This spicy, Air Fryer Chicken Sandwich inspired by Chick-fil-a is made with lean chicken breast brined in pickle juice and buttermilk, served with pickles and sriracha mayo – SO good!
Air Fryer Chicken Sandwich
Fast-food fried chicken sandwiches are my weakness. So, it doesn’t get much better than a healthier air fried chicken sandwich you can make right in your kitchen, anytime! These Pickle-Brined “Fried” Chicken Sandwiches are so good with moist, juicy meat brined in a combination of pickle juice and buttermilk served on a soft potato roll with pickles and spicy mayo. I have a ton of healthy air fryer recipes and an air fryer cookbook if you’re new to air frying! Some favorites are this bonelss, skinless Air Fryer Chicken Breast, Air Fryer Chicken Thighs and these Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets.
Although this recipe needs to soak a few hours, once it’s ready it takes under to minutes to make! You can let it brine in the morning, then come home and cook it later, or leave it overnight for extra flavor.
What does pickle juice do to chicken?
Pickle juice is the perfect marinade for chicken breasts since they are so lean and can dry out easily. The salt in the pickle brine tenderizes the chicken, so it’s moist and gives it a pickle flavor.
If you love pickles, this chicken sandwich recipe is definitely for you! If you’d like a more subtle pickle flavor, marinate the chicken for six to eight hours instead of overnight.
How to make fried chicken sandwich in air fryer
Inspired by Chick-fil-a I started with breast meat then cut the breast in half. I brined it a few hours in pickle juice and buttermilk to make the chicken extra flavorful. Then it gets coated in a seasoned flour, then in egg and back into the flour. I have the G0Wise 7-quart air fryer (affil link). To air fry, I used special parchment paper with holes to prevent the coating from sticking to the air fryer and lightly sprayed the chicken with oil. This gets air fried 380F 14 to 18 minutes, turning halfway.
Do you have to use perforated parchment paper in an air fryer?
I had to test this recipe several times because the flour kept sticking to the air fryer basket before turning over the chicken. The solution that worked for me was using special air fryer parchment paper with holes for the airflow. The perforated parchment paper ensures you don’t clog the air vents, which can cause a fire.
It’s important to note you don’t want to put the parchment in the air fryer unless you have food on top. Without any food, it will blow around and burn. Of course, if you want to make this fried chicken and don’t have parchment, the chicken still tastes fine if some of the breading sticks to the basket and comes off.
More Air Fryer Chicken Recipes You’ll Love:
- Air Fryer Chicken Milanese with Baby Arugula
- Air Fryer Chicken Tenders
- Air Fryer Chicken Breast – No Breading
- Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets
- Air Fryer Chicken Parmesan
Air Fryer Chicken Sandwich with Sriracha Mayo
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, 16 ounces
- 1 cup 1% buttermilk
- 1 cup pickle juice
- 1 large egg, beaten
- Kosher salt
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- olive oil spray
- 4 tablespoons light mayo
- 1 tablespoon sriracha
- 12 dill pickle chips
- 4 whole wheat potato rolls, such as Martins
Instructions
- Pound out the thicker end of the chicken breast to make the thickness even on both ends, about 1/2-inch thick, this will ensure the chicken cooks even, then cut each breast in half to make 4 pieces.
- Whisk buttermilk and pickle juice in a bowl.
- Add chicken and toss to coat; cover with plastic wrap and chill at least 6 hours or overnight.
- Combine flour, garlic powder, paprika, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and cayenne pepper in a shallow bowl.
- Whisk egg in another bowl.
- Line the air fryer basket with an air fryer parchment liner (these are sold on Amazon, look for parchment with the holes).
- Working with one chicken breast at a time, dip chicken in flour mixture, shaking off excess. Then into the egg and back into the flour, using the back of a fork to coat well so it adheres.
- Shake excess then transfer to the prepared air fryer basket and spray tops with oil. (For best results, let the chicken sit 15 minutes or refrigerated longer help keep the breading on)
- Air fry in batches as needed 380F until golden and cooked through, about 15 to 18 minutes, turning halfway depending on the thickness, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast reads 165°F.
- Meanwhile combine sriracha and mayo in a small bowl.
- To assemble sandwiches, place the mayo on the top of rolls, place the chicken on the bottom roll followed by the pickle chips and tops of rolls.
