Crispy Coconut Lime Chicken

Name: Crispy Coconut Lime Chicken
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 60 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 1 ½ lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or thighs); 2 teaspoon salt; ½ cup all-purpose flour; ½ teaspoon ground black pepper; 3 large eggs; 1 ¾ cups panko bread crumbs; 1 ¼ cups + ½ cup sweetened shredded coconut; 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (or vegetable oil); 1 medium size yellow onion, peeled and diced; 1 red bell pepper, seeds and stem removed, and diced; 1 jalapeño, seeds and stem removed, and diced; 3 cloves of garlic, peeled and diced; 1 teaspoon ground coriander; 1 tablespoon soy sauce; ¾ cup chicken or vegetable stock (or water); 1 tablespoon lime zest; ½ cup lime juice; 13.5 ounce can coconut milk; ¼ cup coconut cream - OR heavy cream; Vegetable or canola oil, for frying - enough to come about 1 inch up the sides of a large skillet or saucepan; 1 cup chopped cilantro; ¼ cup diced green onions; Hot sauce - We love the Electric Lime Sauce from Merfs (see link below); Cooked rice, for serving

by Rebecca Blackwell | A Little and A Lot

4 servings

1 hr

I have made this crispy coconut lime chicken three times in the last 5 days and no one around here is mad about it. I feel like that's the most important thing I can tell you about how much we love this dish.

Here's what we've got going on here:

Fried Coconut Chicken: Pieces of boneless, skinless chicken coated in panko bread crumbs and shredded coconut and fried until super crispy.
Coconut Lime Sauce: Pile the crispy chicken over freshly cooked rice and top it with slightly spicy, tart and creamy, coconut lime sauce.
♥️ the Toppings: Garnish with toasted coconut, chopped fresh cilantro and green onions, and jalapeño lime hot sauce.

A bowl of rice and Crispy Coconut Lime Chicken.

This recipe is such a great example of how salty, spicy, sweet, and sour can balance and complement each other to create interesting layers of flavor keep you going back for more. And more. Aaannnnd more.

The crispy coconut fried chicken takes a cue from coconut shrimp. You know, the kind of coconut shrimp that's generally served as a snack or appetizer, the tail left on so you can pick them up and dip them into a sweet and spicy sauce.

When done right coconut shrimp is super crispy, and sweet, salty, and spicy all at once. Which is exactly what we've got going on here.

Frying pieces of crispy coconut lime chicken in hot oil.

There is one tool that is essential to the process - a deep-fry thermometer. If you fry these babies in oil that's pretty close to 325 degrees (F), the outside will get all golden brown and crispy at the same time that the inside is cooked through but still juicy.

If the oil is too hot, the outside of the chicken will burn before the inside is cooked through. If the oil is too cool, the coconut breading will just get soggy and oil soaked.

So, the key to great fried chicken is to adjust the temperature of your burner as the chicken cooks to maintain a consistent temperature. This is nearly impossible to do without a deep-fry thermometer.

Taking a bite of Crispy Coconut Lime Fried Chicken with Creamy Coconut Lime Sauce

Tart and Creamy Coconut Lime Sauce

If you love tart citrus flavors, you're going to want to pour this sauce on everything. A full half cup of lime juice is reduced in a pan with onions, garlic, jalapeño, red bell pepper, and coriander until the excess water has evaporated and it's concentrated into a potent lime syrup.

Then, pour in a can of coconut milk and some coconut cream to create a sauce that's rich and creamy. The tartness of the concentrated lime juice cuts through the richness in the coconut cream creating layers of flavor that are the perfect coating to the crispy coconut fried chicken.

Making the creamy coconut lime sauce for Crispy Coconut Lime Chicken.

I gotta tell you. The combination just checks aaaalllll the boxes for me.

✔ Crispy
✔ Creamy
✔ Salty
✔ Sweet
✔ Sour
✔ Spicy

😋

A bowl of rice and Crispy Coconut Lime Chicken.

