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If you're familiar with Chick-fil-A you will know that fans of this fast food chain are passionate! So many people, my husband Jeff included, are completely fanatical about their chicken sandwiches! We love them so much that I make this copycat version whenever we get a craving.
I found that the key to getting an extra crispy and delicious coating on the chicken is double-dipping. That's right, “double dipping” in this instance is allowed and encouraged! You'll see what I mean when you read the recipe.
I hope you all enjoy this tasty fried sandwich as much as we did. And, the homemade Chick-fil-A sauce we smothered all over it is a must. That stuff is out of this world!
Here's how to make your own AMAZING Chick-fil-A Sandwich, at home!
1. Marinate the chicken. Place chicken breast halves in pickle juice/water marinade, in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
2. Combine dry ingredients. Combine flour, powdered sugar, paprika, black pepper, chili powder, salt, and baking powder.
3. Make egg wash. In another bowl mix the milk, and egg.
4. Coat the chicken: Dip the marinated chicken into the egg mixture, and then coat in the flour breading mixture. Then repeat this step and dip that same chicken tender back into the egg mixture and then back into the flour again! Yep, this double dipping is how we're making a super yummy, crispy sandwich.
5. Pan Fry. Place chicken in hot oil in a sauce pan and fry for 3-4 minutes on each side. Remove to paper towel to dry.
6. Assemble Sandwich. Toast the sandwich buns. Grab the Chick-fil-A sauce and smooth it on both sides of the buns. Top with lettuce, cheese, and crispy chicken! Enjoy!
Homemade Chick-fil-A Sauce:
All you need to make homemade Chick-fil-A sauce is:
- Mayonnaise
- Dijon mustard
- Yellow mustard
- Honey
- BBQ sauce
- Garlic powder
- Paprika
- Lemon juice
Make the Chick-fil-A sauce by combining all ingredients in a bowl. Mix well and set aside.
Air Fryer Chick-fil-A Sandwich:
Preheat fryer to 370ºF. Grease the inside basket/rack of the air fryer and place two coated chicken breasts in the air fryer. Lightly spray the top of the chicken. Cook the chicken for 11-13 minutes, flipping halfway through cook time. Assemble sandwich as instructed below.
Baked Chick-fil-A Sandwich:
Preheat oven to 450ºF. Place a wire cooling rack on top of a baking sheet. Place your coated chicken breasts on the wire rack and spray both sides lightly with olive oil. Bake the chicken for 12 minutes, flip and bake for another 15 minutes or until it's cooked through.
For a Spicy Chick-fil-A Chicken Sandwich:
We love spicy chicken at our house! If you'd like to add a little heat to your chicken sandwich, add 1-2 teaspoons of cayenne pepper to the flour mixture when making the breading. I like to coat my kids sandwiches in the flour first, then add the cayenne for spice, and make mine and my husbands.
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Chick-Fil-A Crispy Chicken Sandwich Copycat
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breast halves
- 1/2 cup pickle juice
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 large egg
- oil for frying
- 4 hamburger buns
- Pickle, lettuce, tomato and cheese slices, , for topping
For the breading:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 Tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1-2 teaspoons cayenne pepper , *optional, for a spicy chicken sandwich
For the Chick-fil-A-sauce
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 3 teaspoons yellow mustard
- 2 teaspoon barbecue sauce, (hickory tastes the best)
- 2 Tablespoons honey
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Marinate the chicken: combine the pickle juice and water in a ziplock bag. Add the chicken breast halves and marinate for 30 minutes.
- Make the sauce: Make the Chick-fil-A sauce by combining all ingredients in a bowl. Mix well and set aside.
- Next, in a large bowl mix the breading ingredients together: flour, powdered sugar, paprika, black pepper, chili powder, salt, and baking powder.
- In another bowl mix the milk, and egg.
- Add 2-3 cups of oil to a large saucepan and heat oil to about 350 degrees F.
- Coat the chicken: Dip the marinated chicken into the egg mixture, and then coat in the flour breading mixture. Now "double-dip" by repeating this step and dipping that same chicken tender back into the egg mixture and then back into the flour again!
- Pan fry: Place chicken in hot oil and fry for 3-4 minutes on each side. Remove to paper towel to dry.
- Assemble Sandwich: Toast the sandwich buns. Grab the Chick-fil-A sauce and smooth it on both sides of the buns. Top with lettuce, cheese, and crispy chicken! Enjoy!