First, let me just say that every recipe of yours I have ever made has been awesome! I am a huge fan!! I have several of your cookbooks and use them and your website often. I made these chicken sandwiches for the first time tonight and they were awesome! I brined them all day. I did not have the perforated parchment paper, but I put the prepped chicken in the refrigerator for 15 minutes as suggested. I sprayed my fryer with olive oil and mine did not stick at all!! From reading the other reviews, I was prepared to scrape the breading from the fryer.. but it didn’t stick one bit! I did pound my chicken breast a little thinner and only cooked them for 14 minutes but they were perfect! I will definitely make them again. Thanks for another great recipe!!
Fantastic recipe! The chicken was so moist and tender, and the pickles and siracha mayo added great flavor to the sandwich. Will definitely make again.
We love the flavor of these chicken sandwiches. I am making them again tonight. Love a little spice!
We make these almost weekly! So delicious! Beautiful, light breading and the pickles and sriracha mayo are perfect!
Absolutely unbelievable!!! We are soooo in love with this one! It tastes like it was bought from a restaurant!!!!!!! We do a big batch in the oven
I have made this recipe several times and it’s so good. My husband requests this on a regular basis.
Have made this several times. Love it. Thanks Gina.
These were so good. My first attempt at “fried “ chicken in my air fryer! Thank you!
This is a GREAT recipe! I was going to eat one and freeze the other three chicken portions, but ended up having a delicious sandwich four days in a row. I reheated them in my air fryer after warming them up a little in the microwave on defrost.
This is truly an outstanding sandwich, definitely going on repeat around here.
This was great, we loved it! I put the battered chicken on oil coated parchment and put it in the fridge for about 45 minutes before air frying. I had very minimal sticking doing it that way.
In theory this is a good recipe but the coating falling off (used the parchment etc) makes it one I won’t try again. Not a hit with my family.
Done this recipe multiple times, love it! so good! The Airfryer sheets are a must though, otherwise it definitely sticks! Just wondering what the calories are…chicken only, no bun. since sometimes I used different bread.
Wonderful! Even our 3 year old grandson loved it!( I scraped off the spicy breading). Definitely reminded me of Chik Fil A. I did substitute almond milk with vinegar for the buttermilk, as my son is allergic to milk products. Thanks Gina, you are a genius!
Hi, isthe 5 in the blue dot next to the calorie info the WW points? I’m a Canadian WW member and it doesn’t recognize me when I try to login using the WW points button….sigh.
Are the points calculated including a bun or just the chicken?
With the bun.
The breading stuck the the liner, almost none on the chicken. One half cup of flour is bologna, and so are your literally no-way-possible nutrition facts. What a huge waste of money.
Did you allow them to sit in the fridge so the coating would adhere? For 4 portions totaling 16 ounces the flour amount with the spices is literally a perfect amount.
Nutrition facts posted are 100% accurate as per LiveStrong AND MyFitnessPal.
Who hurt you?
Just amazing!! My family have take out night once a week and I always feel like I’m missing out not anymore it truly was as good as any chicken sandwich I’ve ever had if not better . I would love to know if they can be frozen as I do a lot of meal prep so Sunday is my prep day for the week I’d love to try to freeze it but don’t want to waste the goodness of them if they don’t freeze .
Super delicious. I would love to meal prep and freeze a bunch of these for quick weeknight meals. Does anyone know how long to airfry frozen uncooked breaded chicken?
So this might be a stupid question…but can you put holes in regular parchment paper and use it?
I was wondering the same thing! New to my air fryer.
Yes. I use a fork and punch holes in it.
Yes! I accordion fold a sheet and snip little triangles along the edges. When unfolded, it makes a sheet with little holes all over. I also give it a spritz of oil.
Delicious! We have made this chicken filet recipe several times. The pickle juice flavor was the key to a better tasting filet. Our favorite was the cheapest dill pickles from our regional store brand which is Meijer. Follow directions carefully, be patient, and your sandwich will be perfection every time!
We love this sandwich! I never buy buttermilk so I use 1 cup of 1% with 1Tbl. of vinegar, let it marinate overnight. After I coat the chicken, I stick it back in the fridge for about 15 minutes before airdrying. Perfection!
I meant airfrying not airdrying. Autocorrect is a pain.
What is Pickle Juice and where do I purchase it? What is the brand name?
Thanks.
I think she just means pickle juice from a jar so you can use whatever your favorite kind is. Probably stick to dill pickles.
I tried this recipe last night. I followed the instructions but unfortunately the coating did not adhere to the chicken once I air fried the chicken. Can you give me ideas as to why that might have happened?