Other recipes you might like:

Crispy Coconut Lime Chicken

You can do it! Saved to your recipes

Recipe details

Yield 4 servings
Time spent: Prep time: 40 Minutes Cook time: 20 Minutes Total time: 1 hr

Show Nutrition Info

Per serving

% Daily value

Ingredients

1 ½ lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or thighs)
2 teaspoon salt
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
3 large eggs
1 ¾ cups panko bread crumbs
1 ¼ cups + ½ cup sweetened shredded coconut
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (or vegetable oil)
1 medium size yellow onion, peeled and diced
1 red bell pepper, seeds and stem removed, and diced
1 jalapeño, seeds and stem removed, and diced
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and diced
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 tablespoon soy sauce
¾ cup chicken or vegetable stock (or water)
1 tablespoon lime zest
½ cup lime juice
13.5 ounce can coconut milk
¼ cup coconut cream - OR heavy cream
Vegetable or canola oil, for frying - enough to come about 1 inch up the sides of a large skillet or saucepan
1 cup chopped cilantro
¼ cup diced green onions
Hot sauce - We love the Electric Lime Sauce from Merfs (see link below)
Cooked rice, for serving

Instructions

Cut the chicken 3-inch pieces. Lay them out on a clean towel or paper towel and pat dry. Sprinkle with about 1 teaspoon of salt.
Add the flour to a shallow dish or pie plate and stir in ½ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon ground black pepper. Crack the eggs into a seperate shallow dish or pie plate, add ¼ teaspoon salt, and whisk with a fork to break up the eggs. Add the panko bread crumbs and 1 ¼ cups sweetened shredded coconut to a third shallow dish or pie plate and stir to combine.
Working with one piece of chicken at a time, roll chicken in flour to coat, dip in the beaten eggs, then coat with the panko/ shredded coconut mixture. Really press the coconut panko mixture into the chicken, turning each piece and pressing the breading onto each piece to get a thick coating. Set the breaded chicken on a plate and place in the refrigerator while you prep the sauce and topping ingredients.
Add the remaining ½ cup of shredded coconut to a small skillet and set it over medium high heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until about 50% of the coconut is golden brown. (If you cook it much longer some of the pieces will begin to burn.) Remove from the heat and set aside.
Prep the sauce ingredients: Add the diced the onion to a small bowl. Add the diced red bell pepper, jalepeno, garlic, and corriander to a seperate small bowl. Add the soy sauce, stock or water, lime zest, and lime juice to a seperate bowl or measuring cup. Open the can of coconut milk and measure out ¼ cup of coconut cream.
Fry the Chicken: Add enough oil to a large skillet or saucepan to cup up the sides about 1-inch. Set the pan over high heat and heat the oil to 325 degrees (F). Having a fry thermometer is extremily useful; link below. Add a few pieces of chicken to the hot oil and cook, turning the pieces in the oil from time to time, until they are a deep golden brown. As they cook, pay attention to the temperature of the oil and adjust the burner heat so that it stays as close to 325 degrees as possible. Remove one piece of chicken from the pan to a paper towel lined plate and cut into it. If there is no pink in the center of the chicken, it is cooked through. Remove the other pieces of chicken and continue until all the chicken has been cooked. Cover the plate of chicken loosely with a sheet of aluminum foil and set aside.
Make the Sauce: Carefully pour the hot oil out of the pan into a heat proof bowl and rinse out the pan. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil (or vegetable oil) and the chopped onion and set it over medium heat. Cook until the onion is soft and just begining to brown. Add the diced bell pepper, jalepeno, garlic, and corriander and cook, stirring frequently, for about 1 minute longer.
Pour in the stock and lime juice mixture and turn the heat up to high. Cook, stirring frequently, until the liquid is reduced to about ¼ of a cup. As you stir, the liquid will be thick enough for your spoon to create tracks. Stir in the coconut milk and coconut cream and bring the mixture back to a rapid boil. Cook until the sauce has thickend enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon.
To serve: Fill four bowls with some cooked rice and top with a few pieces of fried chicken. Pour a couple tablespoons of sauce over the chicken, then sprinkle on some chopped cilantro, diced green onions, and toasted coconut. Serve with hot sauce.

Top stories

Crispy Coconut Lime Chicken

Crispy Coconut Lime Chicken

Recipe details

Ingredients

Instructions

Comments

Share your thoughts, or ask a question!

Popular Recipe Book

12 Ways To Serve Greens To Kids

More

Top stories

Crispy Coconut Lime Chicken

Crispy Coconut Lime Chicken

Recipe details

Ingredients

Instructions

Popular Recipe Book

More Recipes