Whole30/Paleo Oven Baked Chicken Fingers with Date/Dijon Mustard

Happy Wednesday! Hope today has been good. I’m currently still on a stay-cation. Waiting on my patio furniture lol. What’s a girl gotta do to get some patio furniture, sheesh. I was supposed to receive it yesterday and today but it keeps getting rescheduled by UPS. Here’s hoping it gets here tomorrow. I’m just trying to enjoy the rest of my summer in my backyard. 2020 is definitely different. Today’s recipe is whole30/paleo oven-baked chicken fingers with date/dijon mustard.

Sauce: The sauce is made with dates that have been softened in hot water then blended with the water, add lemon juice, spices, dijon mustard, and olive oil. It comes out tasting like dijon honey mustard. Honey is not compliant with the Whole30 program. Kick it up a notch by adding compliant sriracha. Whats chicken fingers without the sauce.

Marinade and Coating: The chicken is first marinated in a buffalo and nut milk marinade, marinating help to soak up the flavor. After marinating, the chicken is then dipped in egg. The egg helps the coating get a thicker crust, makes it more stable so it does come off when you pan fry. the coating is a mixture of arrowroot starch, compliant parmesan cheese (dairy-free and made with cashews), and spices. The parmesan gives it a little more crunch.

Lightly pan frying helps the coating the lightly crisp up and stick to the chicken prior to baking. If you don’t pan-fry prior to putting in the oven, the coating can remains a bit powdery and dry, and also sometimes it tends to get really soggy and you miss getting the crunchy bite. Nobody has time for soggy chicken fingers. I also do this when i air fry, very light oil and panfry 2-3 minutes.

Why in the oven. When I was testing this recipe, I tried it without pan frying, and didnt like the results, I also tried it in the air fryer the same way and did not like the result. I then pan fried and put them in the oven and also the air fryer, I found the oven to be the best method. The chicken had a better crisp/crunch to it.

I really like this family and so did my family. It is an easy recipe that adults and kids can both enjoy and it’s healthier than chicken fingers from a restaurant. Enjoy, rate, and comment.

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Whole30/Paleo Oven Baked Chicken Fingers with Date/Dijon Mustard

Whole30/Paleo chicken fingers. It is oven-baked crispy on the outside and tender in the middle. ready to be dipped in a date/dijon mustard dipping sauce.

Course

Appetizer, Main Dish

Cuisine

American, whole 30

Prep Time

20 min

Cook Time

45 min

Passive Time

1 hr

Servings

people

Ingredients

chicken marinade

• 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast cut into stips
• 2 tbsp compliant bufflao sauce
• 1/4 cup compliant pickle juice
• 1/4 cup compliant nut milk I used nutpods milk
• 1 3/4 tsp sea salt

chicken coating

• 1.5 cups arrowroot starch
• 1/2 cup whole30 parmesan I used the recipe by a dash of Dolly recipe above
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onionpowder
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 2 whole egg whisked with 2 tbsp of water
• 1/2 cup olive or coconut oil for pan frying

date/dijon mustard

• 8 pieces pitted medjool dates
• 1 cup hot water plus 2 extra tbsp
• 3 tbsp compliant dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Course Appetizer, Main Dish Cuisine American, whole 30 Prep Time 20 min Cook Time 45 min Passive Time 1 hr Servings people Ingredients chicken marinade 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast cut into stips 2 tbsp compliant bufflao sauce 1/4 cup compliant pickle juice 1/4 cup compliant nut milk I used nutpods milk 1 3/4 tsp sea salt chicken coating 1.5 cups arrowroot starch 1/2 cup whole30 parmesan I used the recipe by a dash of Dolly recipe above 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp onionpowder 1 tsp smoked paprika 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp black pepper 2 whole egg whisked with 2 tbsp of water 1/2 cup olive or coconut oil for pan frying date/dijon mustard 8 pieces pitted medjool dates 1 cup hot water plus 2 extra tbsp 3 tbsp compliant dijon mustard 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice 1/4 tsp smoked paprika 1/8 tsp salt 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Instructions

1. Cut chicken into strips. Tenderize with a fork by poking holes in chicken, or use a meat tenderizer. Place chicken in a bowl with a lid and season with 1 1/2 tsp salt, then add 1/4 cup of pickle juice, 2 tbsp of buffalo sauce, and 1/2 cup of nut milk. Mix well, cover, and refrigerate for at least 1 hr, the longer you marinate the better.
2. Add dates to a small bowl, and cover with the hot water, let sit for 15 minutes. Pour water into a blender, peel the skin of dates and toss in the blender. Blend still smooth, then add lemon juice, mustard, paprika, salt, and black pepper, and blend. slowly drizzle in the olive oil. Do not over mix the olive oil, it may make the dressing bitter. Pour into a container with a lid and refrigerate. Makes about 1 cup.
3. in a small shallow bowl whisk together add eggs and 2 tbsp of water. Preheat Oven to 425. Place a crisping rack or oven-safe rack onto a cookie sheet. In a resealable plastic bag, add the 1.5 cups of arrowroot starch, 1/2 cup of whole30 parmesan, garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, black pepper, and 1/2 tsp of salt. Dip chicken in egg mix, then coat chicken with the tapioca starch. Place on a cooling rack for 3 minutes. Heat oil in a large skillet on medium heat, when hot add chicken. Pan fry for 3 minutes on each side or until golden brown, place on the crisping rack and repeat with the rest of the chicken. When done bake in the oven for 25 minutes, turn heat up to 450, flip chicken, and bake another 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat and let it slightly cool. Fyi, use two racks.
4. Enjoy with sauce, kick it up a notch by adding 1-2 tsp of sriracha. Can be made in an air fryer after it is pan-fried.

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