Chick-Fil-A Inspired Crispy Chicken Sandwich and Lemonade

4 sandwiches
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes

Chick-Fil-A Crispy Chicken Sandwich & Lemonade - The crispy, seasoned fried chicken sandwich we all love washed down with the best restaurant lemonade there is! Save the trip and the wait in the long lines!Chick-Fil-A has been a recent addition to our lives, definitely more recent than to most people. We lived in Washington, DC for three years and moved back to Los Angeles only recently to find that Chick-Fil-A was staging a takeover attempt against In-N-Out for the longest drive thru line title.  Having only been back in LA for a short time when we wanted fast food we were all too eager to have In-N-Out instead so it took us even longer to discover the delicious chicken and lemonade. OH, the delicious lemonade. I would go out of my way and stay in that line just for this lemonade.

Up here in Northern California we have settled in to a good groove. We alternate between the two, sometimes you need animal style burgers and fries and sometimes you need that lemonade and crispy chicken sandwich while watching your kids play in the play structure. It is hard to go wrong between the two! So when I came across the recipe for the copycat of the crispy chicken I got really excited but also conflicted since I need that lemonade to go with it! The last time I went to the restaurant with a friend I actually asked the manager behind the counter if he could tell me anything about the lemonade. They actually make it fresh there and he gave me this ratio. Trying it at home, I am sold. Now we sometimes have this meal at home with oven baked potato wedges as a surprise for my oldest and a treat for me!

Butterfly chicken into two thin filets. Score in diamonds. Marinate chicken in the pickle juice for an hour.Chick-Fil-A Crispy Chicken Sandwich & Lemonade - The crispy, seasoned fried chicken sandwich we all love washed down with the best restaurant lemonade there is! Save the trip and the wait in the long lines!
Add milk and egg into a bowl, mix together. Mix together dry ingredients in a second bowl. Chick-Fil-A Crispy Chicken Sandwich & Lemonade - The crispy, seasoned fried chicken sandwich we all love washed down with the best restaurant lemonade there is! Save the trip and the wait in the long lines!
Heat the oil in a skillet to about 350. Dredge each chicken piece into the egg, then into the flour mixture. Chick-Fil-A Crispy Chicken Sandwich & Lemonade - The crispy, seasoned fried chicken sandwich we all love washed down with the best restaurant lemonade there is! Save the trip and the wait in the long lines!
Fry each chicken piece for 3-4 minutes on each side, or until browned and cooked through. Chick-Fil-A Crispy Chicken Sandwich & Lemonade - The crispy, seasoned fried chicken sandwich we all love washed down with the best restaurant lemonade there is! Save the trip and the wait in the long lines!Chick-Fil-A Crispy Chicken Sandwich & Lemonade - The crispy, seasoned fried chicken sandwich we all love washed down with the best restaurant lemonade there is! Save the trip and the wait in the long lines!
Make into a sandwich with lettuce, tomato and pickles. Serve with delicious lemonade! Chick-Fil-A Crispy Chicken Sandwich & Lemonade - The crispy, seasoned fried chicken sandwich we all love washed down with the best restaurant lemonade there is! Save the trip and the wait in the long lines!

Chick-Fil-A Crispy Chicken Sandwich & Lemonade - The crispy, seasoned fried chicken sandwich we all love washed down with the best restaurant lemonade there is! Save the trip and the wait in the long lines!

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Chick-Fil-A Inspired Crispy Chicken Sandwich

The crispy, seasoned fried chicken sandwich we all love washed down with the best restaurant lemonade there is! Save the trip and the wait in the long lines!
Yield 4 sandwiches
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Course Sandwich
Cuisine American
Author Sabrina Snyder

Ingredients
 

  • 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts (either two large or 4 small breasts)
  • 3/4 cup dill pickle juice
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1 cup flour
  • 2 tbsp powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp celery salt
  • 1/2 tsp basil
  • 1 cup peanut oil , for frying
  • 4 Hamburger Buns
  • Lettuce
  • Tomato Slices
  • Pickle Slices

Instructions

  • Butterfly chicken into two thin filets. Score in diamonds.
  • Marinate chicken in the pickle juice for an hour.
  • Add milk and egg into a bowl, mix together.
  • Mix together dry ingredients in a second bowl.
  • Heat the oil in a skillet to about 350.
  • Dredge each chicken piece into the egg, then into the flour mixture.
  • Fry each chicken piece for 3-4 minutes on each side, or until browned and cooked through.
  • Make into a sandwich with lettuce, tomato and pickles. Serve with delicious lemonade!

