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Ritz Cracker Chicken couldn’t be easier or more delicious. With just a handful of ingredients, you’ll have dinner on the table in no time!
January always seems to last no less than 300 days. This year, it seemed like it lasted no less than 3,000 days.
But it’s finally February. Hopefully the shortest month of the year doesn’t let us down.
Between sickness that just won’t quit and the general state of the world, I don’t really want to put a lot of effort into dinner at the end of the day. We’ve been eating ritz cracker chicken more often than I actually want to admit these days.
Luckily, it’s a favorite of everyone in my family, so no one around here is complaining.
Buttery ritz cracker chicken: an easy weeknight dinner
I’ve mentioned in the past that I have a very picky eater for a husband. The guy would gladly eat pasta with crockpot spaghetti sauce six days out of seven.
However, he’d happily rotate this ritz cracker chicken with said spaghetti, or noodles and gravy, and be completely content for all of eternity.
Okay, maybe he’d throw pizza into the mix every once in a while, but you get my point. This chicken is his jam.
And it’s kind of mine, too. I mean, you can’t even order a pizza to be delivered in the time it takes this recipe to come together from start to finish.
Even though it’s not the fanciest of meals, I’ve served ritz cracker chicken numerous times when we’ve had family over and everyone always falls in love with it immediately. Both my Dad and my mom’s boyfriend actually proclaimed it to be “the best chicken they’d ever tasted.”
That, my friends, is a pretty serious claim, because they can both be tough critics.
What I really enjoy is that I can take this base recipe and make it fit any sort of sides we want to have by switching up the spice profile. Think Italian seasoning, BBQ seasoning, Ranch dressing, or even Frank’s Red Hot.
The simple combination of already-buttery ritz crackers and butter creates a wonderfully crispy outside with an incredibly juicy and tender inside. It’s exactly what you want baked chicken to be. There’s nothing dried out or lacking in flavor here!
How to make ritz cracker chicken
There’s a good chance you might already have everything you need to make this recipe. And even if you don’t, the ingredient list is pretty short so it’ll be a quick run to the grocery and you’ll have dinner on the table in no time!
Ingredients you’ll need
To make my ritz cracker chicken, you will need:
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 sleeve (from a 13.7-ounce box) of Ritz crackers, crushed into crumbs
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning (optional)
- 4 boneless/skinless chicken breast halves
- 1/3 cup butter, cut into cubes
You want a whole standard-size sleeve of ritz crackers for this recipe – so one of the sleeves that comes in a 13.7-ounce box.
But, like a lot of my dinner recipes, this one doesn’t have to be exact. Just make sure you have enough crushed ritz crackers to coat all of the chicken pieces on both sides.
My go-to seasoning for this recipe is a mix of Italian seasoning, garlic salt, and black pepper. Scroll down to “recipe variations” for some additional seasoning ideas.
We like to use thin chicken breast halves for this recipe. If you use larger pieces of chicken or opt for chicken thighs, they may take longer to cook through, so make sure you check them with an instant-read thermometer for doneness.
Making this easy dinner
This ritz cracker chicken recipe only takes about 5 minutes to prep and 30 minutes to cook. You can have dinner on the table in well under an hour with this recipe!
To make it, start with two shallow bowls.
In one bowl, beat 2 eggs. In the other, mix together the ritz cracker crumbs and the seasonings.
Dip each piece of chicken into the beaten eggs, then into the cracker mixture. Place the cracker-coated chicken into a large baking dish and arrange the cubes of butter around each piece of chicken.
All that’s left to do now is bake! Bake at 375°F for 25-30 minutes, or until the thickest part of the meat reads 165°F on an instant-read thermometer.
If you used large or thick chicken breasts, they make take longer to bake, so it’s doubly important to use a thermometer to check for doneness.
If you need an easy dinner in your back pocket for the picky eaters in your life, THIS is the recipe. Be sure to also check out my Instant Pot Pulled Pork, Cheeseburger Tater Tot Casserole, Homemade Sloppy Joes and this Creamy Garlic Chicken.
