Shatteringly crisp, flavorful Pioneer Fried Chicken that tastes so nostalgic you will feel like you’ve gone back in time! Try making today!
Chicken is a flexible protein that easily takes on different flavors and works well with a wide range of cooking styles and cuisines. Try these lighter fried chicken recipes, like my Cast Iron Buttermilk Fried Chicken and Fried Chicken Breast.
Sabrina’s Pioneer Take-Out Fried Chicken Recipe
Are you by any chance a kid of the ’80s? Are you from Southern California? Do you remember Saved By The Bell? Ok, ok, the last one doesn’t really apply, but this Pioneer Fried Chicken is legendary and going the way of Latin since the chain began closing shops years ago. Currently, there are only a couple of Pioneer Chickens left, and those that still exist haven’t been updated in 20 years. Craving nostalgic regional food and not being able to find it is the worst! I couldn’t find a single recipe online, even though so many people shared memories of Pioneer Chicken and how much they missed it, with no real way to recreate it. I finally found one and I wanted to share it with you! For many of us who grew up in LA, it’s tied to childhood memories just like video games. It’s the kind of food that brings you back.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 1 chicken , cut into 8 pieces
- 1 cup cornstarch , ¼ cup reserved for coating
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 1/2 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 teaspoon celery salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 cup water
- 3 cups peanut or canola oil
Instructions
- Mix all the dry ingredients except for the reserved ¼ cup cornstarch.
- Add the water and whisk.
- Put ¼ cup of cornstarch in shallow pan and coat chicken with it.
- Dip the chicken that has been coated in cornstarch into the wet batter until completely coated.
- Let drip for a couple of seconds and gently lower into pot of oil.
- Fry in 350 degree peanut or canola oil. for 8-10 minutes until cooked through in small batches.
- Drain on metal rack, not paper towels, so that it doesn't get soggy.
Nutrition
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Sabrina’s Tips
When I take my chicken out of the oil, I always let it drain on a metal rack so it stays crisp. I’ve made the mistake of using paper towels before, and it ended up getting soggy. Definitely not what we’re going for!
Table of contents
About this Recipe
This recipe is made with basic ingredients that you probably have on hand but it transforms this chicken into the most amazing, crunchy version you have been craving. Dipping the cornstarch on the chicken and then dipping it in the wet batter is what makes this chicken so wonderful and sets it apart from all other fried chicken recipes. With a relatively low prep time and fast cook time you will be ready to enjoy this chicken with the family no time!
Pairing Suggestions
Serve with Milk Boiled Corn and your favorite Cole Slaw to create a full, comforting meal. The sweetness of the corn and cool, creamy crunch of the slaw balance out the crispy, savory chicken perfectly!
How to Store
- Serve: Don’t leave cooked chicken at room temperature longer than 2 hours before refrigerating.
- Store: Fried Chicken will last up to 4 days in the refrigerator, sealed in an airtight container.
- Freeze: Wrapped tightly in plastic, freeze Fried Chicken up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator or reheat from frozen in the oven at 375 degrees for 20-40 minutes. Reheat to an internal temperature of 165 degrees.
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These photos were in a previous version of this post.
My mom back in the early 90s would stop by the local pioneer chicken almost every other day!
It’s been gone a long time,. I made some for my mom’s 86 birthday she absolutely loved it.thank you
You’re an amazing daughter Melody. So glad our Pioneer Fried Chicken played a part in your Mom’s 86th birthday. Wow! And thank for the five star review.
I have to say, this recipe is about as close as you can get. It definitely tastes a lot like Pioneer. And being that there are only two locations left, one in L.A. and one in Bell Gardens.The prices are high. I can get my Pioneer fix by making it at home. And BTW to answer Rick Adam’s post, they definitely did not use corn flakes, it’s a smooth batter that makes a crispy coating. A friend from high school used to work there and was in charge of dipping and frying the chicken.
Glad you enjoyed the recipe Damien and thanks for the feedback and the five star review.
Thank you for sharing. I distinctly remember a friend of mine that worked at Pioneer Chicken mention something that stuck with me. He said they coated the chicken with corn flakes. It makes sense to me because I remember a thick crust on the chicken that was delicious just eating on its own.
Thanks for taking the time to post this. Pioneer chicken was definitely awesome growing up. One thing I had a problem with 3/4 cup water with the dry ingredients. It will give you a thick cakey clumpy batter that you cannot dip into. So I had to at least another 3/4 cup of water. Any advice on this would be appreciated.
The taste definitely wasn’t like pioneer I’m thinking maybe because I did not use peanut oil. Is that critical here?
Ty
I’m sure you reserved 1/4 cup of cornstarch when whisking the dry ingredients with 3/4 cup water. I didn’t encounter thick cakey clumpy batter so not sure what happened there? Canola or Peanut oil is fine. Sorry the recipe didn’t work the way you had hoped for you. We have quite a few fried chicken recipes on the site if you’d rather try another recipe! https://dinnerthendessert.com/?s=fried+chicken
This and Koo koo roo! I’ve tried to the copycat koo Koo roo chicken online but lacks in something. It’s still not quite Koo Koo roo. Decode Koo Koo roo too pretty please!!!
haha…it’s on the list!
