Baked Coconut Chicken and Shrimp

For my job, I manage a lot of events. This means that I get to sample a lot of food because those events typically serve something whether it is appetizers or a full-blown meal. A few weeks back, I had an event and instead of the typical cold appetizer-y type foods like finger sandwiches that I normally choose for this event, I decided to go with a hot dish to see how the audience would react. I searched our catering menu and found coconut chicken bites. They sounded good and looked like a crowd pleaser, so I went for it.

Well, let’s just say they were a hit! They weren’t so much bites though as they were full blown chicken strips - nobody seemed to mind though. I think they were also probably a hit because it was an entrepreneurial event and we all know that most startups will take what free food they can get - but hey, I can still attribute it to my creativity, right? :)

In true Hailee fashion, I decided that I would recreate this one day. This week happened to be the week for my experiment. Instead of fried, I went with baked…AND instead of just chicken, I threw some shrimp in there too. Oh yeah…I also spiced these up a bit. They were pretty good for my first shot - but I think I will work on these some more to make them better. 

coconut shrimp

a little sampler

coconut chicken with honey mustard dipping sauce

• 1 pound of boneless skinless chicken tenders or peeled, cleaned, and deveined medium to large uncooked shrimp
• 1 teaspoon red chili flakes
• 1 cup coconut flakes
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• Seasoned flour for dusting
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• Salt and  pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and generously spray with cooking spray.

In the meantime, season the chicken or shrimp with salt and pepper and red chili flakes and set aside.

Create a “dredging station” to coat the chicken or shrimp

• one bowl with the egg wash (scramble the eggs and thin with water - season salt and pepper)
• one bowl with the seasoned flour (flour seasoned with salt and pepper)
• and one bowl with the panko bread crumbs, coconut, olive oil, and salt and pepper mixed together

Note: you can also do this in Ziploc bags for the flour and panko/coconut mixture, which makes it fast and easy.

Dust chicken or shrimp with flour then dip in egg. Last but not least, coat with the panko-coconut mixture. You may have to do this in several batches. Spread out on the baking sheet and spray with cooking spray. Bake shrimp for 20 minutes and chicken for 25 minutes. Turn once half-way through the cooking process. Serve with whatever dipping sauce tickles your fancy!

I was worried these wouldn’t be crisp and delicious, but they were! They browned up very nicely.  Just a note - you want to be very generous with your seasoning too - the salt seems to disappear in the flour and panko - so add more than you normally would.