Honey Chipotle Chicken Crispers
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Crispy, saucy, and downright irresistible, these Honey Chipotle Chicken Crispers taste just like the ones from Chili’s, but better! This easy copycat recipe pairs perfectly crunchy chicken tenders with a sweet-and-smoky honey chipotle sauce that’s finger-licking good. Serve them as an appetizer, or with your favorite side, and get ready for a restaurant-quality meal without the wait (or the bill!).
Why you’ll love these chicken crispers
I originally introduced these chicken crispers in 2016, right before football season. I’m back today with an updated recipe, new photos, and some hot tips to make them even better!
After perfecting my boneless wings in the oven and air fryer, I knew that I had to swoop back to these chicken crispers (basically the same thing as boneless wings!) and use the tips and tricks that I learned to make these Chili’s copycat chicken crispers even more crispy and flavorful!
These chicken crispers are perfect for game day. They’re also great for tossing on top of a salad, or turning into a crispy chicken wrap. You can also serve them for dinner with fries and mac and cheese, just like the famous Chili’s combo! No matter how you serve them, I know you’re going to love the crispy breading and the sweet heat from the flavorful, sticky sauce!
Prep the chicken ahead of time, then pop them right in the oven or air fryer before dinner or game time and enjoy a delicious meal or appetizer!
Ingredients
Here I explain the best ingredients for this honey chipotle chicken crispers recipe, what each one does, and substitution options. For the exact ingredient measurements, see the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Corn flakes cereal – you’ll need 6 cups of the cereal before you crush it in a food processor. This will give you a crispy breading on the outside of the chicken, with just a hint of sweetness.
- Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- Eggs
- All-purpose flour
- Seasonings – before breading the chicken, season it with chipotle powder, paprika, sea salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and cumin. Seasoning the chicken directly ensures that it gets a full coating, making the chicken more flavorful.
- Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce – you will find these in a can at the grocery store, either in the Hispanic section, or near the other canned peppers and chilies.
- Honey
- Lime juice – I recommend fresh squeezed for the best flavor.
- Fresh cilantro
Instructions
I’ve included step by step photos below to make this recipe super easy to follow at home. For the full detailed recipe instructions, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Prepare the breading station. Add the corn flakes to a food processor and pulse a few times until they’ve reached a fine crumb consistency. Pour them into a shallow bowl. In another shallow bowl, whisk 4 eggs together. In a third shallow bowl, add flour.
- Season the chicken. In a small bowl combine all of the spices to season the chicken. Cut the chicken breasts into 1 inch cubes. Sprinkle the seasoning evenly over the chicken and toss until it’s coated on all sides.
- Bread the chicken. Start by placing each of the seasoned chicken pieces in the egg mixture. Once it’s fully covered in the egg, allow any excess to drip off before transferring the chicken to the bowl of flour. Cover the chicken completely in the flour, then add it back to the bowl of whisked eggs. Once fully covered in the egg again, dip the chicken in the corn flake crumbs, pressing down gently with the palm of your hand to make sure the chicken is fully coated in the corn flake crumbs.
- Cook the chicken. Place the pieces of breaded chicken on a wire rack, on top of a baking sheet lined with foil or parchment paper. Spray the chicken with cooking spray. Bake in a 425°F preheated oven for 12 minutes. Because you’re cooking them on a wire rack, you don’t need to flip them throughout the cooking process. If you’re cooking them directly on a baking sheet, I recommend flipping them halfway through the cooking time.
- Sauce the chicken. While the chicken is baking, combine the chipotles, adobo sauce, honey, lime juice, and cilantro in a blender. Pour the sauce into a large skillet on the stove over high heat and bring to a boil. Remove the chicken from the oven, add it to the sauce in the skillet and toss until fully coated. Remove from the heat and serve immediately.
Want a shortcut? Instead of breading your own chicken crispers at home, you can use frozen breaded chicken bites, like these from Just Bare Chicken.
Cook 1 ½ pounds of the chicken bites according to the package directions. Blend up the honey chipotle sauce, then add it to a large skillet on the stove over high heat and bring it to a boil. Add the cooked chicken bites to the sauce and toss until they’re fully coated.