I’m having the same problem tonight
I’ve made this several times and there is a spot in the recipe directions where it tells you to let it sit to adhere for a bit BEFORE you stick it in the air fryer. I’ve done it where I placed it in too soon and yes, it fell off. I also spray my parchment paper and it comes out perfect!
This was awesome! Marinated it all day (will do overnight next time). Then then did the dredge, put the chicken on my Pam sprayed basket, and put in the fridge for an hour or two to chill. That’s key for the breading to stay on. Turned them once until done. Wow, what a crunch! I have the air fryer oven w/basket and it didn’t lose any breading. Can’t wait to make it again!
Good morning! Do you know what the nutrition would be without the roll? Thanks so much!
My Martin’s rolls say 130 calories per roll.
My family LOVED this! It takes planning to brine it overnight, but so worth it. And this recipe introduced me to air fryer parchment papers, which I’ve been happily using. Will def make again.
Has anyone tried a gluten free flour that would work as a substitute as breading for frying. I’d love to try this recipe.
I’ve used Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free flour and it works great!
This was absolutely amazing!! Can I get how many calories it would be without the bun? Thanks!
You could Google the buttons to see how many calories they are, and then just subtract that money.
Sorry buns and many.
Made this tonight and OMG… It was truly just as good as Chil-fil-A. I toasted my buns in the pan with some butter beforehand. I let my chicken sit in the marinade for 48 hours because I forgot about it one night and it was absolutely delicious. I did let the chicken sit in the fridge for about half an hour to avoid losing all the breading as people suggested.. Welp, I lost all of the breading. However, I pulled it out from the airfryer and stuck it on the chicken and it was absolutely delicious. I can’t complain knowing how healthy it is. Definitely try this!!
Air fryer parchment really helps!
Great taste! And chicken was so soft! I didn’t have siracha but used a few drops of another hot sauce and worked great. I didn’t realize it needed 6 hours to marinate and my timing was off and I marinated it for 24 hours and still turned out well. The final product still has flour on it though, what did I do wrong? Did I not spray enough oil on it? Do you need to saturate it? I will definitely make these again.
Made this as my lunch meal prep for the week and OMG. I don’t always love chicken because of how dry it can get and this turned out perfectly!! 10/10, will make again!
Will regular milk work? I am allergic to dairy.
Can you make pickle juice? Are people reusing the pickle juice? I would waste a lot of pickles if I bought the pickles so I could use the juice. I’m just cooking for myself. Thanks for any suggestions. The chicken sandwich looks delicious. Can’t wait to try!
Some food stores have a olive/pickle section where you can put your own in a container but they charge by the pound so for pickles, you’d do a separate container for the juice. You could do a smaller container for just pickles and fill a larger one with juice.
I don’t eat pickles of any kind so I also need a recipe. I found this one
https://shelfcooking.com/uses-for-pickle-juice/
It also found it on Amazon.ça but I assume it is also sold on Amazon.com
https://www.amazon.ca/Pickle-Juice-Original-Recipe-Sport/dp/B015TIBVMS/ref=sr_1_5?__mk_fr_CA=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&crid=2LIOUROPWTBWI&keywords=Pickle+juice&qid=1664281616&qu=eyJxc2MiOiIzLjQ5IiwicXNhIjoiMi43OCIsInFzcCI6IjIuMzEifQ%3D%3D&s=grocery&sprefix=pickle+juice%2Cgrocery%2C85&sr=1-5
My daughter moved out with her air fryer… how else can I cook the chicken?
Follow recipe as written but I use my oven. Preheat to 425 degrees and then bake the chicken 20-25 mins. Keep an eye on it. It works out very well for me.
This was so, so good. The breading stayed on pretty well (I used the perforated parchment paper that was recommended, and sprayed it with avocado oil). I used brioche buns toasted just a little. I will definitely make this again.
This has become my husbands favorite meal. We make this at least every other week, but sometimes even weekly.
I add more seasonings to the breading, but otherwise follow the recipe. I always spray it with oil and put in the fridge for a few hours, sometimes it sticks a little, but not much. Highly recommend, absolutely delicious.
Going to try this week. I have a LOT of chicken thighs and no breasts. Do you think it’s okay to try with chicken thighs?
What brand of pickles are used in the video? They are whiter than normal dill pickles.
This is delicious. I refrigerated the chicken after it was coated for 1 hour. Lost a little of the batter when I turned it. I just stuck it back on. This felt like I was cheating….love it!
Overall the sandwiches were very good but the breading was a real pain. It kept coming off as I was coating the chicken and then it stuck to the parchment paper when I cooked the chicken. I probably lost half the breading. I think maybe I would try panko next time or just skip the breading.
