Crumbed chicken is one of my favourite things to eat. Yes, I'm a simple gal. For a lot of kids, chicken nuggets are a favourite too. Whether you're just trying to escape processed versions with additives or going gluten free, there's quite a few different variations you can choose to keep making crumb chicken and chicken nuggets at home.

Almond Meal Crumb

Take 1 cup of almond meal, put a pinch of salt and pepper in, and if you'd like to spice it up a little, a pinch of whatever herbs & spices take your fancy. If you want a little heat, try a touch of paprika or cayenne pepper. If you'd like herby, some oregano and rosemary would work well too.

Almond meal is quite expensive, so if you have a decent high powered blender like a Vitamix, you can make your own in about 10 seconds. For easier digestion, you can activate them first. I have not found anyone who makes activated almond meal, so it's always my first option to make my own almond meal. Organic almonds are quite expensive too, but you can find insecticide free almonds and also nuts in bulk or from food co-ops to save you money.

Almond & Hemp Crumb

At the time we wrote this in 2014, hemp seeds were not a legal food in Australia despite FSANZ declaring them safe in 2002 and 2012. Fast forward to 2018 and they are now legal. We can tell people they can eat hemp seeds,  hemp oil and  hemp protein without being prosecuted. Progress!

Simply put equal quantities of almond meal and hemp seeds in to your mixture and again, pimp with any herbs and spices you want to use. I'm a fan of the oregano & rosemary myself with some good quality sea salt or Himalayan salt.

Cornflake Crumb

Smashed up cornflakes make a great chicken crumb. You can decide for yourself if you want to choose the commercial brands with sugar in them or the natural varieties with no sugar. Both are readily available in most supermarkets. You'll just need to take a walk down the health food aisle for the fully gluten free and sugar free varieties. They taste pretty bland for a cereal, but for chicken crumbs, they're great.

Quinoa Crumb

Use a combination of quinoa flakes and for extra crunch, puffed quinoa. You can leave the quinoa flakes whole, but you'll get a finer crumb if you give them a quick pulse / blitz in your blender or food processor or even 30 seconds in a mortar & pestle.

Almond & Coconut Crumb

If you're going to cook your crumbed chicken in coconut oil, adding an extra layer of coconut flavour can enhance the coconut taste so you feel like it's supposed to taste like coconut instead of that hint you get from the coconut oil. Use either desiccated coconut or shredded coconut in with your almond meal, somewhere between 1/4 and 1/3 of the quantity is great, but it's a personal choice.

And the obvious...

If you have a favourite gluten free bread, throw it in to your food processor or blender and make an actual breadcrumb.

Preparing & cooking the crumbed chicken

I only eat organic chicken these days. You really can tell the difference in taste and the smell when it's raw. It's pretty easy to find too, so it's always a first choice for me. On an angle, slice one chicken breast in to around 5-6 slices and then flatten down with a mallet so you have nice thin pieces to cook. One chicken breast is usually enough to feed 2 or 3 people, making it a more economical way to prepare and serve organic meat.

Coat the chicken in a gluten free flour (coconut flour, buckwheat flour etc.) and then in egg. Coat with the crumb of your choice and then fry on a medium heat either in olive oil or coconut oil. I know the trend these days is to only ever use olive oil cold, but I have read enough information on using it for cooking at low and medium temperatures to be ok with this. Not everyone likes the taste of coconut oil on their chicken.

To help the crumbs stick on the chicken, sit them in the fridge for 30-60 minutes prior to cooking.