Coastal Mains
Oven “Fried” Chicken with Eggplant with Hot Maple Drizzle
The Strategy:
This is the ultimate hybrid dish for when you want the deeply satisfying crunch of fried chicken but lack the desire to stand over a massive pot of bubbling oil for an hour. By utilizing a heavy, three-step dredge—seasoned flour, egg wash, and a brilliant mixture of seasoned breadcrumbs and cornflakes—we create a crust that bakes into a shattering, golden shell.
While the oven does the heavy lifting for the chicken, we utilize just a small amount of oil on the stovetop to quickly fry thick, meaty slices of beer-battered eggplant. The final touch—a heavy drizzle of hot pepper-infused maple syrup—binds the savory crunch with a brilliant, sticky heat.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon coarse black pepper
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups seasoned breadcrumbs
- 1 cup cornflake crumbs
- 6 (4- to 6-ounce) skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs (substitute or add chicken legs and bone-in breasts cut in half)
- 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
- oil for frying
- 1 medium eggplant cut into ½-inch circles
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 (12-ounce) can of your favorite beer
- ½ cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon (or more) hot pepper sauce
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375°.
- Add the flour, cornstarch, salt, pepper, paprika, and garlic, onion, and chili powders into a resealable plastic bag. Shake to combine.
- Whisk the eggs with 2 tablespoons water in a shallow bowl or pie plate.
- Use a fork to mix crumbs in another shallow bowl or pie plate. Season the crumbs with salt and pepper.
- Add a piece of chicken to the bag with seasoned flour and shake to coat.
- Transfer the coated chicken to the beaten egg and douse to coat.
- Transfer the chicken to the crumbs and coat again.
- The flour will ensure the egg adheres to the chicken, and the egg wash will make the crumbs stick! Be sure to reserve the seasoned flour for the eggplant.
- Lay the chicken on a rack coated with vegetable oil spray, and set into a rimmed baking sheet. Repeat with all the chicken pieces.
- Drizzle the top of the chicken with olive oil.
- Bake until the chicken is completely cooked, reaching an internal temperature of 165°, about 30 to 40 minutes.
- Pour enough vegetable or peanut oil to come 1/3 up the sides of a deep sauté pan or cast iron skillet, and heat over medium-high heat.
- Whisk together 2 cups flour with 1 can beer. The batter should be the consistency of pancake batter. If it’s too thick, add some water. Too thin, whisk in more flour.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Add a few eggplant slices to the bag with the seasoned flour used for the chicken. Shake to lightly coat.
- Dip the eggplant into the beer batter.
- Carefully add to the hot oil. Do this in batches to avoid overcrowding the skillet. Cook until golden on one side, just a couple of minutes. Carefully flip and cook on the second side until golden, a minute or two more. Transfer to paper toweling to drain.
- Whisk together the maple syrup with the hot pepper sauce in a small bowl. Add as much pepper sauce as you like. With the amount listed in this recipe, the sauce should be sweet with a hint of heat.
- Serve one piece of chicken on top of a few pieces of eggplant and drizzle with the sauce.
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The Heart of the Table
Serving towering stacks of crispy chicken and golden, pillowy eggplant immediately signals a celebration. This is not a quiet, delicate meal. It is wildly impressive, intensely flavorful, and demands a lively, vibrant table. When you pour that hot maple syrup over the top, the aroma alone will stop the conversation.
Neighborly Grace
- THE PRESENTATION: Height is everything here. On a large, warm platter, create a foundation with the thick, golden beer-battered eggplant slices. Rest the massive, crispy chicken thighs directly on top of the eggplant. Bring the platter to the table dry, and dramatically pour the hot, spicy maple syrup over the tower right in front of your guests.
- THE POUR: The intense crunch, heavy savory notes, and sticky-sweet heat require a wine with significant acidity to cleanse the palate. A slightly chilled, off-dry Chenin Blanc is absolute perfection here, mimicking the sweet heat. Alternatively, a deeply crisp, bone-dry hard cider beautifully complements the autumnal maple notes.
- THE VIBE: Elevated, high-energy comfort. This is the meal you prepare for a raucous Friday night dinner party on the patio, where the music is slightly too loud and the wine flows freely.
