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Ritz Cracker Chicken Recipe

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Ritz Cracker Chicken is the perfect easy weeknight meal! This kid-approved meal is topped with crushed buttery Ritz crackers, and then the chicken is baked to juicy perfection.

Ritz Cracker Chicken

If you love snacking on Ritz crackers as much as I do, you’ll be completely in love with this family favorite recipe.

Ritz cracker chicken is truly one of my favorite weeknight meals. It only takes 25 minutes, and even the pickiest eaters love it.

I love dipping it in a bit of warm marinara, this Instant Pot Tomato Sauce, or in some homemade honey mustard sauce. It’s also so delicious served with Raising Cane’s Sauce. I bet it would also taste amazing with some warm cheese sauce or some homemade gravy.

Try serving ritzy chicken with a side dish of salad, some roasted broccoli, or your favorite noodles.

My favorite part about this dish is how truly crispy the coating is, while the chicken stays perfectly juicy and tender. It’s really just the best combination, and I’m sure you’ll love it!

Ingredients

Eggs: Whisk the eggs together to make an egg wash. This helps the Ritz cracker coating stick to the chicken while it bakes.

Crushed Ritz Crackers: This is what we’re using to make the delicious crispy coating. It’s a great replacement for bread crumbs to coat chicken.

Spices: Italian seasoning, garlic powder, fine sea salt, and ground black pepper add tons of flavor to the crushed Ritz crackers! You could also use part of a ranch seasoning packet if you’d like to incorporate that ranch flavor.

Chicken: Boneless skinless chicken breasts are the best cut for this recipe, but you could swap them for boneless skinless chicken thighs if that’s all you have on hand. I do recommend using air chilled chicken, because it releases less liquid while it bakes and has a better texture after it’s cooked.

Butter: Adding slices of butter on top of the Ritz crackers help keep this chicken juicy and makes the crackers perfectly crispy without burning them.

The labeled ingredients for Ritz cracker chicken.

How To Make Ritz Cracker Chicken Breasts

Start by whisking the eggs together in one shallow bowl, then mix together the crushed Ritz crackers with the spices in another shallow bowl. Dip one side of the chicken in the egg wash, then in the cracker mixture, then place the chicken coated side up in a casserole dish or on a rimmed baking sheet. (See the recipe card below for the full printable recipe.)

Coating chicken breast in egg wash, then crushed ritz crackers, then placing it in a baking dish.

Add slices of cold butter on top of the crushed Ritz crackers layer.

Topping Ritz cracker chicken with butter slices before baking it.

Bake uncovered in a preheated oven until the chicken is cooked through and the crushed Ritz crackers are golden brown. See the recipe card below for the full written instructions, including ingredient amounts, cooking times, and helpful tips, etc.

Baked Ritz cracker chicken fresh out of the oven.

Can I Use Ritz Crackers Instead Of Breadcrumbs?

Yes! Ritz crackers are a great substitute for breadcrumbs. They’re the perfect substitute in a dish like this, and in meatballs or meatloaf.

Can I Make It Without Eggs?

Yes, you can. If you want to make it without eggs because you don’t have eggs on hand, I’d recommend using mayonnaise instead of the egg wash. If you want to make it without eggs because of an allergy, I’d recommend using sour cream instead of the egg wash.

Ritz cracker chicken breast next to a Caesar salad.

What Temperature Should You Bake Chicken At?

I prefer baking chicken breasts at a higher temperature for a shorter amount of time. This locks in the juices and makes perfectly tender chicken. I normally bake chicken breasts at 450 F, but since we don’t want to burn the crackers in this recipe, 400 F is better for this dish.

Ritz cracker chicken breast sliced in half to show how juicy it is.

Keep In Touch

I’d love to hear what you thought of this recipe in the comments or on Instagram! @KeyToMyLime #KeyToMyLime

Click here to pin this recipe for later!

A Pinterest pin image, with two pictures of Ritz cracker chicken, and title text in the middle.

Chicken Recipes

If you like this recipe, be sure to check out all of our chicken recipes! Some similar reader favorites are:

Yield: 8 servings

BEST Crispy Ritz Cracker Chicken (Famous Butter Chicken)

The best Ritz cracker chicken recipe.

Ritz Cracker Chicken is the perfect easy weeknight meal! It's topped with crushed Ritz crackers, and then it's baked to juicy perfection.

Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup crushed Ritz crackers
  • 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 4 large chicken breasts)
  • 1/2 cup cold butter (cut into slices)

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 400 F (204 C). Grease a 9x13 casserole dish or a rimmed baking sheet, and set to the side.
  2. Get two shallow bowls ready. Beat 2 eggs in one. In the other, combine the crushed Ritz crackers, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, fine sea salt, and ground black pepper.
  3. Dip the top part of each chicken breast in the egg wash, then dip it in the crushed crackers to coat. Place the coated chicken into the casserole dish or rimmed baking dish (coated side up). (Don't coat the entire chicken breast - just the top half.)
  4. Once all the chicken is in the dish, top the chicken with the sliced butter, and bake for 20 minutes (or until an instant read meat thermometer reads an internal temperature of 165 F at the thickest point).
  5. Spoon some of the butter from the pan over the chicken, and serve with your desired side dish. 

Notes

I like to cook my chicken breasts at a higher temperature because it seals in the juices and flavor.

Nutrition Information:

Serving Size:

1/8

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 279Total Fat: 16.2gCarbohydrates: 5.9gFiber: 0.3gSugar: 0.8gProtein: 26.7g

Nutrition information isn’t always accurate.

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?

Tag @KeyToMyLime on Instagram so we can see your delicious meal!

This delicious weeknight chicken bake is ready in under 30 minutes! You’ll get thumbs up at the dinner table when you serve this Ritz Cracker Chicken.

The best Ritz cracker chicken recipe.

3 thoughts on “Ritz Cracker Chicken Recipe”

  1. I served this with multi color quinoa, cooked with a little garlic powder- poured the butter sauce over it. Chicken was delicious!

    Reply

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