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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
Made this exactly as stated but used truffle infused honey. Over the top delicious. Thank you for all your great recipes.
Hey Mary Ann,
Happy Wednesday! Thanks so much for making this recipe and your comment, so glad to hear it turned out well for you! xx
Made this recipe after my daughter recommended it. Soo good and easy. Loved no frying involved. Dip and bake!!!!! Will make it again.
Thanks so much Beth!! Love to hear that this recipe was a hit and appreciate you making it! xT
I split my chicken breasts to make them thinner and double dredged the chicken so I think that’s why I ended up having to double the recipe (except for the sauce). I cooked half on a wire rack and half on a pan and like others said the wire rack made it crispier! Overall amazing recipe that I can’t stop eating!
Hey Liz,
Happy Wednesday! Thanks so much for making this recipe and your comment, so glad to hear it turned out well for you! xx
Great alternative to fried chicken. Came out tender and delicious. A little too much cayenne pepper in the sauce (and I’m from New Orleans!) but otherwise delicious!
Thanks so much Jerry! I love to hear that this recipe was a hit and appreciate you making it! xT
I normally don’t rate recipes…but this one is delicious and a definite keeper!
Thank you
Hey Julie,
Happy Wednesday! Thanks so much for making this recipe and your comment, so glad to hear it turned out well for you! xx
Could you make this in an airfryer? Suggestions on how long and what temp?
Thanks
Hey Elena,
I’ve not tested this recipe in the air fryer so I can’t say for sure the cooking instructions, but I bet it would work well for you! Let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Hi Tieghan, Excited to try this chicken recipe! Do you think the chicken could be frozen once it has been cooked? I love batch cooking to have meals on hand when I DON’T feel like cooking!
Many thanks!
Rebecca
Hey Rebecca,
Sure, I don’t see why not! Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xx
What type of hot sauce do you recommend for this recipe?
Hi Brittany,
I like to use Frank’s Red Hot Sauce. Please let me know if you have any other questions:) xx
Another delicious meal by HBH. We used thin breasts (prepackaged at Whole Foods as organic thin cut chicken breast). Regular chicken breast. I think having a thinner piece of meat helps keep the coating crispy while not undercooking the meat. We’ve made recipes before where the coating is crispy, but the inside still needs more time, and then the outside almost gets burnt. Since the breasts were thin there was more surface area to cover, and could’ve used maybe one more cup of flakes. If you like sauce like we do, I suggest doubling the recipe for the hot sauce. It was so good that we used it all up on half of the chicken
Hey Elizabeth,
Thanks so much for sharing what worked well for you! Love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed:) Have a great week! xx
This is by far the best oven baked chicken I have ever made… I followed the suggestion of double coating it and the chicken came out perfectly crispy! I did put it on a wire cooling rack while baking and I think that helped keeping it crispy. The hot honey sauce is perfection. I’m looking forward to having this as leftovers all week. Thank you!!
Hey Nikki,
Happy Tuesday! I appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your comment. So glad to hear this was a hit! xT
Love your recipes and this was no exception! Made this for family dinner tonight – was easy to make and loved by all, especially my 16-yr old son. Will keep this in my ‘favorites’ file.
Thank you for making so many recipes Marla! I love to hear that your family enjoyed this one:) xT
Winner winner hot honey chicken dinner! My entire family of hungry teenage boys LOVED this dish🙌🙌🙌🙌
Hey Cristi,
Amazing!! I appreciate you making this dish and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was a winner! xT
New family favorite!
Love to hear this! Thanks Sheila! xx
SO good! I split the brests in half, which worked better for me texture and thickness-wise. Everything else was SO good.
Hey Sammi,
Amazing!! I appreciate you making this dish and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was a winner! xT
Made this tonight for dinner and it was a hit! My boyfriend said it’s one of the best things I’ve ever made and better than any restaurant. I prepped the sauce this morning so flavors could marinade (I substituted ancho chili for chipotle chili because it’s what I had on hand) and it had the perfect balance of sweet and heat! Will absolutely be making this again!
Hey Rachael,
Amazing!! So glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe! Thanks so much for making it! xT