These bite-sized Smoky Panko Schnitzel Bites with Honey Sriracha Sauce are like crispy, smoky nuggets of deliciousness! They are super easy to make and so tasty, coated in a crunchy golden crust made with panko, smoked paprika and sesame. A warm honey-sriracha sauce is the perfect sweet-and-spicy accompaniment.
Schnitzel – pounded meat, breaded and fried – is Austrian in origin. It was traditionally made with veal (known as Wiener Schnitzel) or pork. The dish later found its way to Israel with European Jewish immigrants. Like many Jewish foods, immigrants adapted this regional dish to suit their unique dietary kosher laws. In the case of schnitzel, pork (which is treif) and veal (which was expensive and difficult to obtain) was replaced by chicken and turkey. The result is a tasty, inexpensive entree that can be found in nearly every restaurant in Israel. It’s also really fun to say. Schnitzel.
Here, I’ve turned chicken schnitzel into smoky, bite-sized treats. I used panko breadcrumbs for a lighter, Japanese-style coating mixed sesame seeds and smoked paprika. The crispy little bites are delectable on their own; a warm honey sriracha sauce takes this to a whole new level of yum.
Not into spicy sriracha? Try serving these with a warm honey barbecue sauce or honey mustard instead, both options are equally tasty.
For more schnitzel recipes, check out the following:
Panko Corn and Pepper Schnitzel
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Food Photography and Styling by Kelly Jaggers
Smoky Panko Schnitzel Bites
Ingredients
Schnitzel Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Salt and pepper
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sesame seeds
- 1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- Grapeseed oil or oil with a high smoke point for frying
Honey Sriracha Sauce Ingredients
- 1/2 cup sriracha sauce
- 1 1/2 tablespoons honey
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Instructions
To Make Schnitzel Bites
- Use a knife or kitchen shears to cut the chicken breasts into 1- or 2-inch bite sized chunks. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.
- Beat together 2 eggs with 1 tsp water till fluffy. In another bowl stir together the panko breacrumbs, sesame seeds, smoked paprika and 1/4 tsp salt.
- Coating one piece at a time, dredge the chicken pieces into the beaten eggs, then coat with the panko breadcrumb mixture. Place prepared schnitzel pieces on a plate.
- Heat oil over medium until hot enough for frying. Fry the breaded chicken pieces in batches of 6. If the oil is at the correct temperature, it should bubble and sizzle evenly—no splatters or popping.
- Flip the chicken pieces when they turn dark golden brown. It will take 2-3 minutes per side for the chicken to become golden and crisp. Try to only turn them once, rather than repeatedly turning the pieces-- this will help to keep the crispy coating intact and keep them from becoming overly greasy.Place fried chicken pieces on a wire rack to drain, if you have one. This will keep the chicken as crisp as possible. Use paper towels to catch the oil drips underneath the rack. If you don’t have a wire rack, you can drain the chicken pieces on a double layer of paper towels.
To Make Honey Sriracha Sauce
- Combine sriracha, honey and salt in a small saucepan over medium low heat. Gently heat, stirring constantly, until ingredients are warmed through and thoroughly blended. Remove from heat. Serve warm.
- Serve schnitzel bites hot with warm honey sriracha sauce for dipping. Alternatively, if you are not into sriracha (it's pretty spicy), you can substitute warm honey barbecue sauce.
Nutrition
tried this recipe?
Let us know in the comments!
Note – sodium content in recipe above is due to sriracha sauce. The recipe offers a generous helping of sauce, You can use less to taste for each serving, or use an alternate dipping sauce like honey mustard to reduce salt intake.
Yum! We eat this all the time (but the Mexican version, milanesa). A family favorite for sure!
These were fabulous, so crispy. The panko made all the difference. Thanks for sharing!
#Iwantnow
I could picture myself having this nosh. Mmmm
Sounds good, but what is sriracha and how do I make it ?
“Money can’t buy happiness, but it can buy sriracha, and that’s pretty much the same thing.”
Gene Browning, you do not need to use all the sauce at one sitting. lol!
Gaye Olin, as Rona points out, you purchase srirach in the Asian section of most any decent grocery store.
You could also look up recipes for Thai chili sauces if you prefer to make your own. Sriracha is not super hot by any means, but it is very tasty. I’ve done some homemade Thai chili sauces that are even better, but sriracha is quite nice and easily purchased.
Gaye you can buy it in the Asian section of most grocery stores.
Holy Moly that looks tasty!
These look yummy–do you think the chicken bites could be roasted instead of fried?
You can bake them on a greased baking sheet, but they won’t turn out as crispy, golden brown or yummy.
“nough said!
little schnitzel babies!!!! i love it!!!!
Great idea making schnitzel bite sized! The sweet and spicy sauce sounds good enough to eat with a spoon.