Healthy Fried Food?

Yes my friends there is a healthy fried food. In one of my recipe posts I mentioned one of my favorite ways to cook vegetables was sauteed in coconut oil. Well today the day got away from me and before I knew it, it was dinner time. Nothing planned, nothing thawed...ekkkk! I threw chicken in the microwave to defrost while getting some cauliflower and broccoli steaming. No time to marinate the chicken or roast it...now what. Suddenly coconut oil popped into my head and the following wonderful recipe was born:

Coconut Oil Fried Chicken

Place coconut oil into nonstick pan (enough to lightly coat pan approx. 1-2 Tbsp)
Add thawed chicken (can be pieces, thighs, etc)
Sprinkle with spices (pepper, salt, cayenne pepper...etc.)
Cook until underside brown, then flip and cook until other side brown

I also added more pepper once I turned the chicken over. I had to use both pieces and thighs so I added all at same time and just removed the pieces when done, which we ate while the thighs finished cooking. Serve with steamed veggies tossed in butter, salt and pepper and a side salad...voila dinner saved :)

Even though this cooking method was fast (especially since there was no marinading involved) the chicken was beautifully browned and super moist. Yeah no more cardboard-like chicken when there's no time to marinate. Best of all the oil it's cooked in is healthy for you :)

Some coconut oils have a stronger coconut flavor than others. I personally like a stronger flavor and often use Nutiva brand.