into a 9 x 13 baking dish; COAT chicken well with contents of one 6-ounce bottle original Louisiana Hot Sauce, rubbing sauce well into skin of chicken.
- Measure the all of the seasoning ingredients into a grocery size plastic bag. Sprinkle the seasoning evenly and generously on every side of marinated chicken; Rub mixture well into chicken and allow chicken to marinate in seasoning for at least 2 hours, refrigerated and sealed.
- Beat 6 large eggs in a large bowl with 1 tablespoon white pepper, 1 teaspoon fine salt, 1 teaspoon fine sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon Accent seasoning; Whisk mixture in bowl vigorously until smooth.
Add 3 cups all-purpose flour into a medium bowl for the dredging - Remove chicken from the marinating dish using tong; (1) Dip chicken into the batter until evenly coated; (2) Coat the chicken well in the dredging flour; Place chicken onto the rack over baking sheet.
- Repeat steps with remaining chicken pieces until all are battered and breaded. Allow breaded chicken to rest at least 15 minutes to absorb the breading.
- Arrange the chicken pieces on the rack and place in 425 degree hot oven. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes, lower the heat to 375 degrees and cook for another 25 to 30 minutes, until cooked through and crispy. The juices should run clear when the meat is pierced with a knife. For the last 3-5 minutes, turn up the heat to broil crisping the outside of the chicken on each side for approximately 2 minutes. Take out of oven, let cool then eat!
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