Amazing I use the spicy dill pickle juice!
Can I use milk/lemon juice to sub for the buttermilk?
Yes you can. Use one cup of milk and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Stir and let it sit for 10 minutes. Now you have buttermilk 🤙🏻
I don’t eat chicken, think this is okay to make with fish? Maybe cod?
I was wondering the same thing, did you ever try it?
I tried it with tilapia and it worked. I bet cod would be even better!
Love the taste and the crisp that the chicken sandwich gives! I can’t seem to get both sides of the breading on the chicken to stick. I’m tried the parchment with holes or just the basket sprayed with olive oil. Any suggestions? Thanks!!
After breading the chicken and spraying with Pam, I refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes before baking in the oven. I don’t have an air fryer. It sticks I little but much less then without refrigerating.
OMG this was the best recipe ever!! Made it for me and a bunch of my college friends and it was an absolute hit! 100/10 would recommend 🙂
I am so happy!!
My husband really really dislikes pickles and pickle taste. I am thinking of making this and just marinating the chicken in buttermilk and no pickle juice. What do you think? Looks so good.
How many Weight Watcher points, ?
I dont know why but before you use to write how much points for a meal ,,,,
Thank you
Click the orange link under the print button. It will take you to personal points.
Made these for dinner tonight. Yummy! Definitely putting this one in our rotation!
This was magical. Did not taste healthy whatsoever
Do I need to let it sit for 6 hours??? I forgot to prep this last night
Same!?? Welp I guess I’ll just see how it goes!
This sandwich was so good. My family really liked it. Your recipes never disappoint!
Absolutely delicious! I love all of her recipes and rarely change a thing. This is a keeper!
Holy moly this was SO good.
It sounded amazing but I started to worry a bit reading through some of the comments but ours came out perfect – chicken was cooked perfectly, it was flavorful, and we didn’t lose a single bit of breading.
I have the Hamilton Beach toaster oven with the air fryer setting. It cooked perfectly on its single air fryer setting/temp in about 17 minutes with a flip halfway through.
I upped the amount of spices in the flour just a bit (so they were “heaping” half tsps) and we were a little short on the pickle juice just due to space in the bowl I was using but otherwise followed the recipe exactly as written.
I didn’t have air fryer parchment paper so improvised with tin foil on the oven’s provided air fryer tray, mindlessly poking a bunch of holes in it using the tip of my instant read thermometer to ensure good air circulation. After, before putting the chicken down on it, I sprayed the tray/foil with canola oil bc so many had issues with it sticking. When it came time to flip I used tongs and had absolutely no issues.
We served it with lots of pickles and and on toasted buns, plus the Mayo/Siracha mixture to taste. Everyone here loved it and I can’t wait for leftovers at lunch tomorrow. I’m so glad we doubled it. 🙂
Holy moly this was SO good.
It sounded amazing but I started to worry a bit reading through some of the comments but ours came out perfect – chicken was cooked perfectly, it was flavorful, and we didn’t lose a single bit of breading.
I have the Hamilton Beach toaster oven with the air dyer setting. It cooked perfectly on its single air setting temp in about 17 minutes with a flip halfway through.
I upped the amount of spices in the flour just a bit (so they were “heaping” half tsps) and we were a little short on the pickle juice just due to space in the bowl I was using but otherwise followed the recipe exactly as written.
I didn’t have air free parchment paper so I’m provided with tin foil on the oven designated air fryer tray, mindlessly poking a bunch of holes in it using the tip of my instant read thermometer to ensure good air circulation. After, before putting the chicken down, I sprayed the tray/foil with canola oil bc so many had issues with it sticking. When it came time to flip I used tongs and had absolutely no issues.
We served it with lots of pickles and and on toasted buns, plus the Mayo/Siracha mixture to taste. Everyone here loved it and I can’t wait for leftovers at lunch tomorrow. I’m so glad we doubled it. 🙂
Can I use my deluxe reversible rack with the Ninja Foodi deluxe for the chicken? Or is it better to use the basket?
Would this work with boneless skinless chicken thighs and if so, what changes should I make? Thanks for any help!
This was so delicious, and the sriracha mayo was a great accompaniment! This will make healthy eating easier during the week– thank you!
This was so good! I was a little skeptical when is ready the ingredients. I do not jave an air fryer, I baked mine and turned out great!
what temperature did you use? Thanks in advance!
