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Baked Crunchy Hot Honey Chicken – a family favorite loved by everyone! Simple cornflake-crusted chicken baked up on a sheet pan until crispy and delicious. A double coat of crumbs is the secret. But my sauce…well it’s even more special. Sweet honey with the perfect combination of spices and sea salt. A delicious weeknight dinner to serve up to family and friends.
If there’s one recipe I was really excited to share this week, it’s this hot chicken. I know it’s not anything too out of the ordinary, but we love this recipe. My family always enjoys any kind of saucy baked chicken, but I usually do more of a buffalo-style sauce.
It’s a dinner everyone agrees on, so that makes my life easy!
Every so often, I’ll switch gears and do my version of a Nashville hot honey sauce. I’ve been making hot honey sauce for years and years, but this is my perfect sauce that came to be over trial and error.
Of course, it’s the simplest sauce, but I’ll never complain about simplicity when it comes to cooking!
Ingredients
- cornflakes
- grated parmesan cheese
- smoked paprika
- onion powder
- garlic powder
- large eggs, beaten
- tablespoons hot sauce
- chicken breast tenderloins
- extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling
HOT HONEY
- honey
- hot sauce
- cayenne pepper
- chipotle chili powder
- garlic powder
- onion powder
- sea salt
- fresh thyme, cilantro, or parsley, for serving
Details
The coating is key for this hot honey chicken recipe. Crushed cornflakes are the star, they give the chicken that perfect crunch. I’ve tested other cereals, but everyone in the family agrees cornflakes have the best taste and crunch.
I use Nature’s Path, Organic Corn Flakes Cereal, which is naturally gluten-free and non-GMO. I order online, but if you’re looking for something in-store, Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s are both good options.
And of course, you can use the box of regular ole’ cornflakes we all grew up with. Either one works, I just prefer the organic, no gluten, no sugar option.
Crunch the cornflakes up in a food processor with paprika, onion powder, and garlic powder. Then add the parmesan cheese. It may sound odd, but the cheese adds a salty flavor that melts over the chicken tenders becoming crispy as it bakes.
Next, I dredge the chicken through eggs beaten together with hot sauce, then through the crumbs mixture. For a thicker coating, I’ll take the chicken and dip it back through the eggs, and the crumbs for a 2nd time. This takes slightly longer, but the thicker coating is always delish.
Next, olive oil on the chicken to help it crisp up…then bake! I don’t do anything fancy, just bake 25 minutes and this chicken comes out perfect every time.
Totally no fuss.
Before the chicken is done, warm the honey on the stove in a small saucepan with hot sauce, cayenne, and chipotle chili powder. The chili powder adds a very subtle smokiness to the sweet, spicy, salty sauce.
You can use as little or as much of the sauce as you’d like, but I end up drizzling every last drop of the sauce over the chicken. It’s SO DELICIOUS.
Herbs, then sea salt to finish. This really is the perfect hot honey chicken. Plus, I love how easy it is to prepare.
I serve this with sweet potato fries and my fav wintery salad. Highly recommend some crispy sweet potato fries on the side. So yummmy with the spicy sauce!
For leftovers, save the rest of your chicken in an airtight container and bake the next day or heat up in the air fryer.
Looking for more recipes? Here are a few to try:
Sheet Pan Buffalo Chicken Pizza
Spinach and Artichoke Stuffed Soft Pretzels
Fried Buffalo Goat Cheese Balls
Baked Buffalo Chicken Egg Rolls with Cilantro Lime Ranch
Buffalo Cauliflower with Spicy Tahini Ranch
Lastly, if you make this Baked Crunchy Hot Honey Chicken, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Baked Crunchy Hot Honey Chicken
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 403 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 6 cups cornflakes (use gluten free, if needed)
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 2 tablespoons hot sauce
- 2 pounds chicken breast tenderloins
- extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling
Hot Honey
- 1/2 cup honey
- 2-3 tablespoons hot sauce
- 1-3 teaspoons cayenne pepper
- 3/4 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- sea salt
- fresh thyme, cilantro, or parsley, for serving
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 425° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.2. In a food processor, combine the cornflakes, parmesan, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, and a pinch of salt. Pulse until you have fine crumbs. Alternatively, you can crush the crumbs in a ziplock bag by stepping on them. Dump the crumbs into a shallow bowl.3. Beat the eggs in a bowl, add the hot sauce and chicken, and toss well to coat. 3. Dredge the chicken through the crumbs, covering fully. Place on the prepared baking sheet. For a thicker coating, dip the chicken back through the eggs, then through the crumbs a 2nd time. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until crisp all around. 4. Just before the chicken is done cooking, make the sauce. In a sauce pot, warm together the honey, hot sauce, cayenne, chili powder, onion powder, and garlic powder, plus a pinch of salt. 5. Drizzle the warm sauce over the chicken. Top with herbs. If the sauce thickens, warm for 5 seconds in the microwave. Enjoy!
