Simple Coconut Chicken

August 26, 2009

One night recently when I asked my husband what sounded good for dinner he told me coconut chicken. It was at that moment I realized that I had not made this dish, a standard go-to meal back home, for almost two years. I couldn’t believe I had forgotten about it, and here I am in the middle of the land of all things coconut!
So I pulled the dish together that evening and I just happen to be making it again tonight. I’ve altered how I make it a bit now because the original method used a lot of butter. It definitely tastes good with that, but I wanted to give the chicken a more intense coconut flavor so I soaked it in coconut milk for a few hours before coating it and baking it in the oven.
The milk kept the chicken moist, the bread crumbs give it a nice crunch and the flaked coconut offers a mild sweetness. I like to drizzle it with honey or it is great dipped in a Thai chili sauce. The leftovers are also good chopped up in a veggie stir-fry over rice.
This is one of those recipes without exact ingredients because I rarely measure. You might need to add a little more or a little less of each based on how much chicken you are making, and if you are using the whole breast or breast pieces.
Simple Coconut Chicken

2 large chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces
1 cup coconut milk
1 ½ cups bread crumbs (your choice – panko, whole wheat, gluten free)
1/3 cup flaked coconut
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
Arrange the chicken in a deep dish or bowl and pour over the coconut milk. Move around the pieces to coat them evenly, cover the dish and allow to marinate in the fridge for two to four hours (although I’m sure longer wouldn’t hurt).
On a plate or flat baking dish, combine the breadcrumbs, coconut, salt and pepper. Remove the chicken from the fridge and toss each piece in the breadcrumbs to coat evenly. Arrange on a baking sheet.
Bake at 400 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes or until gold brown and the chicken is cooked through. You can flip the chicken once during baking to help it brown more evenly.


Do you have any past recipes that you loved, but have completely forgotten about? Or am I the only one who can’t seem to keep my recipes straight?

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  • Tangled Noodle August 26, 2009 at 1:08 pm

    I have got to try this! It looks so crispy and crunchy and just plain old delicious.

    It’s not so much that I’ve forgotten some recipes but rather, that I no longer make some favorite dishes because of the nutrition content (or lack thereof). At the top of the list are creamy dishes such as my MIL’s shrimp curry recipe and my pasta Alfredo.

    Over the years, our tastes have changed and my cooking skills are much improved so I’ve been meaning to try recipe makeovers but worry that these dishes will lose some of their original appeal. Perhaps the way to go is just to make them, calories and all, on occasion!

  • Erica August 26, 2009 at 2:58 pm

    ah! my husband would LOVE this and I just happen to be buying coconut milk for another recipe next week (and I won’t need the whole container!) Thanks chicky!

  • OysterCulture August 26, 2009 at 3:38 pm

    what a more perfect combination, coconut with anything. This dish looks amazing and I’ll have to try it.

    Forgotten dish, hmm, I think they may still be forgotten, but there are a few favorites of my childhood that I am going to have ask my mom for, I’m almost afraid to introduce them to hubby as, being from MN they’ll involve butter, and as he’s from CA seems to be allergic to it =)

  • Sweta August 26, 2009 at 5:08 pm

    Ooooh-I love anything with coconut,so I’m sure I’m going to LOVE this 🙂
    Happens to me very often-now that I’m trying out different dishes,I seem to have forgotten what I used to make when I first started cooking!!

  • Emily August 26, 2009 at 7:04 pm

    Now that sounds good! I pretty much love anything coconut!

  • sangeeta August 26, 2009 at 11:30 pm

    lovely coconutty chicken…

    i love coconut milk and make stews with it ..never tried roasting with coconut ….this one seems easy n simple..

    i have so many recipes which i dint make for years……for many reasons…ingredients not available , nutrition point of view or just because some of them take a lot of time……but i want to make the traditional ones little more frequently.

  • Maya August 27, 2009 at 3:55 am

    My problem is this – too many recipes to try and unfortunately there are only 24 hrs in a day :)This recipe is high on my list of things to try!

  • Joy August 27, 2009 at 5:50 am

    What a great recipe! I am so looking forward to making it!

  • Mrs H August 27, 2009 at 7:47 am

    That looks great, I think I have a winner for our next meal. I always forget things and, like you, my husband usually reminds me of them later. Men seem to always remember the food they like, ha!

  • Cinnamon Girl aka Reeni♥ August 27, 2009 at 9:03 am

    I love coconut chicken! I’ve never marinated mine in coconut milk though – great idea! Looks delicious! I have lots of recipes I love but don’t re-visit often. One of them is chicken and waffles that I made a few days ago.

  • Lori August 27, 2009 at 9:33 am

    Tangled Noodle – I think maybe we need to designate a day to make old favorites, lack of nutritional value and all. Ha, ha! I find the more I discover the more my cooking changes.

    Erica – Your welcome! Hope he likes it.

    OysterCulture – Too funny about the butter. A bit of a bummer though too because that MN cooking can be some good stuff!

    Sweta – I think it is the same for me. I have so many new things to try I often don’t go back and repeat like I used to.

    Emily – Me too. It’s been a new favorite in adulthood. As a kid I didn’t like it.

    sangeeta – The best part is how simple it is, for sure. I’ve had to change a lot lately due to ingredients as well.

    Maya – Oh, that is a big problem too. I have to figure out who is going to eat all this food I want to make and find more time to make it! 🙂

    Joy – Thanks! Hope you like it.

    Mrs H – Yeah, husbands are very helpful with that. Ha, ha! Mine tends to remember what he likes.

    Reeni – I love that you mentioned your chicken and waffles! I your post this week and as we were eating this chicken last night I kept thinking – this would be great with waffles. Ha, ha!

  • Juliana August 27, 2009 at 10:56 am

    Yummie…coconut milk and coconut flakes, must taste very tropical…

  • Alison August 27, 2009 at 12:44 pm

    That looks great! With light coconut milk, it’s a healthy “fried” chicken.

  • 5 Star Foodie August 27, 2009 at 1:28 pm

    So simple and delicious – I love this recipe and I have all the ingredients to make it, can’t wait to try! I know that are a lot of forgotten favorites at our house. If we really like a dish we have a lot for some time, but then switch to something new.

  • Janetha August 27, 2009 at 2:46 pm

    easy and quick, i am sure delicious as well! thanks for posting.

  • Michelle @ Find Your Balance August 27, 2009 at 7:40 pm

    That looks great! I seem to go in phases. For instance, I haven’t made meatballs in forever. I make really good meatballs. But…always looking for new recipes and forget about the old!

  • biz319 August 27, 2009 at 9:23 pm

    I just recently tried coconut milk for the first time – loved it!

    Growing up my Mom made an open face, bacon and mozzarella sammie that was so good – I’ll have to ask her about it, because I don’t remember anything else being on the plate! 😀

  • Lori August 28, 2009 at 3:12 am

    Juliana – Yes, I’m learning coconut seems to go with everything. Ha, ha!

    Alison – Sure, it would work with regular or lite.

    5 Star – Great! Hope you like it. I tend to do a lot of switching with my recipes as well.

    Janetha – Quick and easy is always good! 🙂

    Michelle – I haven’t made meatballs in forever either. Now I’m hungry for them! 🙂

    biz319 – Glad you liked it! It’s becoming a staple for me. That sandwich sounds great!

  • Debinhawaii August 29, 2009 at 2:34 am

    This looks so great. Smart to soak it in the coconut milk. This is going on the “must try” list. 😉

  • Marianne (frenchfriestoflaxseeds) August 31, 2009 at 6:07 pm

    Your coconut chicken looks delicious. Like a fancier version of a chicken finger 🙂

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