Put your portions of chicken in a large saucepan with the bay leaf and a generous seasoning of salt and pepper then cover with milk.
Bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer for 10-15 minutes until just cooked through.
Drain well in a colander and then dry off with paper towels.
In one shallow bowl place some plain flour to toss the chicken pieces in as their first coating. I use around 100g flour for 6-8 pieces of chicken but just go by eye.
In a second shallow dish, beat 1-2 eggs then toss your flour coated chicken in this.
In a third bowl, place about 100g (half a cup-ish) of the blend of flour, herbs and spices and if you fancy an extra crunchy coating, add a few tablespoons of fine cornmeal. I love to do it this way.
If you want an extra thick coating, at this stage dip back into the eggs then into the coating one last time.
Place on a greaseproof or foil lined baking tray and spray liberally with oil or dot with a small knob of butter per chicken portion. Bake in an oven preheated to 180°C for 25-30 minutes by which time the chicken will be piping hot through to the bone and the coating will have crisped up nicely. Turn once half way through cooking spraying with more oil or butter if liked.