Recipe variations
As I mentioned above, my go-to seasonings for this ritz cracker chicken are garlic salt, black pepper, and Italian seasoning.
But you can easily change up the seasonings and change the flavor profile of the dish. It could be like a whole different recipe each time you make it!
Some other seasoning ideas include:
- Ranch seasoning
- Taco seasoning
- Pizza seasoning
- BBQ seasoning
- Lemon pepper
- Hot sauce, such as Frank’s RedHot (add this to the egg mixture)
Serving suggestions
Not only is ritz cracker chicken delicious and easy to make, it pairs really well with all sorts of side dishes.
Go simple by serving it up alongside buttered noodles and a fresh salad or air fryer green beans. If you’ve got a little more time on your hands, make some corn on the cob or garlic mashed potatoes.
This chicken is also a great addition to your favorite pasta dishes, such as spaghetti with quick marinara sauce, easy fettuccine alfredo, or one pot mac and cheese.
No matter how you serve it up, this chicken recipe will most definitely become one of your go-to main dishes – especially on busy weeknights.
Ritz Cracker Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 large eggs beaten
- 1 sleeve Ritz Crackers from a 13.7-ounce box, crushed into crumbs
- ½ teaspoon garlic salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning optional
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
- ⅓ cup butter cut into cubes
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Place beaten eggs and cracker crumbs into two separate shallow bowls.
- Add garlic salt, black pepper and Italian seasoning to the cracker crumbs and stir to combine.
- Dip each chicken breast into the eggs and then into the crumb mixture to completely coat the chicken.
- Arrange chicken in a 9×13-inch baking dish and arrange cubes of butter around each breast.
- Bake in preheated oven for 25-30 minutes or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165°F.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
My family and I thoroughly enjoyed this! Yum!
Easy to make. We did not have eggs, so we used mayo instead while worked out well as an alternative. Wonderful recipe! Thanks for sharing!
KD
Thanks so much, Karen! I love the idea of the mayo instead of the eggs!
Have a great day and happy baking!
-Jamie
If you get the thicker Chicken Breast just cut them in the middle & make 2 thin 1’s ?
That’s what I typically do, Rosemarie. You can also leave them as large chicken breasts, we’re just not fans of super thick chicken. I hope this helps.
-Jamie
I’ve made this twice and it’s delicious…but both times it has been a bit soggy. Any suggestions how to make it crispier?
Hi, Meghan! I would make sure you don’t cover the baking pan with anything so the chicken coating doesn’t steam while baking. I’ve also read you can bake them on a wire cooking rack placed over a baking sheet to ensure crispiness. I hope this helps!
Could I prep everything and bread the chicken a couple hours ahead of time and put it in the fridge until it is ready for the oven?
Hi, Rachel! I think you probably could. Let me know how you like it!
I really liked how these tasted. I found that if I gave them a moment to cool on a rack that they were much crispier on both sides~ unsure if that’s my oven or something, but if anyone finds the same issue- try the short term cool on a cooling rack. Delicious regardless!
Wonderful, Juliane! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
I’ve made this a few times but my recipe also adds shredded cheese is a great bonus!
The shredded cheese sounds great! I’ll have to try it!
I changed this recipe up and used a combination of pretzel crumbs and French’s dried onion crumbs. I have to use the food processor to crush the pretzels small enough, but its worth the effort. It is awesome. We don’t fry chicken at all anymore…we always make the pretzel chicken.
That combination sounds great, Andrew! I’m going to give that a try!
I don’t have breast do you believe thighs and legs will have the same outcome ? I’m trying it tonight for my family.
Hi, Ecclesia! The only thing that concerns me about the legs and thighs is that they have a higher fat content and will give off more juices than the breasts. If you give it a try, please let me know…I’m curious to the outcome!
Thank you for this! It’s so delicious and my fiance loved it! I didn’t have any bread crumbs and came across this recipe. The crackers were perfect. I am making this as we speak for the second time but I added a little more to it. Hopefully it will turn out as awesome as your original. :)
That’s wonderful, Katie!
This recipe was very tasty! Easy to make and the family loved it, thanks
I’m so glad your family enjoyed it, Mark!