Pretzel-Crusted Chicken with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce

Happy 6th of May!

Hopefully you are joining me this morning sans hangover from Cinco de Mayo. I didn't really plan my recipes out well last week, resulting in the lack of a classic Mexican food post yesterday. But, we still celebrated the holiday. The hubby and I indulged in Corona's and Tortilla Soup. Or rather, I indulged in Corona's and we both indulged in the tortilla soup. I was going to make chicken enchiladas yesterday (by the way, this is the 3rd year in a row that my enchiladas have been sidelined), but the hubby is recovering from a stomach bug. Instead of spicy enchiladas, I settled for tortilla soup because it's basically chicken soup. Everything is added to the soup as a topping, so this was a perfect solution for the 2 of us. He could make his as gentle as he wanted, while I was free to devour the avocado, tortilla strips, cilantro, and Mexican cheesiness. So. Good.

Now, about this chicken... WOW! So freakin' yummy. I thought I'd really come up with something with this recipe, until I googled "Pretzel Crusted Chicken with Honey Mustard" and realized I definitely hadn't come up with a new idea. That's the thing with food- even when you think you've come up with something completely original, all it takes is a quick trip to Google to discern that millions of other people have also come up with your idea. Great minds think alike? :) 

I thought up this recipe the other night as I was snacking on some pretzels. After I imagined a crispy pretzel coating on the chicken, honey mustard popped into my head. Pretzels and honey mustard go hand-in-hand, so why not make a dipping sauce for the chicken? Boom. Done.

Let's talk a little bit about honey mustard. I'm a honey mustard freak. I love the stuff. Love it. My favorite honey mustards are the Arby's/Wendy's variety, and Red Robin's honey mustard. My ideal honey mustard does not include the dijon flavor. When I was in college (and had just discovered honey mustard) I remember trying every single type of honey mustard the grocery store had to offer. This was years before I learned to cook, by the way. I was really peeved that every honey mustard that Albertson's sold in 2001 was dijon-mustard based. So not what I was going for. I wish I could go back to 18-year old Jessica and say, "Hey smarty-pants, the honey mustard you are looking for could be made at home using 3 ingredients. 3 ingredients you already have." Alas, it took me until 2014 to find the perfect honey mustard. And this is the perfect honey mustard, for me. It's reminiscent of Arby's honey mustard in texture and flavor. It makes me hap, hap, HAPPY! And combined with this chicken? Even better.

Conversely, if you like honey mustard with a dijon base, simply substitute the regular mustard in this recipe for dijon.

I'm off to go for a run. The hubby and I are doing a... race in Cincinnati this coming weekend. I say "race" lightly because we are actually doing the Cincinnati Beer Run, which is 2.5 miles where you get a beer every half mile. So... not really expecting a PR on this course. It benefits the Marvin Lewis Community Fund, which helps a lot of kids in Cincinnati. That's right, I'll go and drink beers for the kids! My kind of fundraiser :)

Happy Tuesday!

Ingredients (serves 2):

4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (you could also use chicken breast, and/or chicken tenders)

2 cups pretzels

2 eggs

2 tbsp mayo

1 tbsp honey

1 tbsp yellow mustard

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400º. Coat a cookie sheet with cookie spray. Set aside.

2. Put pretzels in a food processor. Pulse until the pretzels are small crumbs. Place in a shallow bowl. 

3. Lightly beat eggs in another small bowl. To prepare chicken, dredge chicken through egg, discarding any excess. Dredge chicken through the pretzel crumbs, ensuring the chicken is well-coated. Shake off any excess. Place chicken on prepared cookie sheet. Repeat with all chicken pieces.

4. Bake chicken in preheated oven for 20 minutes. Carefully flip chicken over, and bake for another 15-20 minutes. Chicken should be golden brown and crispy. Remove from heat.

5. While chicken is baking, prepare honey mustard. In a small bowl, combine mayo, honey, and mustard. Whisk to incorporate. Serve sauce immediately with chicken.

Printable Recipe

Honey mustard recipe adapted from The Salty Kitchen.

Linked to: Weekend Potluck, Foodie Friday, Treasure Box Tuesday