So excited to make this for New Year! I already love the one from your book with the jalapeño slaw on top and can’t wait for another easy weeknight excuse for the air fryer. In recipes like these, are the buns included in the calorie count?
Yes, they are in these. If it’s listed in ingredients than it is counted. 🙂
The sandwich taste great my only complaint is when cooking in the air fryer the batter of chicken kept sticking so only one side was crispy and the other slide off. I used parchment paper and it still didn’t come out like the pictures. Will try again but maybe bake in the oven.
Spray the parchment with oil. Also, let the chicken sit in the breading 30 min in the fridge so it sets.
Do you spray the chicken with oil BEFORE or AFTER is sits in the fridge to firm up?
After
Just made this tonight. Few changes. I used chicken tenders marinated with southern poultry seasoning buttermilk and pickle juice. then I did flour egg then mixture of Panko and Italian bread crumbs.
I put the chicken on a try sprayed with pan spray and let them sit in the fridge fo an hour to firm up. This helps the coating stick better. Because I made a lot I didn’t air fry then but convection baked. Served with special sauce ole slaw and sweet potato fries. No need for a bun. Tender and good!!
Love this recipe! It’s a great take on a lighter version of fried chicken sandwich. It really hits the spot.
These were fabu. Did closer to 1.75# and my family of 4 still nearly finished it off in one go. Everyone told me to be sure to keep the recipe so we could have them again. I don’t have an air fryer but thanks to @Becca in the reviews, I cooked them at 425 in my oven. I made them into tenders and we had chicken tender sandwiches. I used Aunt MIllie’s carb smart buns, which help keep the points low for me on WW, while the rest of the family had it on potato rolls. The sriracha mayo was an awesome addition for those of us who like our food spicy. Served it with thin-cut rosemary-garlic fries and simple roasted green beans. Everything cooked at 425 together, flipped half way for super easy cooking (the fries and beans needed more time than the chicken). Tip: use only half your flour mixture at a time and try to keep your fingers out of the egg. Otherwise, the flour mix gets goopy too fast and won’t stick to the second half of the batch.
I can’t believe I forgot to rate it. 5 stars!
Incredible! We love a fast-food fried chicken sandwich, and this was far better! The chicken came out so juicy and full of flavour, the mayo was awesome too. Everyone loved it. My husband requested it again two nights later.
Big fan of this! My husband and son both love these as well. Found the recipe last month and I’m making them for the third time tomorrow! Lol!! Thank you!!
breading did not stick
The recipe is super tasty….however… the air fryer parchment caught on fire….yep…kitchen boom boom.. Did it without parchment(obviously) and it was fine.
It was the kind with holes….
Gina: About the pickle juice… dill or sweet?
Dill 🙂
This is so delicious! I had to use Ball Park Jumbo Buns, which made them 9 Blue Points in total, but the bun was the perfect size. I didn’t have parchment, but they still came out awesome.
Unfortunately, although I love most of the skinnytaste recipes, I did not care for this at all. I bought the buttermilk, pickles and roles to make exactly as the recipe stated and was very disappointed in the taste.
First of all, that brine makes the chicken so juicy and flavorful! I did two batches. The first I used the nonstick rack in the air fryer, but the breading pretty much came off in a sheet. We patched it up and still tastes delicious. The second batch, I put parchment on the rack and used a hole punch to put holes all over it. That helped, but it still wasn’t perfect in terms of the crunch I was looking for. Flavor of the chicken, breading, and the pickle chips was still great!
It’s important to temper your expectations—chik FIL a is fried. This is the skinny version and as such, it totally hits the spot!
I don’t have an air fryer. Can this be baked in the oven? If yes, temp and time to back. Thanks
I
This was delicious! I’m not rating it because I didn’t follow the recipe exactly. I don’t have an air fryer, so I used my oven set on convection at 380°. Next time I’ll set the temp a little higher since the chicken was done before it browned as much as I wanted. I have an air fryer-type basket for my convection oven, and that’s what I used with an air fryer silicone pad that has holes in it. The breading pretty much all fell off. I didn’t spray the silicone, since I usually don’t need to, but I’m wondering if that would have made a difference. Anyway, even with almost no breading, the sandwiches were delicious and I’m definitely going to experiment with this recipe some more.
This was sensational. I followed recipe exactly.
I kept batches warm in oven.
I’m thinking of making a mini/slider version for entertaining. Thank you.
Great idea! Glad you enjoyed it!
