Learn how to bread chicken for a perfectly crispy bite every time! Try these easy ways to bread chicken with easy tips and tricks.
Tips & Tricks for Breading Chicken
Juicy, tender chicken is a favorite for so many people, but you know how you make it even better? You add a flavorful, crispy crust! The right breading can elevate your chicken from “good” to “AMAZING!” This method is very flexible and can work with many different dietary needs and restrictions. You can even use these tips on pork chops, fish, and more! Here are some quick tips to get us started:
- Prepare ingredients ahead of time – This is usually a 3-step process, and it works great as an “assembly line” project. Because of this, it is important to have your ingredients ready for all 3 steps.
- Have one dry hand and one wet hand – If you are not careful, this can be a very messy project. It is best to dedicate one hand to your dry ingredients and one hand to your wet ingredients.
How to Bread Chicken
This simple 3-step process is perfect for adding flavor, texture, and interest to your meals! Here is a quick tutorial for making the perfect chicken breading.
1. Start with dry chicken
The key to getting the breading to stick to the chicken is starting with a dry surface. Water on the surface of the chicken will lead to a soggy breading or a crust that falls right off. You can achieve this by air drying your chicken or tossing it in flour. You can even combine methods if having a super crunchy bite is important to you! If you are in a hurry, you can just pat the chicken as dry as you can.
STUFFED CHICKEN TIP: If you are breading stuffed chicken, I highly recommend stuffing it, wrapping it in plastic wrap, and letting it sit in the fridge for a few hours before breading. This helps the chicken keep its shape and makes it less likely to unroll and cause a big mess. The breading will not stick if the chicken is not tight and secure.
How to dry chicken:
- AIR DRY – Take chicken out of the package and pat dry. Place a baking rack onto a baking sheet, then lay each piece of chicken on the rack (not touching). Cover with a layer of paper towels and allow to air dry in the fridge 1-24 hours. You can still follow this up with flour, too.
- TOSS IN FLOUR – Take chicken out of the package and pat dry. Pour all purpose flour (or gluten-free/low-carb alternative flours) into a shallow bowl or plastic bag. Place a few pieces of chicken into the flour, then toss or shake to coat. Shake off excess flour.
*Note: cornstarch, baking soda, and baking powder could also be used instead of flour.
2. Dredge in your “glue” layer
Now that your chicken is dry, you need to coat it in a liquid that will help the breading stick to the meat — Your “glue,” if you will. Whisked egg is a very popular and effective choice as it is a great binder. You can whisk up the whole egg, or use whites only for a lighter texture or yolks only for a heavier texture. There are many non-egg options, though!
Egg-Free Breading Options
- Heavy cream or buttermilk – Heavy (unwhipped) whipping cream is just thick enough to grab hold of the chicken and breading. Evaporated milk or coconut cream could also have a similar texture.
- Mustard – You can easily brush this onto chicken, and it sticks well. I do not find the mustard flavor strong, but it does add a nice, savory, slightly-tangy taste. It is a great dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free, and low-carb option.
- Yogurt or sour cream – This adds a great, rich texture. It does not hold quite as well as the other methods, so I prefer to use this method to add a breaded topping to baked chicken rather than making something like fried chicken tenders.
3. Roll in breading
Finally, the main attraction: the crispy, crunchy breading! The ingredients you choose to bread your chicken will determine how crunchy or light or flavorful it is going to be. For a light crisp crust, you may like a coating of seasoned flour and parmesan. If you want a crunch you can hear from the next room, maybe a thick coating of crushed nuts would work better for you. You can easily mix-and-match these, too.
Chicken breading ideas:
- Flours and cheeses – These usually produce a nice, light crispness. All-purpose flour is the most popular choice, but low-carb and gluten-free alternatives like almond flour or coconut flour work, too. Dried cheeses will produce the best crunch – Grated parmesan (the kind that comes in the green can in the pantry section) is most often used. Cheeses with more moisture are more likely to melt softly instead of forming a crisp crust.