This post was originally published on January 4, 2023
My comment is this – my tongue is on fire! Great flavor but next time, I’ll tame the amounts of hot sauce & chili powder. Delicious though & easy to make.
Hey Katie,
Lol sorry about the spice! Glad you enjoyed the chicken though:) I hope you’ll make it again! xT
This was awesome! My hot honey snob of a son thought so too 😊. We made sandwiches on brioche with slaw and pickles and sweet potato fries on the side. Thank you! This one is a keeper!!
Hey Laura,
Amazing!! I appreciate you making this dish and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was a winner! xT
It was delicious. I did use 5 eggs. And decreased spice amounts- everyone in family loved this recipe.
Hey Janie,
Amazing!! I appreciate you making this dish and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was a winner! xT
Just made this last night. I followed the exact recipe and definitely feel like it needs more salt. The pinch in the breading and the sauce leaves it extremely bland and under salted. Other than that, pretty tasty
Hi Sam,
Thanks for giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback! Sorry about the salt! xT
I made this last night for dinner and it was soooooooo good! Can’t wait to have the leftovers for lunch! I will def make again and again!
Yummy!
Thanks so much Kelly!! Love to hear that this recipe was a hit and thanks a lot for making it! xT
This chicken was absolutely AMAZING. So juicy and love the crispy coating. I could literally eat this everyday.
Hey Pam,
Happy Monday!!☃️ Thanks a lot for making this recipe and sharing your review, I love to hear that it was a winner! xx
Loved the crunch and the levels of heat. I would have either split the chicken in half lengthwise or pounded thinner to have more crunch and less chicken.
Hey Michele,
Happy Monday!!☃️ Thanks a lot for making this recipe and sharing your review, I love to hear that it was a winner! xx
This was absolutely delicious. Some notes- this is REALLY hot; my family and I do everything mild so I cut down the heat a lot- 1tsp hot sauce in each step and for the sauce, 1/4tsp cayenne, 1tsp chili powder and 1 cup of honey.
Also- I don’t see how two eggs are enough when double coating. I needed 5 eggs for 2lbs of chicken. But, those were easy adjustments and we LOVED this chicken. Thank you!
Hey Rolana,
Awesome!! Thanks so much for trying this recipe out and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was enjoyed! xT
This was amazing! Best of all, my entire family loved it. So I didn’t have to make three different things! The chicken stayed nice and moist, with a perfect crisp on the outside. Thank you!
Thanks so much Richelle! So glad to hear that your whole family enjoyed this recipe! Happy Monday! xT
Finally made this and OMG it was so good!! I would make this for an anyone and know they would love it. Pretty looking dish and so easy to make. Didn’t change a thing. Used Whole Foods organic corn flakes.
Hey Maree,
Happy Monday!!☃️ Thanks a lot for making this recipe and sharing your review, I love to hear that it was a winner! xx
I’ve made many Half Baked Harvest recipes and loved them. However, I made this recipe tonight as directed. The chicken was good but the sauce was much too hot. I used the lower range of cayenne and chipotle chili powder. My family enjoys hot food but this was overwhelming.
Hi Mary,
Thanks so much for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, so sorry to hear the sauce was not enjoyed! Please let me know if there is anything that I can help with! xx
Chicken breading was great but the hot honey sauce was not out favorite.
Hi Lindsey,
Thanks so much for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, so sorry to hear you didn’t enjoy the sauce! xT
Very tasty! Served with a kale salad and some roasted sweet potatoes! The sauce was spunky and very easy to make
Hey Sarah,
So glad to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks so much for making it! xT
My family LOVED this recipe! The chicken was perfectly crunchy and my family put the hot honey on everything on the plate! A new fave.
Hey Tracy,
Amazing!! So glad to hear that this recipe was a hit! Thanks for trying it out! xT
Made this tonight and it was delicious! Made a plain cutlet for my kiddo then added the hot sauce for the rest of us. Will definitely make again!
Hey Kimberly,
Happy Monday!!☃️ Thanks a lot for making this recipe and sharing your review, I love to hear that it was a winner! xx