Notes

Adapted from Moms Need to Know

Nutrition

Calories: 479kcal | Carbohydrates: 54g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 155mg | Sodium: 1923mg | Potassium: 572mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 428IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 116mg | Iron: 4mg
Keyword: Chick-Fil-A Crispy Chicken Sandwich, Chick-Fil-A recipes, copycat recipe, Crispy Chicken Sandwich

Chick-Fil-A Crispy Chicken Sandwich & Lemonade - The crispy, seasoned fried chicken sandwich we all love washed down with the best restaurant lemonade there is! Save the trip and the wait in the long lines!

Chick-Fil-A Inspired Lemonade

Deliciously addictive Lemonade that tastes like the original and doesn't have you waiting in a drive thru line for 30 minutes!
Yield 6 servings
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 0 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Course Drink
Cuisine American
Author Sabrina Snyder

Ingredients
 

  • 1 1/2 cups Sunkist lemon juice (this took me 12 lemons, but mine were a bit on the smaller side)
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 5 1/3 cups water

Instructions

  • Add the sugar to the lemon juice, mix well.
  • Add in the water and mix well again.
  • Let sit in the fridge for an hour, then mix again just before serving.
  • Best over ice.

Nutrition

Calories: 213kcal | Carbohydrates: 56g | Sodium: 18mg | Potassium: 94mg | Sugar: 52g | Vitamin C: 35.4mg | Calcium: 16mg | Iron: 0.1mg
Keyword: chick-fil-a, Chick-Fil-A Inspired Crispy Chicken Sandwich and Lemonade, Chick-Fil-A recipes

Chick-Fil-A Crispy Chicken Sandwich & Lemonade - The crispy, seasoned fried chicken sandwich we all love washed down with the best restaurant lemonade there is! Save the trip and the wait in the long lines!

 

About the Author: Sabrina Snyder

Sabrina is a professionally trained Private Chef of over 10 years with ServSafe Manager certification in food safety. She creates all the recipes here on Dinner, then Dessert, fueled in no small part by her love for bacon.

Sabrina Snyder is a professionally trained personal and private chef of over 10 years who is the creator and developer of all the recipes on Dinner, then Dessert.

She is also the author of the cookbook Dinner, then Dessert – Satisfying Meals Using Only 3, 5 or 7 Ingredients, published by Harper Collins.

She started Dinner, then Dessert as a business in her office as a lunch service for her coworkers who admired her lunches before going to culinary school and becoming a full time personal chef and private chef.

As a personal chef Sabrina would cook for families one day a week and cook their entire week of dinners. All grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning was done along with instructions on reheating. As a private chef she cooked for private parties and cooked in family homes in the evenings for families on a nightly basis after working as a personal chef during the day.

Sabrina has been certified as a ServSafe Manager since 2007 and was a longstanding member of the USPCA Personal Chef Association including being on the board of the Washington DC Chapter of Chefs in the US Personal Chef Association when they won Chapter of the year.

As a member of the community of food website creators Sabrina Snyder has spoken at many conferences regarding her experiences as a food writer including the Indulge Food Conference, Everything Food Conference, Haven Food Conference and IACP Annual Food Professionals Conference.

Sabrina lives with her family in sunny California.

Dinner, then Dessert, Inc. owns the copyright on all images and text and does not allow for its original recipes and pictures to be reproduced anywhere other than at this site unless authorization is given. If you enjoyed the recipe and would like to publish it on your own site, please re-write it in your own words, and link back to my site and recipe page. Read my disclosure and copyright policy. This post may contain affiliate links.

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Comments

  1. So, nobody has made a comment on whether or not it comes close to the taste. I have tried 3 copy cat recipes and all have disappointed me. Supposedly former employees say the fried version is not marinated in pickle juice. The one thing all of these recipes seem to lack is that sweet oily taste you get when you bite into that chicken. Does anyone have a batter recipe that comes close?

    1. When I made this version I taste tested against their nuggets. I thought it was pretty spot on. The only thing is that my nuggets were about 45 minutes “old” so I couldn’t fully compare right out of the fryer.

  2. I love fried chicken and this recipe looks easy and I think we’re going to fall in love with it! The first time we had Chick Fil A was in NC and we recently got one in CT but it’s still far so this is a must

  3. That sandwich looks and sounds amazing! I’m sure my kids would totally go for something like this at mealtime.

  4. You dont have to tell me twice to pin this!! I love Chick-Fil-A and I would like to see if I can do a copycat version of course with the lemonade!!!

