“Chicken and waffles.” Ok, they’re good. Fine, whatever. But “chicken and corn kernel pancakes with yogurt sauce,” – fantastic!
Husband Tom tells me, “Even though this dish didn’t photograph well, it’s one of the best things you’ve made in a long time!” Um, thanks?
The “best-only-eaten-at-a-restaurant” waffle version uses fried chicken. Who wants to mess up their kitchen? Not me. My version uses well-seasoned and spiced baked chicken thighs. And, waffles are… waffles. Yummy, but certainly not remotely healthy. My pancakes are eggless and include a vegetable, corn. Much healthier. Trust Tom – the combination of the spicy chicken, sweet corn pancakes and yogurt sauce is a keeper. He really wants to you make it and “like” it.
Hey! Who are you calling a vegetable?! Fun fact from Healthline.com: “Whole corn, like you eat on the cob, is considered a vegetable. The corn kernel itself (where popcorn comes from) is considered a grain…. Many grains are considered to be a fruit. This is because they come from the seed or flower part of the plant. In contrast, vegetables are from the leaves, stems, and other parts of a plant. So, corn is actually a vegetable, a whole grain, and a fruit.”
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Chicken with Corn Kernel Pancakes and Yogurt Sauce
Ingredients
Chicken:
- 8 – 10 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
- 3/4 teaspoon smoked paprika (not regular paprika)
- 1/8 -1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper or crushed red pepper flakes
Corn Kernel Pancakes (makes 8-9)
- 1 cup all purpose flour, more as needed*
- 1 1/4 cups whole milk, more as needed*
- 1 cup fresh or frozen (then thawed) corn kernels
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
- 2 tablespoons high smoke point oil for pan frying each batch of pancakes (corn oil, sunflower, peanut, grapeseed, canola, for example)
- Enough butter to thinly spread on each finished pancake
Yogurt topping
- 3/4 cup room temperature plain Greek yogurt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- Pinch of kosher or sea salt
- 3 teaspoons of water to loosen the yogurt
Directions
- Pre-heat oven to 390 F (190 C)
- Make the chicken:
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- Rub chicken thighs with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, smoked paprika, and cayenne pepper or crushed red pepper flakes
- Bake for 30 – 35 minutes
- Let rest for 5 minutes, then chop and place on top of the plated pancakes (see step 5)
- Make the corn kernel pancakes
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- 20 minutes before chicken is done, bring a large frying pan to medium heat
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium mixing bowl
- Add the milk and olive oil to the flour mixture and whisk well. This is your pancake batter
- Add the corn kernels to the bowl with the pancake batter.
- * If the batter is too loose, add a little more flour. If it is too thick to pour, add a little more milk (your ingredients, temperature and humidity outside will affect the batter. Also, if you let the batter sit, it will thicken. Re-whisk to loosen the batter or add a splash more milk)
- Add the cooking oil to the heated pan and pour the batter using a 1/4 cup measuring cup. (I can fit 3 or four pancakes at a time in my frying pan. To make all 9, I must do this in three batches while the chicken is baking and resting). The pancakes are ready to flip when the edges are dry and bubbles in the batter have nearly reached the center of the pancake. The second side will cook much faster, in about 1 minute. Lightly spread butter on each pancake as soon as they are done. Tip: Cover the first batch(es) of the pancake on a plate with a clean dish towel to keep them warm while you are making the other pancakes.
- Make the spiced yogurt topping
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- Mix yogurt with water, ground cumin and salt
- Bring the dish together:
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- Place two pancakes on each serving plate and top them with two chopped or shredded chicken thighs, followed by the spiced yogurt sauce
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Greg Nelson Cooks 