Processed chicken, fish, onion rings, and hush puppies have been popular in the breaded category for years. Today, appetizers are a growing category of breaded products that include cheese sticks and vegetables such as jalapeno peppers, mushrooms, okra, corn, zucchini, broccoli, cauliflower and even dill pickle spears.
Both flavorings and texturizing ingredients impact the flavor of coated foods. (Texture and batter adhesion will be addressed more in the September issue of PF.) Cooking methods also impact the flavor potential of coated foods—whether they are fried, baked or microwaved makes a big difference as to finished flavor.