Secret Recipe Club: Crispy Panko-Coated Ranch Chicken Thighs

Crispy Panko-Crusted Ranch Chicken Thighs

My how time flies! It's Secret Recipe Club time again and I still haven't posted anything other than SRC reveals. Heavens. When will I get back into the swing of things? It certainly won't happen between now and Christmas. Bender and I are leaving our beloved Winston-Salem on December 23 and will be moving to Nashville a few days after Christmas. Wish us luck!



Back to the task at hand. I did a little jig when I saw my blog assignment this month. Since I've been involved with the Secret Recipe Club, a few blogs have stood out to me on reveal day, including Steak and Potatoes Kinda Girl. Cruising around my blog, I'm sure you can see why she caught my eye! We love our steaks and potatoes, even though we try to keep the potatoes in moderation. I immediately decided I had to make a steak or potatoes recipe and found several that caught my eye, such as Garlic Oven Fries, Roasted Potatoes with Sour Cream Herb Sauce, and BBQ Beef Shepherd's Pie. But in the end, those advertisers over at Hidden Valley worked their magic on me, and I chose a dish that was neither steak nor potatoes. I chose Crispy Panko-Crusted Ranch Chicken.


Have you been watching the Hidden Valley commercials lately? Not the fair where everyone is eating their veggies, but the busy mom who makes Ranch spiced pork chops for a quick and delicious meal. It's really caught my eye and I've been contemplating making it since I saw the first commercial. So that's why I checked out the recipe to begin with. And then I read Desi review. She and her permanent taster seemed to be big fans. Oddly, the clincher for me was the mayo. Bender and I aren't exactly going to be packing up our condiments, so I was interested in picking a recipe that would use up ingredients we had on hand. I bought a small jar of mayo for chicken salad a couple months ago and haven't used it since. I've also seen this technique used before and was (I'll be honest) grossed out the first time I saw it. But the more times I saw it, the more intrigued I became. So Saturday morning I set off to the grocery store to pick up some chicken and a Ranch packet (I have to admit, it was more expensive than I thought it'd be). At the store, the boneless skinless chicken thighs were calling my name. I love dark meat, and they were almost half the prices of thighs. I decided that wasn't too much of a deviation from the recipe and grabbed them. 

Go for it! Use your hands to spread that mayo :)

This meal is ridiculously easy to throw together. I dare you to make it. Go on!

Crispy Panko-Crusted Chicken Thighs
slightly adapted from Steak and Potatoes Kinda Girl, originally from Deep South Dish


Ingredients:
3/4 cup Panko bread crumbs
1 packet Ranch dressing seasoning
5 boneless skinless chicken thighs (~1 ¾ lbs)
1/4 cup mayonnaise (or enough to spread on chickens)


Method:
Preheat oven to 375°F. Spread vegetable oil on a baking sheet or a 9x13, or spray with non-stick cooking spray.


On a plate or shallow dish, mix together the panko crumbs and Ranch seasoning mix. Brush the chicken breasts with mayo on all sides. Then dredge them in the panko mixture. Place them on the prepared pan and bake at 375°F for 45 minutes, or until juices run clear.


THOUGHTS:
I love quick and easy recipes. And I ADORE them when they pack a flavor punch. Thank you, Desi, for providing me with such an awesome, quick, flavorful recipe!


Knowing me, I'll eventually get to the point where I make my own Ranch seasoning, but for now I'll stick with the packet. I'm not sure why I expected to see a packet for around $0.50, but I did. I found my packet on sale for $1.19. How much does one packet cost in your area?


VERDICT:
This-is-terrific-please-make-again: 2 votes!

Dig in!