Copycat Chick-fil-a Chicken Strips
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Now you can duplicate those out-of-this-world chicken strips right at home with Copycat Chick-fil-a Chicken Strips recipe.
My copycat Chick-fil-a Chicken tenders recipe has the same tenderness and that unique taste as the restaurant’s original, but making them homemade will save you tons of money.
Copycat Chick-fil-a Chicken Strips
Rarely do I cook something that both boys like much less compliment. I think it’s a conspiracy, actually, but they never like the same foods…. until now! Copycat Chick-fil-a Chicken Strips had both of them raving.
I had been seeing Copycat Chick-fil-a Chicken Strips, nuggets, and sandwiches all over the internet and have been wanting to try them for a while. With the boys’ schedules this year, they are so hungry when they get home from school. I practically make a meal for them at that time then dinner a few hours later. That’s when I decided to try out these Copycat Chick-fil-a Chicken Strips. I adapted this recipe slightly from my friend, Joan.
What ingredients are in Chick-fil-a chicken strips?
- chicken tenders
- dill pickle juice the liquid off dill pickles
- egg
- milk
- all-purpose flour
- confectioner’s sugar
- paprika
- salt
- pepper
- dried basil
- garlic powder*
- onion powder*
- celery powder*
- oil for cooking
I was a little worried this recipe would let me down and not taste the same as the original. However, I thought it was spot-on and even both boys agreed. That’s huge! I even have this Copycat Honey Mustard recipe that tastes just like the Chick-fil-a dipping sauce to accompany your strips.
Check out more copycat recipes here.
Chick-fil-a Tenders Tips
- There are a couple of secrets to these chicken strips. First, they are brined in dill pickle juice. I know right, that’s totally the big secret!!
- The chicken coating also has a little confectioner’s sugar in it. That’s what gives it that back note of sweetness when you take a bite. It’s not a lot but definitely leaves a slightly sweet taste.
- For that super tender chicken that is such a Chick-fil-a characteristic, I pound the chicken with a flat mallet until it’s about 1/4 inch thick. It swells up when cooked and will be the thickness you want. I like to place the meat in a freezer bag, squeeze the air out and flatten it. Use tongs to remove the chicken. This is the least messy method.
- You can use this same recipe for Chick-fil-a Chicken Sandwiches and Chick-fil-a Chicken Nuggets. For the nuggets use 1 pound of chicken breast and cut them into 2-inch chunks.
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YOU WILL ALSO ENJOY THESE CHICKEN RECIPES
- Creamy Mexican Kale Slaw
- Instant Pot Chicken Tenderloins
- Mexican-style Pecan Chocolate Squares
- Mexican Street Corn Dip (by the way, you can use this recipe for these tacos if you want)
- Chicken Enchiladas in White Sauce
- Baked Tex-Mex Pimiento Cheese Dip
- Mexican Meatloaf
- Lighter Salsa Verde Chicken Enchiladas with Avocado Mango Salsa
Copycat Chick-fil-a Chicken Strips
Ingredients
- 1 -1.5 pounds chicken tenders
- 1 cup dill pickle juice the liquid off dill pickles
- 1 large eggs
- 1/4 cup whole milk
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon powdered sugar (aka confectioners)
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder*
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder*
- 1/2 teaspoon celery powder*
- oil for cooking
Instructions
- Place the chicken tenders in a freezer zip-top bag, add pickle juice and refrigerate at least 4 hours.
- Remove from back and pat chicken dry with a paper towel.
- Add egg and milk to a small bowl and beat.
- Add flour, sugar, paprika, salt, pepper, basil, garlic powder, onion powder and celery powder to another bowl.
- Add oil to a large skillet or saute pan to 1/4 in deep. Heat to medium.
- Dredge chicken in egg mixture then in flour mixture.
- Add chicken to hot oil and cook 4 to 5 minutes per side until golden brown.
- Drain on paper towels and serve hot.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information given is an automatic calculation and can vary based on the exact products you use and changes you make to the recipe. If these numbers are important to you, I recommend calculating them yourself.
This is a great recipe I tried it before and again today. It came out beautiful and so delicious. we’ll make it many times I give it five stars
All 4 kids in my home said 5☆s.
Easy to make!! I didn’t have celery spice & had to use canola oil but honestly the kids didn’t know the difference. I marinated in pickle juice 24hrs/overnight. Ty for the copycat!!
Yay!! so happy they liked them!
I used to have the original recipe. I know that it said to dredge the chicken in flour, and then dredge in an equal amount of potato starch (available on Amazon) before frying. This is a Japanese secret for making a crispy fry. All else in the recipe stays the same.
I used an electric skillet set at 400 degrees and cooked them at least seven minutes per side, but they didn’t come out very crispy. They tasted good though and were very tender and moist.
Absolutely spot on!!! Thank you for sharing. I did not have any powdered sugar in the house or celery powder and it still came out perfect. We had original Chick-fil-a sauce with them and we will definitely be making this again and again.
Could this be baked instead of fried?
I think an air fryer would be better to taste more like the original.
I just made these with my husband. I brined the chicken for about 18 hours. We fried them in organic sunflower oil. They came out fantastic! Thanks so much for this great recipe!
Could you cook these in an air fryer? If so, time and temp Thanks
it’s my understanding you can, but I don’t have an air fryer (on my list to get) so I’m not sure of the time and temp
This is perfection, Paula! Thank you so much for sharing your version of what I think tastes EXACTLY like Chick Fil A, yummo! I put my chicken in to marinate for 4 hours but never got back to take it out until 48 hrs later and I was worried it would be mushy, but it held up to the long marinade and came out delicious!
I’m happy you liked it and good to know it can marinate that long!
Let have a look on the recipe of honey paprika chicken tenders, try it and have fun.