I was very skeptical about how crispy these would be because I have not had good luck getting things crispy and browned out of the air fryer. I am thrilled to say that these came out exactly like the picture shows and are juicy and delicious! The taste was very close to Chik-Fil-A and, since I live in a small town in Nebraska, being able to have a great tasting chicken sandwich at home is a wonderful treat. I think the key is brining with pickle juice. I didn’t have buttermilk so I used Greek yogurt and it worked fine. I have a Ninja Foodie XL and I cooked it at 400F for 16 minutes. Thank you for a new favorite!!
Awesome!!
I made this yesterday for dinner! OMGOODNESS! So good. My husband was silent the entire time he ate. Then he said, OMG THAT WAS DELICIOUS! I did change up a couple of things: I used parchment paper and cut out to fit the shape of my air fryer and cut some holes (someone else suggested & it worked!), spray, I used chopped up pickles because we didn’t have any pickle chips, and last I opted for a keto bun that was only 50 calories. Great dinner! Taste just close enough to chick fil a for me.
Awesome!!
I used my actual WW app points calculator (blue plan) and it came out to 8 points for blue. Is that how you calculated the points? Wonder why I got a different number.
no u have to use recipe builder, calculator adds points for 0 foods.
Lordy mercy were these gooooood!! I followed everything except I had to use the oven 425 for 15 then flip for another 10. Even my son woofed it down to my amazement because he only likes chicken if it’s McDs chicken nuggets. I had to use Martin’s regular potato buns because I couldn’t find the wheat ones. But they are only 30 calories more. I am down almost 40 lbs this year thanks to your amazing recipes.
So glad your son enjoyed it and congrats to you, that is awesome!!
My family loves chick- fil- A fried chicken sandwiches but I’ve always opted for their grilled sandwich instead although I have tasted their fried sandwich. Your recipe is an excellent tasting alternative and much healthier. This is the first time I used my air fryer and the recipe was a complete success. I didn’t use parchment paper and I didn’t lose any of the breading. I only used 4 ounces each of pickle juice and buttermilk and it was sufficient.
Delicious! Tasted a lot like Popeyes chicken sandwich…my picky husband LOVED IT. I preferred the chicken with just Mayo (and no sriracha) on top!
Where on earth do you find the ww potsto rolls? I dont even see them on amazon ??? 👀😊🤣
Wondering cause this sounds delish and i sooooooo want to make it
Do you leave the chicken in the buttermilk and pickle juice mixture for those 6 hours? Or do you just toss to coat and then put on another plate to be chilled?
You leave them in the buttermilk/pickle juice for the 6 hours. They are amazing!
I am in awe that these sandwiches are only 8 points! They are delicious! I do have a question though. Does the 8 points include a Martin’s potato bun that Gina recommends? Those are 4 Weight Watcher points. I used a lighter 2 point bun so am wondering if I can subtract 2 points from the 8 points it’s listed at?
it does include the points, I am so happy you liked it!
Thank you so much for this recipe. It is so delicious. My son says you have ruined chick fil a for him because of this recipe and the brined chicken tenders. We get so excited when our pickles are eaten and we have to use the juice for one of your recipes. I also love the Cuban ham roll ups. Yum! Your recipes are the best.
We absolutely loved this one. I didn’t have the special parchment paper so I just sprayed the air fryer heavily with cooking spray and sprayed both sides of the chicken with olive oil spray. I had no problem with the coating coming off. The flavors were delicious. My daughter said this was her favorite Skinnytaste recipe yet.
I made this for lunch today….. IT WAS SO GOOD!? my husband loved them so much, he had a second one…
I sprayed my air fryer basket with non stick spray and didn’t have any problems with the batter coming off. I followed the recipe for the most part…. I didn’t have any chicken breast so I used chicken thighs cut in half because they are a little bigger. I fried for a total of 20 min and turned them over after 13 min. I also used sour cream in place of the Mayo.. I will definitely make this again! Thank you Gina! 🤗
We have a Brevel air fryer/toaster smart oven. Followed the receipe and put holes in parchment paper. Chicken was very juicy, but coating was wet on bottom and fell off when tried to turn it over with tongs. Coating was not crispy at all. Although there was flavor, it lacked the great flavor other recipes have. I found myself trying to doctor it with other seasonings. I hope there will be a version 2.0 because I’d love to replicate Chick-fil-a’s chicken!
Interesting!
Really, really good. I might experiment with a different brine next time because my boyfriend is incredibly picky and noticed the pickle taste. He still ate it though, which is saying a lot! Will definitely be making this again soon. I love chick fil a and this definitely hits the spot (for fewer points and about 90min quicker without the driving!)