What to serve with them
Serve the chicken crispers with ranch dressing for dipping, and celery sticks or carrots on the side, for an awesome party or game day appetizer!
If you want to serve the honey chipotle chicken crispers as a meal, like the Chili’s combo, I recommend pairing them with fries and mac and cheese. Try any of these recipes to make an incredible dinner!
- Fries: Air Fryer French Fries, Animal Style Fries (In N Out Copycat), Crispy Baked Sweet Potato Fries, Truffle Fries, or Chili Cheese Fries
- Mac and cheese: Easy Stovetop Mac and Cheese, Buffalo Crock Pot Mac and Cheese, Broccoli Mac and Cheese, or Creamy Cavatappi
More copycat recipes
I have a growing list of over 30 copycat recipes on the blog. Check out the most popular dishes and make them at home to save that money!
Honey Chipotle Chicken Crispers
Ingredients
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 6 cups corn flakes cereal
- 2 teaspoons chipotle chili powder
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch pieces
Chipotle Honey Sauce
- 3 chipotles in adobo sauce
- 1 tablespoon adobo sauce
- ½ cup honey
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F. If your oven has a convection setting, I recommend using that. (See the notes below for air fryer instructions.)
Bread the chicken.
- Whisk 4 large eggs in a shallow bowl. In another shallow bowl, add the all-purpose flour.
- Place the corn flakes in a food processor, blend to a fine crumb consistency. In a third large shallow bowl, add the corn flake cereal crumbs.
- In a small bowl, combine the chipotle powder, paprika, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and ground cumin. Set aside.
- Cut the chicken breasts into approximately 1 inch cubes. Toss the cubes of chicken with the prepared seasoning, until they’re fully covered.
- Place each piece of seasoned chicken in the egg wash. Once it’s fully covered in the egg, allow any excess to drip off before transferring the chicken to the bowl of flour.
- Cover the chicken completely in the flour, then add it back to the bowl of whisked eggs. Once fully covered in the egg again, dip the chicken in the corn flakes crumbs, pressing down slightly with the palm of your hand to make sure the chicken is fully covered in the cereal crumbs.
- Place the pieces of breaded chicken on a wire rack, on top of a baking sheet. Spray the chicken with cooking spray.
Bake the chicken.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 12 minutes. Because you’re cooking them on a wire rack, you don’t need to flip them throughout the cooking process. If you’re cooking them directly on a baking sheet, I recommend flipping them halfway through the cooking time.
Sauce the chicken.
- While the chicken is baking, combine the chipotles, adobo sauce, honey, lime juice and cilantro in a blender. Pour into a large skillet on the stove over high heat and bring to a boil.
- Remove the chicken from the oven, add it to the sauce in the skillet and toss until fully coated. Remove from the heat and serve immediately.
Notes
- When breading chicken, always use one hand for the wet ingredients and one hand for the dry ingredients. This will prevent clumping, keep your hands from becoming coated in the breading, and it will help keep the breading ingredients separated. My Dad taught me this trick growing up, making his famous Captain Crunch Fried Chicken together!
- To cook the chicken crispers in an air fryer, add the breaded chicken to an air fryer basket. Make sure there’s room around each piece of chicken for the air to circulate. Spray them with cooking spray. Cook at 400°F for 4 minutes. Open the air fryer, flip the chicken, spray with cooking spray, and cook for another 4 minutes.
- Do not sauce the chicken crispers until you’re ready to eat them. Once sauced, the chicken should be eaten immediately or it will get soggy, and lose it’s deliciously crispy texture.
- Cooked chicken crispers (that have not been sauced) can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days in an airtight container. Reheat them in the air fryer at 400°F for 2-3 minutes to keep them crispy, or in the oven at 425°F for 4-5 minutes.
- Battered, uncooked chicken crispers can be stored in a freezer-safe container in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- The frozen chicken crispers can be cooked directly from frozen in the air fryer or oven. In the air fryer, add 2 minutes to the cooking time. So the chicken will need to cook for 5 minutes per side at 400°F. If cooking them in the oven, add 2 minutes to the cooking time, for a total of 14 minutes at 425°F.
Nutrition Facts
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