Notes
Air Fryer Chick-Fil-A Sandwich:
Preheat fryer to 370ºF. Grease the inside basket/rack of the air fryer and place two coated chicken breasts in the air fryer. Lightly spray the top of the chicken. Cook the chicken for 11-13 minutes, flipping halfway through cook time. Assemble sandwich as instructed below.Baked Chick-Fil-A Sandwich:
Preheat oven to 450ºF. Place a wire cooling rack on top of a baking sheet. Place your coated chicken breasts on the wire rack and spray both sides lightly with olive oil. Bake the chicken for 12 minutes, flip and bake for another 15 minutes or until it's cooked through.For a Spicy Chick-Fil-A Chicken Sandwich:
We love spicy chicken at our house! If you'd like to add a little heat to your chicken sandwich, add 1-2 teaspoons of cayenne pepper to the flour mixture when making the breading. I like to coat my kids sandwiches in the flour first, then add the cayenne for spice, and make mine and my husbands. Gluten-free Adaptations: use gluten-free BBQ sauce, all-purpose flour, and buns.Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Recipe adapted from here.
The material in this blog post references the trademarked brand “Chick-fil-A.” The use of this trademark is for informational and editorial purposes only and does not imply sponsorship or endorsement by Chick-fil-A, Inc.
I originally shared this recipe May 2013. Updated November 2019 with process photos and improved instructions.
This was SO good! My husband is a picky eater and he LOVED this! He tasted the sauce beforehand and commented how delicious it was.
We don’t eat out much at all – so this is a great recipe to have on hand! Thank you so much!
Great tasting chicken sandwich. My family really enjoyed them.
Thank God 😇❤️🐔🍔Chicken sandwich came out sooo Good ❤️❤️❤️ my family told me 9.5 out of 10 5 ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and juta add another ingredient extra it’s called Knorr Shelf-Stable Granulated Chicken Flavor just add a lil
Was excellent, I was really craving more of a sriracha chicken sandwich, so fallowed it exactly except put a ton of sriracha and a few drops of our favorite ghost pepper sauce to the sauce was PERFECT
THE BEST CHICKEN SANDWICH EVER!!!! My husband brags to everyone about this recipe.
I love this recipe. I’m gluten free and I switched the flour to gluten free flour (cup4cup) & now I can enjoy Chick-Fil-A chicken sandwich again.
We tried baking them and they turned out awful! I then put them in oil to finish them. They actually had a better crust then. The flavor overall was really good. We enjoyed them…and I know I will be deep frying them next time. I also tenderized them, to thin them out, to ensure they would cook through. Otherwise, it’s a new recipe to keep in the house! It was amazing! Thanks!
Taste just like chick-fil-a. Easy to make and delicious.
The sauce is amazing! I think it needs more seasonings as the chicken lacked flavor. Thank you for sharing the recipe. I think we just need to adjust to our own specific liking.
After dinner, I had to come back to this recipe after printing it and rate it 5 stars. It tasted exactly like a chicken sandwich from Chick-fil-A. My wife has celiac disease and we used gluten free Cup-4-Cup flour. This is a recipe we will continue to make again and again!!!
This recipe is good. I don’t eat chick fil a so I don’t know how close the flavors are but I liked it. Make sure to pay dry the chicken after marinating or the topping just slides off. I made a double batch and the first batch did that.
I just finished eating a Chick-Fil-a sandwich. The bun was pretty sweet. To copy that, you could use Hawaiian hamburger bread buns. Can’t wait to try your recipe.
Wouldn’t say that these taste exactly like chick-fil-a (I put mine in the rack of an air fryer), but they were still good on a sandwich.
I made these on a late night craving type of day and they came out perfect ! I made a slight change by adding cayenne pepper, garlic powder , onion powder and a bit of tonys to make it spicy as well lol!
Honestly this recipe would be better but I think you made a typo on the amount of sugar to put 3 tbsp is wayyyy too much it make my chicken taste way too sweet
This recipe may be good when fried, but it should not be used in the air fryer. The double egg wash and breading was too thick and sticks horribly to both the air fryer grate and any parchment paper inserts (tried both). It also just didn’t get crispy like other recipes I’ve used. I will have to try flour dredge first then egg, then panko or bread crumbs. Flavors are definitely on the coating, but doesn’t do me much good if it’s stuck to my air fryer!
I agree with patting dry the chicken first then flour mixture then egg mixture then repeat. Wet on wet won’t stick.