  5. I need to try this asap. I love Chick Fil A but I hate spending a lot of money on fast food. I’m going to see how this comes out.

  6. Yum! Even if chick-fil-a was close by I’d love to make this at home and avoid the line!

  7. I just pinned this. I love that I can make this on a Sunday when I can’t get the real thing. Thanks for this!

  8. I’ve never been to Chick-fil-a, because there aren’t any where I live. I will have to try this to see what all the fuss is about!

    1. The lemonade is what brings me back all the time. It is ADDICTING. Don’t get me wrong though, the chicken is yummy too 🙂

  9. I’m anxious to try this since we love Chick-Fil-A so much. I would like a clarification, though. Are we using dill pickle juice here or sweet? I can’t wait for your recipe for the buns! Thanks.

  10. My boys have a very healthy obsession with Chick – fil – a . I would love to surprise them with a home cooked copy cat recipe!

  11. I would have never thought to marinate chicken in pickle juice! Your version looks pretty accurate.

  12. I think it was this time last year I first experienced Chick-fil-A and it was love at first bite. That chicken is amazing! I still haven’t tried the Lemonade, but now I can!

  13. I remember when the first Chik Fil A opened in my area of town about 25 years ago. It was all the rage. It’s been interesting to watch them grown, and almost fall apart, only to come back. I find it odd that their are still places without one!

    1. See I have a vague recollection of them being in our mall years ago, but after we moved to DC and back again 3 years later it had completely exploded in popularity!

  14. Yum. This looks AMAZING. We don’t have Chick-Fil-A in Canada so this would be a great way for me to try it out! Looks so good.

  15. The fried chicken looks so yummy. During the summer, we convert the main meal to lunchtime. This sandwich and lemonade will do the trick.

  16. Oh man, when is lunch time? I am heading over! That chicken looks like it was done by a CHef. 5 star recipe for sure.

  17. I LOVE the ChickFilA sandwich and marinating in pickle juice – WOW! I’m totally making this myself! Thank you!

  18. I think my kids would love to make their own Chick-Fil-A sandwiches. Will have to try this out!

    1. I wish mine were old enough to help! I think they would get a kick out of the pickle juice marinade, haha.

  19. This looks so delicious. I will have to try this recipe this weekend. I am sure it will be a big hit.

  20. Yummy! I am a fan of Chick-Fil-A, but I must admit yours looks much tastier, especially the bun. I will definitely have to try this.

  21. Am I a freak of nature that I’ve never once eaten Chik-fil-a? I know so many people who rave about it.

    1. I had it for the first time a few years ago, so I was late to the game too! Have you had In N Out?

  22. I love chick-fil-a but we don’t have one close to us. This sounds like a Godsend! I’ll be trying it soon!

  23. That sandwich looks JUST like chick-fil-a! Wihich happens to be one of my favorite palces to eat! Thanks for sharing.

  24. Oh my goodness! You have just made my daughter’s life complete! She loves Chick-Fil-A. Now that we can make it at home, she will never have to leave the house again!

  25. my current chick-fil-a love is their frosted lemonade. They are so good. I bet it would be easy enough to add ice cream to this recipe lol

  26. Chick fil A is my weakness, but the only time I eat out is on Sunday, when they are closed. I love this recipe. Now I can have my cravings satisfied by making the sandwiches myself!

  27. I love Chick Fil A sandwiches. If these are even close to the flavor I get there, I am so excited! Yum!

    1. Haha, me too! I normally have a policy against drinking calories when they aren’t alcoholic, but this lemonade is worth it!

  28. Would you believe I have never had Chick-Fil-A? We do not have one in our city and every time I find myself in an area with one, it’s a Sunday!

  29. Oh you are so speaking this pregnant mama’s language right now! I adore Chick-fil-a! And their lemonade! I have to give this recipe a try!

  30. Oh my goodness, this is my brothers favorite sandwich… So cool. Thanks so much for the recipe, I can’t wait to try it.

  31. I am a HUGE Chick-fil-A lover. I can’t wait to try this recipe for the crispy chicken sandwich and lemonade!

  32. This looks like a winner to me! I love trying copy cat recipes, and I love Chick-Fil-A. Yay!

  33. That sandwich looks pretty genuine. And if I can gather enough oil, I can do this at home, too.

    1. I think you could get away with about half the oil if you use a smaller pan and do one piece at a time 🙂

  34. That looks delicious! We go to Chic-Fil-A all the time, so I can’t wait to give this a try.

  35. Oh yum! We don’t have Chick-fil-a’s around here, so I have no choice but to make my own!