Crispy Cracker Chicken -

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Crispy Cracker Chicken

Have leftover crackers on hand from a holiday or party? Don't let them go to waste. Learn how to use crackers as a crispy, crunchy breading for chicken cutlets! Air fry Crispy Cracker Chicken or bake in the oven and serve with your favorite side dishes.

Prep Time15

Cook Time30

Course: Air Fryer, chicken, Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: air fryer ritz cracker chicken, baked chicken with ritz crackers, baked ritz cracker chicken, chicken breast ritz crackers, chicken with cracker breadcrumbs, cracker chicken, ritz chicken, Ritz cracker chicken

Servings: Servings

Calories: 348kcal

Author: Valerie Skinner

Equipment

Better Breader, or mixing bowls and shallow baking dish
Whisk
baking sheet
Wire Rack, optional
air fryer

Ingredients

2 pounds Chicken Breast boneless skinless, thin fillets
½ cup All Purpose Flour
1 tsp Salt
¼ tsp Pepper
½ tsp Garlic Powder
2 Eggs beaten
1 ½ sleeves Buttery Crackers Ritz or Clubhouse or generic version
Avocado Oil Spray optional

Instructions

Preparing the chicken

Make cracker breadcrumbs: Add the crackers to a food processor and pulse until a breadcrumb consistency is formed. If you don't have a food processor, add the crackers to a Ziploc bag and roll them with a rolling pin to crush them.
Prepare the chicken breast: Trim any excess fat from the chicken breast, then cut each breast into thin fillets. 2 large chicken breasts should give you 5-6 filets. Pat dry on all sides with a paper towel.
Dredge with flour: In a shallow dish or bowl, whisk the flour with seasonings until combined. Coat each piece of chicken on all sides with a light layer of flour, shaking off any excess.
Dip in egg: Whisk eggs into a small mixing bowl. Dip each piece of flour coated chicken in the egg making sure its coated on all sides. Shake off any excess egg mixture.
Coat in cracker crumbs: Place the cracker crumbs in a shallow dish or in a broader and press the chicken into the crackers until it is coated. Repeat this 3-step dredging with each piece of chicken.

Oven Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375F. Place the coated chicken breast pieces in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment or on top of a cooking rack placed on a baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes, flipping halfway or until the internal temperature reaches 165F. Let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Air Fryer Instructions

Arrange the breaded chicken in the air fryer basket. Air fry chicken for 18-20 minutes, flipping halfway or until the chicken is crispy and golden on the outside and cooked through on the inside. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Video

Notes

Reheating: To reheat in the oven, place chicken on a baking sheet and heat at 350F for 10-15 minutes or until warmed through. To reheat in the air fryer, cook at 350F for 8-10 minutes, flipping halfway.
How much flour or crackers you need will depend on how much chicken you're using. For two pounds of chicken, I found that 1/2 cup of flour, 2 eggs, and 1 1/2 sleeves of crackers was enough.
For extra crispy oven-baked chicken, bake on a wire rack and use the convection setting if you have one. You can also lightly spray the top of the chicken with avocado oil.
Buttery crackers like Ritz or Clubhouse crackers are best because they naturally have more oil in them which will help make a crunchy crust.

Nutrition