Ritz Cracker Chicken

This Ritz Cracker Chicken Recipe uses buttery Ritz crackers instead of bread crumbs for a crispy coating. Juicy baked chicken in 30 minutes! Your whole family will love this delicious chicken dinner.

Baked Chicken with Ritz Crackers and Butter

Looking for a quick and easy recipe tonight? Coat chicken breasts in crushed Ritz crackers, toss in some butter, bake, and you’ve got a delicious dinner and a new family favorite!

If you want to bake tender chicken breasts that are not dry, this crispy Ritz cracker chicken is the recipe for you. The last time I made this flavorful baked chicken, it was practically fork tender — seriously! We had Ritz chicken growing up — some call this butter chicken. It’s one of my favorite chicken recipes. My kids love buttery Ritz crackers — actually their favorite cracker! So even my picky eater loves this easy dinner recipe as much as I do.

Serve this chicken dinner with a simple salad or rice, green beans or mixed veggies! My son even likes it with cheese sauce! Looking for more easy baked chicken recipes? Try Honey Mustard Curry Chicken, Baked Cranberry Chicken or Baked Mayo Parmesan Chicken.

Ingredients

You probably have all of the simple ingredients needed to make this crispy baked chicken recipe. If not, you can find them in your grocery store. This is a quick overview of ingredients. Full amounts are in the printable recipe card below.

• Skinless chicken breasts — or chicken tenders
• Ritz crackers — or any round butter cracker. I’ve used Trader Joe’s brand and Sprout’s brand with great results.
• Garlic powder
• Onion powder
• Ground black pepper
• Beaten egg — to help the cracker crumbs stick to the chicken
• Butter — an essential ingredient for this recipe. I use salted butter, but you can use unsalted butter as well.

Note — You can add salt if you like, but it’s not essential because there is plenty of salt in the butter crackers.

How to Make Ritz Cracker Chicken

First, preheat your oven to 375 degrees f. This is the best temperature to bake chicken without burning the coating. Next, crush up a sleeve of Ritz crackers or any buttery type of cracker. Kids can help with this part. Mine love crushing crackers with a rolling pin in a plastic bag!

I like to crush buttery crackers in a freezer bag and use that to bread the chicken — kind of like Shake and Bake! Then, season the cracker crumbs with the seasonings for extra flavor.

Whisk the eggs in a shallow bowl or dish. Then, dip the chicken in a beaten egg. This will help the crackers stick to the chicken. If you don’t want to use an egg, you can substitute a little mayo for the egg. I do this sometimes — it also works well with baked breaded pork chops!

Use a dry hand or kitchen tongs to dip each chicken breast into the crumbs in the bag. Then, place the breaded chicken into a casserole dish or baking dish. Technically, you don’t have to coat the baking dish because of the melted butter. But, I usually spray the dish with nonstick spray anyway. You can also use a little olive oil if you want.

Next, add cut-up butter. Mom used to dip the chicken into melted butter, but I like adding it around the sides of the chicken and on top of the chicken. As the chicken cooks, the butter melts and makes an awesome sauce. You can spoon some sauce over the coated chicken when you serve it.

Cook Time

So, how long do you cook chicken with crushed crackers? Bake the chicken for about 30-40 minutes or until the internal temperature is 165 degrees f according to a meat thermometer. I usually try to get smaller chicken breasts, but if your chicken is large, it may take a little longer to bake. Total cooking time depends upon the size and thickness of the chicken and your oven.

Baked Ritz cracker chicken has a gorgeous golden brown crust. It’s tender, juicy, super flavorful and absolutely delicious chicken! Seriously, this is some of the best chicken ever, right here. This simple recipe is also picky eater approved. My family gobbled this chicken dinner right up without one single complaint!

Can You Make this without Egg?

Yes, you can make Ritz cracker chicken without eggs. Use a thin layer of mayonnaise or sour cream to coat your chicken instead of eggs. Then, press the cracker crumbs onto the chicken. You can also dip the chicken in the melted butter instead of adding it as the chicken bakes.

Can You Use Ritz Crackers Instead of Breadcrumbs?

Yes. You can use crushed Ritz cracker crumbs or any cracker crumbs in place of dried breadcrumbs for almost any recipe. I use them in meatloaf, to top casseroles and bread chicken, pork chops and fish.

Variations and Substitutions

This is such a versatile chicken recipe that you can easily change it up to suit your tastes. Use chicken tenders, chicken thighs or chicken legs instead of chicken breasts.

To make Ritz chicken with cheese, add about 1/4 cup of shredded cheddar cheese or Parmesan cheese to the cracker crumbs.

For extra flavor, add a little Italian seasoning or dried parsley to the cracker crumbs. You can also add smoked paprika for color and flavor. Or use a different flavor buttery cracker.

How to Store and Reheat Leftovers

Store leftover chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will last for 3 to 4 days. You can freeze the chicken for longer storage — up to 3 months for best taste. Reheat leftover cooked chicken in an air fryer, in the oven or in the microwave.

I hope you enjoy this wonderful comfort food as much as my family does. If you try it, please be sure to leave a star rating and comment.

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