Marlen, what did you replace the pickle juice with? I don’t like it either.
anita
Going to try this week. I have a LOT of chicken thighs and no breasts. Do you think it’s okay to try with chicken thighs?
For those of you having trouble with the crust falling off, I skipped the first coating of flour, and went straight to the beaten egg and then to the flour. The chicken fried up beautifully and I didn’t need the parchment paper. I cooked mine at 390 degrees, but that was because I forgot to check the setting
Spray the parchment paper and the breading stays on!!! Took one batch to figure this out!
For the first batch I used regular waxed paper that I made holes in..it stuck to the chicken and breading was falling off. For the second batch I didn’t use waxed paper and sprayed the air fryer well with oil. No breading came off and they turned out better.
Very juicy chicken. I was hoping it would have more pickle flavor but there wasn’t too much.
Wax paper I am not sure if its ok for an air fryer? Not the same as parchment. Glad you for it to work. If you want more pickle flavor let it brine longer.
I have a Pampered Chef air fryer and when I went to flip these halfway through all the breading fell off – any tips to prevent that in the future? I sprayed really well with olive oil!
I find using tongs v. a spatula helps to keep breading in tact.
Love, Love, LOVE this recipe! The pickle juice is the secret ingredient and the whole sandwich is delish! Hubby love it and I’ve made this several times – big hit in our house. Thanks Gina for sharing a great recipe within the calorie count!
Just can’t get this recipe to work.. back to the Gina Chicken Pickle Tenders!
wow.. I say this as the world’s biggest ST fan. We didnt have the airfryer perforated sheets til tonight so we did the oven version a few days ago. Total failure. Got the sheets from amazon and made them tonight and the flour stayed on the outside after cooking and the crust wasn’t good at all. Easily our least favorite ST recipe ever. We have all the books and love so many recipes but this was a hard fail for sure.
You can buy pickle juice packs. I get ours at Wal-Mart right by the pickles and olives. My husband uses them for his Spartan races.
Think this could be made dairy free (leave out the buttermilk)????
No air fryer? It is a beautiful day, so we tried this on the grill. We put the chicken on a cookie sheet sprayed with oil. A grill mat would probably work good to. We cooked the ckicken around 375-400 degrees. It took around 15min and we carefully flipped half-way through. They turned out pretty crispy and the breading stuck. My husband said we would try closer to 450-500 degrees next time to make them even more crispy! This was a wonderful change up from simple grilled chicken!
This was super tasty and was loved by my entire family. In terms of air frying- I didn’t have the parchment paper so just sprayed the basket very well with oil. Also, I put the breaded chicken in the freezer for 10 minutes before cooking which often helps breading stick better. I did flip about 9 minutes through VERY carefully and didn’t lose any breading. Be sure to spray chicken with oil before flipping.
The flavor is great but I ran into the same issues as others regarding the breading coming off. I ended up not flipping it just so we could have one side that was crunchy. The chicken was super tender and juicy though!
Hmmm I’m a fairly good mom-cook and most of my breading fell clean right off. Great recipe but based on the comments there’s a puzzle to figure out there — it’s not the parchment paper.
Overall, a good recipe! I didn’t have the special parchment paper but used plain parchment, cut it into a circle the size of my air fryer rack, folded it into 1/8ths, and then cut small holes along the edges ( like making a snowflake). I think the reason the holes are important are to allow the juices to drain which allows the bottom to get crispy. I sprayed the convection paper and used tongs to carefully flip the chicken, and the breading stayed on! I pulled them out when the temp just reached 160F. I sprinkled some sea salt on the chicken after they were done as I felt the breading needed just a bit more. I used less siracha for the sauce and added chopped dill pickles instead of used the whole pickle slices. The kids liked them!
I also did a batch in the oven at 400 deg convection and the bottoms got soggy just on a tray, so next time I would use put them on a wire rack.
Liz! LOVE the paper snowflake idea! I will definitely try this trick. Thanks for sharing!
All the breading slid right off. Tasted good anyway, but would love to to hear tips for keeping the breading on the chicken
Use AF parchment paper. Spray the paper, carefully flip.
SO yummy that I had this for lunch for the second day in a row today! I was unsure about the marinade but it really works. My only issue was that the breading doesn’t stay on. I tried it once with the parchment and once without (and, strangely enough, it stayed on better without the parchment) and a lot of it came off both times. Is there a trick to getting it to stay on? It’s super tasty and crispy…thanks!