- Breadcrumbs and pork rinds – Consider this your “medium” crunch level. Fine Italian breadcrumbs will have a lighter crunch than coarser, larger breadcrumbs like panko. Ground pork rinds are a popular keto-friendly substitute for breadcrumbs. They add a nice salty flavor, so go easy on the salt at first if using.
- Cereals, nuts, and chips – The larger size and harder texture means these will give you the crunchiest breading. Use a food processor or blender to crush cereal, nuts, or even potato chips or pretzels for the perfect crispy bite.
Our FAVORITE Breaded Chicken Recipes
Here are some of the best recipes for breaded chicken! No matter your preferred level of crunch, we have got something that you will like here. There are low-carb and gluten-free options, too!
Breaded Chicken Tenders
Classic chicken tenders should have a nice crunch and a breading that won’t fall off in your hands. The level of crunch is determined by your choice of breading! You can have a light, gluten-free breading with almond flour and parmesan like these Keto Chicken Tenders — It even holds up well with sauce! You can even go extra cheesy if you like, or turn them into chicken nuggets instead.
If you want more crunch, add panko or ground pork rinds to the mix. For even more crunch, try Cornflake Chicken Tenders! If you crave the crunchiest, you will LOVE this Pecan-Crusted Chicken.
Breaded Stuffed Chicken
Tender chicken pounded thin, then rolled up with meat and cheese… It only gets better with a nice, light breading! We love a classic Chicken Cordon Bleu for date night; it uses almond flour and parmesan for a light, gluten-free, low-carb coating. This Pepperoni & Cheese Stuffed Chicken is a kid-friendly favorite that uses breadcrumbs or crushed pork rinds for a crispier crust instead!
Breaded recipes with sauce
The only way to improve crispy breaded chicken? Add a sauce to the mix! In recipes like this, the breading is not only there for texture – It is also something that can soak up sauce to add more flavor.
A light seasoned flour coating on this Chicken Piccata or Lemon Chicken does not stay crisp, but it adds tons of flavor with the white wine. The cornstarch breading on this Orange Chicken soaks up the delicious sauce perfectly. Heavier breading like this Chicken Parmesan can hold up great when baked in marinara sauce!
How to make chicken SUPER crispy
- Choose the right breading – Flour will create the lightest, least-crunchy breading while nuts will create the heaviest and crunchiest. Parmesan, breadcrumbs, and cereals all fall somewhere between the two.
- Spray with oil – When baking or air fryer, adding a spritz of oil can add a crispier crunch. Simply place on your rack and spray with oil, then spray again after flipping.
- Double dip – Many breading choices can be double dipped for a crispier, heavier crust. When breading with seasoned flour, cheese, or breadcrumbs, you can repeat the “glue” and “breading” steps a second time for a crunchier crust.
More Breading Ideas
- GO HEAVY ON TOP: This halibut recipe uses a pecan and parmesan mixture for a crunchy topping. We would love this on some butterflied chicken breasts!
- SIMPLIFY SEASONINGS: Convenient ranch seasoning packets and breadcrumbs make these pork chops easy and quick. Try it on chicken thighs!
- TRY BACON: Okay, this is not a breading at all… But everyone loves bacon-wrapped chicken. If you want to add flavor but do not want to bread it, try it!
How to Bread Chicken
Materials
- Flour (all purpose, gluten-free, almond, coconut, etc.)
- Eggs or other liquid binding agent
- Breading (any mixture of breadcrumbs, nuts, cereal, flours, cheese, etc.)
- Chicken any cut
Instructions
- Prepare your ingredients ahead of time. If using flour to dry the chicken, pour it in a shallow dish or bag. Have another bowl for your "glue" mixture (whisked eggs, heavy cream, mustard, or your preferred choice). Finally, have a shallow dish of your breading (breadcrumbs, nuts, parmesan, cereal, etc.).
- Pat chicken dry. Eliminate all moisture on the surface of the chicken by air drying it on a baking rack in the fridge (1-24 hours), by tossing it in flour, or both.
- Dip chicken into your whisked eggs, cream, or whatever binder you chose. Gently shake off excess.
- Press chicken into your breading mixture of choice. Flip and cover both sides if you prefer.
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