Easy Garlic Butter Chicken Bites made with pan-seared tender and juicy chicken bites coated with coated with garlic, and butter, and flavored with herbs. This is one of the easiest chicken recipes that require fewer ingredients, is made within 30 minutes, and tastes awesome. Serve it as a chicken starter, or an appetizer, or dinner. Perfect for busy weekdays. Gluten-free recipe.
Prep Time10 minutesmins
Cook Time10 minutesmins
Total Time20 minutesmins
Course: Appetizer, Side Dish, snacks/starters
Cuisine: American, Italian
Servings: 4people
Calories: 370kcal
Author: Preeti
Equipment
Heavy bottom pan
Ingredients
400gramschicken,cut into bite-size chunks
3tablespoonunsalted butter,divided
salt to taste
½teaspoonground black pepper
1tablespoonminced garlic
1teaspoonred pepper flakesor red chili powder
½teaspoonsmoked paprikaoptional
1teaspoonItalian seasoning
1tablespoonlemon juice
4tablespoonchopped cilantro (or parsley)
Instructions
Preparations:
Cut the boneless chicken breast in bite-size chunks.
Season the chicken bites with salt & pepper. Set it aside.
Making the garlic chicken
Heat a heavy bottom pan & add 2 teaspoon of oil and 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat. Spread the chicken pieces in a single layer on the pan.
Pan-fry the chicken pieces. Do not overcrowd the pan. I fried the chicken pieces in two batches.
Flip it & fry until lightly golden. Remove & set it aside. Keep it covered. Do not over-fry the chicken, as it may turn hard or rubbery.
In the same pan, add 1 tablespoon of butter & sauté garlic and red pepper flakes for 30 seconds
Add the cooked chicken back to the pan, sprinkle smoked paprika (optional) & Italian seasoning over the chicken & stir to combine. Remove from heat.
Add lemon juice & cilantro. Stir to combine.
Garlic butter chicken bites are ready to serve. Garnish with some lemon slices and serve.
Video
Notes
While frying the chicken, make sure the pan is hot enough. It will seal the outer surface of the chicken, locking the juices of the chicken inside. This is the secret of getting chicken bites that are crispy outside & super moist inside.
Also, make sure the chicken pieces are spread out in a single layer while frying them in the pan. If the chicken pieces are overcrowded in the pan then the chicken will start to release water. It will result in steam cooking the chicken rather than crisp frying.
Do not fry the chicken on high heat. It may remain uncooked from the inside. First, let the chicken pieces fry on high for 2 minutes on each side. Then reduce the heat & cook until crisp.
Also, do not over-fry the chicken pieces. It may dry out the chicken pieces. You can refer to the pictures or the video of garlic butter chicken bites.
You can increase the quantity of garlic & black pepper.
Skip adding red pepper flakes, if you prefer less spicy.