There’s nothing better than squeezing fresh lime juice over hot and crispy chicharrónes de pollo. Especially with a side of tostones and avocado, it’s honestly the best summer combo.
These fried chicken bites similar to Dominican pica pollo, but these are boneless. To make chicharrónes de pollo sin hueso, you will need boneless chicken thighs (or you’ll need to remove the bone from the chicken before cutting it into pieces).
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Use chicken breast or chicken thighs
Chicken thighs is the best choice for making Dominican chicharrónes de pollo. Chicken thighs have more fat, so they carry more flavor than the breast.
But that doesn’t mean that chicharrónes made with chicken breast aren’t super delicious too. If chicken breast is all you have on hand, it will work just fine for this recipe.
Coat the chicken well for crispier bites
To get a really crispy and crunchy batch of chicharrónes de pollo, coat the chicken in the flour several times until it builds a thick layer of flour. This thick coat is going to create irresistibly crunchy pieces of chicken bites.
Squeeze lime juice while the chicken is still hot
Lime juice adds some extra freshness to the chicken and really brings the flavors together. Fried chicken can sometimes feel heavy and greasy, but a generous squeeze of lime juice makes the chicharrónes feel lighter and fresher.
What is the difference between pica pollo, chicharrónes de pollo, and pollo frito?
The main differences between the three is the cut of chicken and the way they are cooked. Pica pollo is made with bone in chicken pieces like drumsticks and thighs, and is sometimes parboiled before being breaded and fried until crispy.
Chicharrónes de pollo are made with boneless chicken pieces from chicken breast or thighs, and breaded then fried until crispy.
On the other hand, pollo frito, made similarly to pica pollo, using chicken pieces like drumsticks and thighs that are first parboiled and then fried until crispy. This is the only one that isn’t coated or breaded.
Chicharrónes de Pollo (Fried Chicken Bites)
Ingredients
Instructions
- In a bowl, combine chicken, garlic, sofrito, adobo, sazon, oregano, salt, and the juice of 1 lime. Let the chicken marinate for at least 30 minutes, or overnight if you can.
- In a bowl, combine flour, garlic powder, and salt to taste. Coat the chicken thoroughly in the flour, making sure every part of the chicken is coated well. The better you coat the chicken, the crunchier it will be after frying.
- In a pan over medium heat, add enough frying oil to cover 1 inch from the bottom of the pot.
- Let the oil get very hot before adding the chicken and cooking until crispy and golden brown, or about 8-10 minutes.
- Remove the chicken from the oil and place onto a paper towel lined plate to drain. Cut the remaining limes into wedges and squeeze lime juice over the chicken while it's still hot. Serve with lime wedges and enjoy!
