The Condiment You Should Add When Breading Fried Chicken

Dijon mustard, with its grainy texture and refined yet tangy flavor, makes a croissant ham and cheese sandwich taste divine. But it also has the potential to elevate your fried chicken recipe so high, it practically rockets into the stratosphere.  

The Dijon mustard adds pungent and sophisticated flavor notes that complement other common fried chicken spices, like seasoning salt, black or white pepper, paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder. In the process, Dijon mustard softens the muscle meat in the chicken in the same way buttermilk would, making it a viable substitution if you have one and not the other. 

The simplest way to ensure your chicken has a mustardy nip in each bite is to mix a bit of the Dijon into the wet ingredients on your breading station before you dip the chicken into it. Or double up. It's one of the reasons you absolutely need dry mustard in your pantry. Amazon sells a British brand called Colman's dry mustard that has a nice bite to complement the egg wash's punchy Dijon flavor.

For stronger Dijon flavor, skip the traditional egg wash spiked with a dollop of Dijon and instead, use a brush to slather generous amounts directly onto the chicken. You can do it before or after you add your seasonings. Then give the coated chicken a quick shake in a bag filled with flour. After that, fry it as usual.

If you've got boneless chicken in your fridge, you can follow a similar procedure for a crusted and baked sheet pan meal. Lay the chicken pieces on a pan and brush them with Dijon mustard. Then mix up a topping of panko breadcrumbs seasoned as you please to go on top. Mix them with a bit of oil and any spices you like. You can even add a small handful of melty cheese to the mix. pile it on top of your Dijon-drenched chicken, and bake it as usual until the chicken is cooked through and the topping is crisp. You can make the whole meal on a single pan by starting some crispy roasted sheet pan vegetables to start.