This is the best crispy fried chicken the taste of the coating was good but by far the crispy I ever had. That being said I only eat chicken wings and I have a deep fryer so I might need to buy them in flats and drums .
I have never had much success with deep frying until I tried this recipe. Okay, I’m still not that good at it, but the taste and crunch that I achieved took me back to my childhood favorite fried chicken.
Yeah I’m so happy to get this recipe I’m cooking this chicken tomorrow.
I grew up in San Francisco and we had a Pioneer Chicken on Mission Street near Geneva Ave. Pioneer chicken was so good, unique flavor, nothing else like it. AT one time, a very busy spot and open late. The building is still there, still looks like the original Pioneer except for the signage, now El Pollo Supremo, sort of a Cuban-style El Pollo Loco. Can’t wait to try this recipe and see how close it is to the original.
Hope you enjoy it Frank!
So I made this chicken yesterday, followed the recipe exactly, did it look like the Pioneer chicken I remember when done, yes! Did it taste like the Pioneer chicken I remember (I ate a heck of lot of it back in the day), unfortunately, no, It was tasty but not what I remember, Maybe it was user error, I’ll try again.
Hands down DELISH. Took me back to my childhood first bite!
This receipe doesn’t make a batter, it’s a watery liquid. Terrible.
OMG My sister worked at one in Ontario, CA. Seriously this was the best chicken I ever had!! Thank you for sharing I am going to try this!
Sabrina,
Thank you so much for this recipe! It was more than I expected and the taste was great. It was not salty which made the taste even better.
Best,
Lonnie
Thank you, thank you, thank you for posting this recipe. It is seriously delicious. I use boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into smaller pieces and pounded thinner and make them into chicken sandwiches. Everyone, and I mean everyone, LOVES them. I completely forgot about Pioneer Chicken until I ran across your post on Pinterest. And I am so happy that I did. Delicious!
Love this recipe use it every other week
This fried chicken looks nothing like what I grew up eating, but it looks SO GOOD! My husband and I are very interested in trying this recipe (We love getting in the kitchen together and trying out new-to-us recipes.) but I was wondering, do you possibly know if gluten-free flour would work to substitute in this recipe? I’m new to the gluten-free lifestyle, and it makes me feel SO much better; however, I understand if this isn’t something you have tried with this recipe, yet. Perhaps my husband and I can give it a go? I mean, after all, it would DEFINITELY be a COMPLETELY new-to-us recipe that way!! 😉
I LOVE your blog! I just found it today, have already bookmarked it, and see so many incredibly yummy recipes I need in my life. 🙂 Thanks so much!!
Pioneer chicken was my very first job it’s funny I found this post today because I was telling my girlfriend about it yesterday so thank you now I can make what I grew up knowing
Oh my, this chicken was amazing! I had completely forgotten about Pioneer Chicken until I happened upon your recipe and saw the logo with the little covered wagon. I followed the recipe exactly except I had the butcher cut up and de-bone a whole chicken. The crust was super crisp and flavorful and the chicken was moist and delicious. It’s been many years since I’ve had Pioneer Chicken but it tasted just as I remembered. It was a hit with the whole family. Great recipe.
I made this with boneless chicken thighs. It was great and delicious.
When I was a kid in the 60’s my mom would bring us Pioneer Chicken somewhere off Sunset Blvd I forget right now but there was also yhe Pioneer Market there too anyway best chicken ever between the 60’s and the 80’s always had Pioneer till I moved away . Thank you for this recipe…
I made this pioneer fried chicken and it didn’t turn out. The chicken didn’t get done by the bone. It failed.
All you do is lower the oil temp and fry longer. Mine turned out great by the third batch. Having a deep fryer also helps. Alot. If you happen to have one, cooking legs for 15 – 18 at 330 – 340 works like magic.
Cook it in the oven at 175* for two hours first, then follow this recipe. You won’t be disappointed
Back when I was 16, in the early 70’s,my friend and I would go to the Pioneer Chicken on Victory Blvd in North Hollywood. The cashier was a real cutie so we would go there and eat tons of chicken just to be in the pleasure of her company! Good memories. I’m looking forward to trying this recipe. Thanks for posting it.
I made this for dinner and it was great chicken was moist and tender the crispy crunch was fantastic
I did add Sage and I marinated the chicken over night in butter milk.
I now live in North Texas and I will not go to any chicken place but Chicken Express. I sure wish we had a Pioneer Chicken here! I always get the large iced tea(a rule here ;)or lemonade) with my chicken order. They have the tiny pebble style ice and giant cups. You made my day posting this recipe! I can now go back in time in my own kitchen!
Oh my goodness! We had one back in the early 80’s we went to in Fontana. THANK YOU! That was better than Kentucky Fried Chicken! Now all we need are the fake pretty lemon scented wet naps they give you with your order 🙂 The mashed potatoes and gravy….I could go on and on!
Hello… I’m from New Zealand and fell in LOVE with Pioneer Chicken when living in Hawaii. One of the best bits was the gravy… it was bright yellow and SO delicious… does anyone know how that was made?