Chocolate, cheeseburgers, donuts, bacon: we all know how the tastiest meals are often the unhealthiest. One of life’s many truisms is that, generally speaking, the yummier it is, the worse it is for you. Humans have evolved over thousands of years to feel rewarded after eating particularly energy-rich food packed full of fat, salt, and sugar - which are all pretty unhealthy in excessive amounts. Healthy foods like salads and vegetables are often seen as bland (and expensive) compared to our beloved junk foods. But that doesn’t always need to be the case!



Health and fitness coach Bec Hardgrave recently shared a quick and easy hack on her TikTok account that not only makes popcorn chicken extra crunchy but also much more healthy and tasty with 50% less fat and 50% more flavor.


Using only five basic ingredients, Bec was able to recreate the beloved fast food snack. The ingredients she used were: chicken mince, oven-baked chips, egg, protein flour, and seasonings like smoked paprika and powdered garlic.


The recipe starts with 250 grams of chicken breast mixed with any seasoning of your choice. In her video, Bec used a tablespoon of smoked paprika along with half a tablespoon each of salt and powdered garlic.


The next step is to thoroughly mix one whole egg, one egg white, and a tablespoon of protein flour into the seasoned chicken breast.


Bec’s ‘secret ingredient’ for this recipe is crushed-up oven-baked Smith’s chips which she used as a coating for the chicken mixture.


After coating the chicken with chips, she gently placed each piece on an oven tray lined with baking paper.



She even made sure to include a helpful tip to wet your hands when handling the crumbs so they don’t stick to your fingers.


Once baked, the popcorn chicken should be golden brown after 12-15 minutes at 180 degrees in the oven.

According to the description of Bec’s video, the recipe she made makes for 22 bite-sized pieces which add up to a total of 540 calories, 71.7 grams of protein, 29.8 grams of carbohydrates, and 13.4 grams of fat.


Bec’s followers were quick to respond to her recipe. A couple of commenters wrote: ‘will be making these next week’, and ‘wanna make these this weekend’.

‘These look and sound so good’, one of her followers wrote while another commented: ‘they look so delish’.



Bec Hardgrave currently has more than 100,000 followers on her Instagram, while boasting another 88,000 on her TikTok.

So, what do you think about Bec’s quick and healthy recipe for popcorn chicken? Would you give it a go? Be sure to let us know in the comments below if you have any recipes for dishes that are both healthy AND delicious!