July 6th is National Fried Chicken Day. There’s likely no lover of chicken who hasn’t enjoyed plates of fried chicken. But how about fried chicken skins?

The fried chicken skins recipe below is the chicken’s answer to fried pork skins, or chicharrones.

Of late, fried chicken skins have become popular with restaurant chefs, when the nose-to-tail movement began around 10 years ago, encouraging chefs to use all parts of the animal and lessen food waste. Plus, customers love crispy, crunchy chips (as these are, in effect, fried chicken chips).

They make them with flavors from classic Southern style to Asian and Latin American seasonings and beyond.

Chicken skins have long been popular elsewhere, in Japan and throughout Asia. Flavor & The Menu reports that “the KFC in Indonesia offers fried chicken skins that, rumor has it, are better than the french fries.”
 
 
USES FOR FRIED CHICKEN SKINS

In addition to snacking, with or without dips, fried chicken skins can be:

 
Speaking of potato chips, fried chicken skins pair with just about any dip, sweet or savory.

Honey may be messy, but it’s delicious on the fried chicken skins.

While you’re considering which honey to dip, consider chile-infused varieties like Mike’s Hot Honey, and smoked honey like Classic City Bee.

You can purchase ready-made fried chicken chips, and some brands have gone one step further.

Flock Foods makes great chicken skin crisps (photo #5) n several flavors.

Wilde Brands, for example, makes a processed chicken chip that also includes egg whites and bone broth, Certified Paleo and Keto, in five flavors.

> Recipe: Our favorite fried chicken, with crushed Corn Flakes.

> The different cuts of chicken (bet you can’t name all of them).
 
 
RECIPE: FRIED CHICKEN SKINS (ACTUALLY, THEY’RE BAKED)

You can find numerous deep-fried chicken skin recipes, but we like this one because it’s baked (and we really don’t like to deep fry).

Here’s a recipe for fried chicken skins.

Note that you can collect chicken skins in advance, by buying breasts or thighs skin-on, then removing the skins and freezing them. (Then, cook the skinned chicken as you wish. We use skinless thighs and legs to make chicken soup.)

Instead of the seasonings below, you can use any global seasonings: shichimi togarashi, the Japanese seven-spice blend; chipotle; curry; harissa; jerk spice; za’atar; etc.
 
Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. REMOVE the skin from the chicken breasts (we use a kitchen scissors to do this). Pat dry and cut the skins in thirds lengthwise. Place them skin-side up in a single layer on the baking sheet.

3. BLEND the seasonings in a small bowl and sprinkle on the chicken skins (you don’t need to use all of it). Cover the skins with another layer of parchment and top with another baking sheet or a roasting pan to press down on the chicken skins.

3. BAKE until the skins are browned and crisp, 35 to 40 minutes. Remove the top baking sheet or roasting pan, and the top layer of parchment paper.

4. TRANSFER the chicken skins to a plate lined with paper towel to cool and crisp up.

[1] Fried chicken skins, dipped in hot honey (photos #1 and #2 © Eugene Dela Cruz | Carson Kitchen | Las Vegas).

[2] Use any seasoning you like, from Southern to Latin American to Asian.

[3] Mike’s Hot Honey, available in Hot and Extra Hot (photo © Mike Hot Honey).

[4] Smoked honey is also a delicious option (photo © Classic City Bee).

[5] We love Flock Chicken Crisps (photo © Flock Foods).