Recipe(tried): Hot-and-Crunchy Chicken Cones with Mango Slaw and Sweet Potato Fries

If you are looking for something different to try, this is a good candidate. It has to be the most unique recipe that I have made in a long while. The "cones" are very tasty - definitely crunchy, and a little bit sweet.

When I first saw this recipe, I wanted to try it but was confused by the "cone" part of the recipe. I gather that since these "Chicken Cones" are street food items, that the tortillas are rolled into kind of a cone shape, then they are served in a cone shaped paper cup, and thus the name.

I was also perplexed as to what to serve with these - Is it an Asian recipe? - Is it a Southwestern recipe? I finally settled on serving them with sweet potato fries. The first time I made these, I made homemade sweet potato fries but was pretty unhappy with how they turned out - sadly they were soggy and not at all crispy. So the second time I made them, I just bought some Ore Ida frozen sweet potato fries. They were much better - nice and crunchy even though I baked them in the oven. I also cut back on the amount of jalapeno in the slaw, using just one.

Lastly, I'm definitely open to ideas for sides to serve with these, other than sweet potato fries.

HOT-AND-CRUNCHY CHICKEN CONES
Source: Food and Wine
Serves 6

Austin's The Mighty Cone has become famous for its Hot-and-Crunchy Cones: fried chicken coated in an ingenious mix of cornflakes, slivered almonds and sesame seeds, then wrapped in a tortilla with a mango-jalape o slaw and a spicy ancho "paint."

Instead of using chile paint, this recipe ups the amount of jalapenos in the slaw.

FOR THE MANGO SLAW:
1/2 cup diced mango
2 large jalape os, seeded and chopped
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon water
1 small shallot, minced
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Salt and freshly ground pepper
7 cups shredded coleslaw mix

FOR THE CHICKEN CONES:
3 cups cornflakes
6 tablespoons slivered almonds
6 tablespoons sesame seeds
6 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons crushed red pepper
1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup milk
All-purpose flour, for dredging
Six (5 ounces each) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, sliced lengthwise 1 inch thick
Vegetable oil, for frying (only 1/4-inch of oil is needed in your frying pan.)
Six (10-inch) flour tortillas, warmed

MAKE THE MANGO SLAW:
In a saucepan, combine the mango, jalape os, vinegar, sugar, water and shallot. Cover and simmer until the mango is softened, 10 minutes.

Transfer the mango mixture to a food processor and puree; scrape into a large bowl. Stir in the mayonnaise, cilantro, garlic and lime juice and season with salt and pepper. Add the coleslaw mix and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate.

MAKE THE CONES:
Wipe out the food processor. Add the cornflakes, almonds, sesame seeds, sugar, red pepper and salt and pulse until coarsely chopped. Transfer the mixture to a large, shallow bowl.

In a second shallow bowl, whisk the eggs with the milk. Fill a third shallow bowl with flour. Dredge the chicken strips in the flour, shaking off any excess. Dip them in the eggs, then roll them in the cornflake mixture. Set a rack over a rimmed baking sheet.

In a large skillet, heat 1/4 inch of oil. Working in batches, fry the chicken over moderately high heat, turning once, until golden brown, 6 minutes; transfer to the rack.

TO SERVE:
Set the fried chicken on the tortillas and top with the mango slaw. Roll up and eat right away.