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.
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!
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.
Ritz Cracker Chicken is the perfect easy weeknight meal! Its topped with crushed Ritz crackers, and then its baked to juicy perfection.
I like to cook my chicken breasts at a higher temperature because it seals in the juices and flavor.
One sleeve of Ritz crackers is about one cup when crushed up, so it’s a simple one-to-one substitution for breadcrumbs in any meatloaf recipe. The result is a moist and buttery delicious meatloaf that everybody will rave about.
Elizabeth Stock began writing professionally in 2010. Before pursuing a career as a freelance writer, Stock was an editor and note writer for the “Thomas Jefferson Law Review” while attending Thomas Jefferson School of Law in San Diego. Stock recently graduated magna cum laude from Thomas Jefferson earning a Juris Doctor.
Pulse the Ritz crackers in a food processor. If you don’t have a food processor, put the crackers in a plastic zip-top bag, and use either a heavy pan or rolling pin to crush them.
If you are making stuffing or adding breading to meat or fish, your recipe will likely call for breadcrumbs. Breadcrumbs are exactly what they sound like: small pieces of bread that have been crushed to make crumbs. You can buy breadcrumbs at the grocery store, but if you need them in a pinch or if you want to make your own at home, they are easy to make. If you don’t have any bread, breadcrumbs can be made with many different crackers, including Ritz crackers.
Add seasoning or other accompaniments. Some recipes will direct you to add dried herbs or spices to the Ritz breadcrumbs before you use them in your dish.
Check the texture of the cracker crumbs to make sure theyre even. Continue pulsing or crushing until the texture is uniform. Depending on the recipe, you may want a coarse or fine texture for the crackers.
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
FAQ
Can you use Ritz crackers instead of breadcrumbs?
Can you substitute crackers for breadcrumbs in meatballs?
Can you substitute bread crumbs for Ritz Crackers?
Believe it or not, bread crumbs are the perfect substitute for Ritz crackers if you need them for fritters, meatloaf, and casseroles. Bread crumbs are great for soaking up liquids. However, there is no saltiness or buttery flavor in bread crumbs like Ritz crackers. You can overcome this issue by adding butter flavor extracts.
What can I substitute for Ritz Crackers?
There are also other food substitutes that you can use in place of crackers. These substitutes are ideal for when you can’t find any type of crackers. Believe it or not, bread crumbs are the perfect substitute for Ritz crackers if you need them for fritters, meatloaf, and casseroles. Bread crumbs are great for soaking up liquids.
What can I substitute for bread crumbs?
There are so many different foods—like chips, crackers, nuts, and seeds—that you can substitute for bread crumbs.
Can you use saltine crackers instead of breadcrumbs?
Try crushed up saltine crackers in place of breadcrumbs in meatloaf or meatballs—the crackers have a mild flavor and can turn into pretty fine crumbs. Just give them a good crush or a quick turn in the food processor before using. Don’t look past the breakfast cereal in your pantry—cornflakes can actually be a great substitute for breadcrumbs!