Chicken recipes can get a little boring, but not with this crispy Ritz Cracker Chicken! It has the best crispy breading on the outside and a wonderfully tender and flavorful chicken breast on the inside. What’s not to love?
What is Ritz Cracker Chicken?
Essentially, this Ritz cracker chicken is a breaded piece of chicken breast that is baked in the oven until it is wonderfully crisp and tender.
The kicker is that this recipe uses Ritz crackers for the breading rather than just plain bread crumbs. Try it out! Even my pickiest eater will devour this recipe!
Ritz Cracker Baked Chicken Ingredients
You will likely find most of the ingredients for this recipe in your kitchen already. You don’t need anything too crazy, or anything that’s hard to find in the grocery store, to make this tender chicken breast recipe.
Here’s a list of what you need:
- Boneless skinless chicken breast
- Ritz crackers
- Salt
- Paprika
- Ground black pepper
- Egg
- Milk
- Butter
Can I Only Use Ritz Crackers?
Nope! While the name of this recipe is Ritz Cracker chicken, you can use a different type of cracker. If you are gluten free, you might try one of your favorite gluten-free crackers instead.
Or if you simply do not have any Ritz Crackers on hand, you can use Cheez-Its or something of a similar texture.
Ritz Crackers are ideal because, while they are a cracker, they are a softer version of a cracker. The softness of the Ritz is what makes it so wonderful as a breading for the chicken strips because it will absorb some of the beaten egg and milk mixture, which is what gives you that glorious crispy breading once baked.
Plus, they have a wonderful buttery taste, which adds more depth of flavor as well.
Other Variations of Ritz Cracker Chicken
If you really want to get fancy with it, you can use buttermilk instead of plain whole milk. If you don’t have buttermilk in your fridge, it is actually super simple to make.
It only takes about 5 minutes to make, and as long as you have milk and lemon juice you are good to go. Learn how to make buttermilk.
How to Make Ritz Cracker Chicken
- Place the Ritz cracker crumbs, salt, paprika, and black pepper in a shallow bowl. Whisk or stir to combine.
- Place the egg and the milk in a separate bowl and whisk to combine.
- Dip the chicken strips in the milk/egg mixture, and then coat them in the cracker mixture.
- Place the coated chicken in a lightly greased baking dish. Drizzle melted butter on top.
- Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes.
Ways to Use Leftover Ritz Cracker Chicken
There are many ways to make the best of your leftovers. Here are a few suggestions:
- Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces and put them on a mixed green salad with more of your favorite toppings.
- Make a wrap using burrito shells filled with a couple of chicken strips, lettuce, tomato, and mayonnaise.
- Make a sandwich with Texas Toast. Add cheese and a tasty spread like barbecue sauce, buffalo sauce, or ranch dressing.
- Use it in Chicken Spaghetti Bake to transform it into a unique Ritz cracker chicken casserole.
How to Store Leftover Ritz Cracker Chicken Strips
Make sure to store the Ritz Cracker chicken in a well-sealed airtight container in the fridge. Otherwise, it will absorb the moisture from the fridge and become soggy. As long as it is stored properly, it will stay fresh in the fridge for 4 to 5 days.
You can also place the chicken in a freezer-safe bag or container and store it in the freezer for up to 3 months.
How Long Can I Store Chicken with Ritz Crackers?
As long as they are stored properly, they will keep refrigerated for up to 5 days. You can store them frozen for up to 3 months.
How to Reheat Ritz Crackers Baked Chicken
There are 3 ways to reheat this crispy baked chicken.
- In the oven at 350 degrees until the chicken is heated all the way through. This method might make the chicken a little drier.
- In an air fryer at 400 degrees for 5 to 7 minutes or until they are fully reheated. This is my favorite way to reheat them.
- In the microwave for 45 seconds to a minute. However, the microwave will make them a bit soggier.
What to Serve with Ritz Cracker Chicken
- Baked Red Potatoes
- Boiled Carrots Recipe
- Easy Broccoli Casserole
- Fried Okra
- Jiffy Cream Corn Casserole
- Jojo Fries
- KFC Coleslaw
- Martha Stewart Macaroni and Cheese
- Old Fashioned Asparagus Casserole
- Yellow Squash Casserole
Popular Chicken Recipes
Check out more of my easy chicken recipes and the best budget-friendly recipes here on CopyKat!
Thanks to chrissiemc for sharing this recipe.
Ritz Cracker Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast strips
- 35 Ritz crackers crushed into fine crumbs
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 egg beaten
- 3 tablespoons milk
- 2 tablespoons butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F, and lightly grease a baking dish.
- In a bowl, combine the Ritz cracker crumbs, salt, paprika, and black pepper. Stir.
- In a separate bowl, combine the egg and the milk. Stir.
- Dip the chicken strips in the milk/egg mixture, and then coat in the cracker mixture.
- Put the chicken in the baking dish, drizzle the melted butter on top.
- Bake for 30 minutes.
Mary R
An ex-boyfriend & I did a lot of fishing together. He said he had a recipe from a TV fishing guide host that he wanted me to try. Since my first taste, I have never fried my fish in anything other than this recipe. At first I turned my nose up at the thought of Walleye being coated in Ritz crackers & nutmeg? This is sooooo good! I never thought of trying it on chicken, but now that I’ve seen this recipe I will definitely try it.
* Ritz crackers crushed finely
*1/2 cup flour
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
*dash of pepper
*1 egg beaten well
*2 – 3 tablespoons milk
*fish of your choice but buy Walleye or go catch it yourself!
1. dip cleaned fish fillets in beaten mixture of egg, milk, nutmeg, salt & pepper
2.dip fillets into flour
3. dip fillets back into egg, milk, spices mixture quickly so as to not loose much of flour
4. dip/press fillets into crushed Ritz crackers
5. pan fry with small amount of oil on both sides until golden
6. drain on paper towels
Lora
We’ve done this in the oven (even without butter) and have loved it! Can I do it in the air fryer?
Stephanie
I think this would be a great air fryer recipe. I would cook it at 350 degrees. I am guessing bone-in pieces would take about 18-22 minutes to cook.
Nancy W.
Is the cook time 30 min. or one hour. There are two different times given.
Jahchild
Made this and again a big hit and I’m going to make it again tonight mine looked just like the picture I wish I could post pictures here thanks again for your great work
Stephanie
You could send me one of your photos 😉
Lindsbillinger
Chicken looked nothing like the picture, and there was nothing in it that would make it spicy. That being said, it was still good. I did turn the chicken over half way through the cooking then put it on a cooling rack after i took it out so the bottom wouldnt get soggy. I would make this again.
MOnique
The chicken had good flavor, but the bottom of chicken was not crispy because of the butter. My chicken did not look like the picture.
Stephanie
I am sorry your food didn’t look like the picture!
charolett cozort
Here is the recipe