Spicy Strawberry Boneless Wings

I hope everyone had fun watching the big game this weekend!  My family got together and we had a TON of food that probably could have fed the neighbors.  All of it was good but I must say that my boneless "wings" were a hit.  

Disclaimer #1:  This recipe is an adaptation of two recipes that I combined and added my own flare to from allrecipes.com.  

Disclaimer #2:  I usually try to cook healthy, nutritious meals... but we all deserve a little indulgence every once in a while right? 

The chicken:

• 1 bag frozen chicken tenderloins (thawed, trimmed and cut into bite-sized pieces) -- this is a PARTY sized recipe

For the sauce:

• 3/4 cup strawberry jam (no chunks)
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. honey
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. pepper
• 2-3 pinches red pepper flakes (could certainly be left out if you don't want them to be spicy)

Put all of the above in a saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring frequently.  Keep it for a rolling boil for a minute or two until it becomes the consistency of a thin syrup.  You can set this aside while you cook the chicken or make it ahead of time and reheat it prior to coating the chicken.

For the batter:

• 3 cups flour
• 2 Tbsp. salt
• 1 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 tsp. cayenne (optional)
• 3/4 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk

Combine all the dry ingredients in a shallow dish.  In a separate dish, whisk the egg then stir in the milk. 

Fill a large frying pan with vegetable or canola oil about one inch deep.  Prepare a baking sheet lined with a couple layers of paper towel.  Once the oil is hot, dredge the chicken in the egg mixture then the flour mixture two times.  You want the breading to be nice and thick.  CAREFULLY place the chicken in the hot oil, flipping after about 3 minutes.  Once all sides are golden brown, transfer the the lined baking  sheet.  Because there is so much chicken you will have to fry it in batches.  A deep fryer would work excellently too.  

In batches again, fill a gallon sized plastic-zip bag with the chicken and pour in some sauce and gently shake it up until all pieces are coated.  Enjoy!