Made these chicken sandwiches last night and this recipe will be on repeat!!😋
HOW is this sandwich so good?? It’s so simple, but it’s perfect! I’ve made the pickle juice brined chicken tenders before and the pickle flavor was a little too much for me. But this half buttermilk half pickle juice combo gives the chicken such a wonderful flavor. The seasoning in the flour makes the breading so delicious, and the spicy mayo just puts the sandwich over the top. Whenever I make a skinnytaste recipe and it turns out amazing, I tell my husband, “In Gina I trust.” Cheers!
I am SOOO happy you loved it!
can you make this in oven not air fryer? please respond would like to make asap. Thank you!
It was a winner! I subbed onion powder for the garlic (allergies) and still was outstanding. But my Cuisinart Air Fryer cooked it faster. So for those with this type of air fryer, I will reduce heat to 360 and 7 minutes on each side. I even made my own parchment paper with holes thanks to google!
Awesome! I have same airfryer…wondering top rack or bottom?
Yummmmm!
My first batch stuck to the parchment, so I just sprayed the air fryer tray and the remaining batches came out perfect.
While the family complained that they didn’t look like Chik-Fil-A sandwiches (not as much breading), everyone loved the flavor!
Gina, I love your recipes but this wasn’t an easy air fryer recipe. The parchment didn’t work for us and after all of the coating coming off.. I got rid of the parchment and just put the chicken in the air fryer basket and it was fine. Maybe I did something wrong? It was tasty!
Update to previous post: I figured it out and it was absolutely DELICIOUS!!! Thank you!
What are the WW points for just the chicken and mayo without the roll? thanks!
look up how many points the bun is, on whichever plan you’re on, and subtract from how many points she has it listed as…
Maybe it’s my inexperience using an air fryer, but I had a lot of problems with this recipe. Am I supposed to preheat the air fryer 380 degrees before putting this in or just turn it on to 380? I bought the liners that you suggested but when I tried to turn them, they stuck and all of the breading came off. Please help.
Same!
Use air fryer parchment paper. Spray it with oil. Carefully flip the chicken. Also, make sure you coat the chicken well and don;t use too much oil.
Amazing flavor!! Better than any chicken sandwich I’ve had out. I used gluten free flour. I baked it at 425 for 15 mins, flipped it and baked another 10 mins. Make sure you spray the chicken well. Absolutely will make this over and over again.
She does it again!!! Thanks Gina, this came out so so good and was really so simple.
Delicious and easy! Just plan ahead for enough time to marinate.
What if you don’t have an air fryer? Can the chicken be cooked in the oven?
This recipe was DELICIOUS! I used Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free cup for cup flour and it was great! Can’t wait to make it again.
Delicious! I didn’t have enough pickle juice so I used what I had. Maybe 1/3C and subbed coconut milk mixed with a couple scoops of yogurt for the buttermilk. I sprayed the top and bottom of the chicken before air frying to make sure there was no white flour visible afterwards. Turned out perfectly. And so juicy! I found unbleached parchment with holes on Amazon too. Thank you!!
This recipe was the absolute BEST! I could not believe how crispy the chicken was. My daughter actually said it tastes like Chic Filet. Thank you Skinny Taste. You are my favorite go-to for recipes.
Thank you!
This was delicious! I forgot to marinate the chicken, so I added some pickle juice to the egg wash and it gave it a hint of that flavor. My kids don’t do well with spicy, so I used ketchup instead of sriracha. My whole family loved this and two votes for better than the sandwich that inspired it!
This recipe seems delish but was a complete disaster for me. I used regular parchment paper so I guess that’s where it went wrong? Maybe air fryer parchment paper is magical somehow – oh well….
You cant use reg parchment, it MUST be air fryer parchment with holes.
can you make this in oven not air fryer? please respond would like to make asap. Thank you!
We lined ours with aluminum foil and poked holes in the foil it worked fine except we still lost a lot of batter when flipping them!
I made this tonight. Delicious. My only issue was I either sprayed too much oil or didn’t drip them enough bc they were very wet on the bottom- but I didn’t want to flip them bc I was worried the breading would come off. I ended up cooking them all the way, then flipped them. But some of the breaking sill came off. But these are so so so yummy.
These look yummy! Is there something I can use in place of the mayo? I’m not a fan of mayo. Thank you!
Can you omit the flour maybe use breadcrumbs? Just saw this recipe on instagram and looks delish.
Just made this & for some reason my chicken still looked flour-y when it came out. It was cooked all the way through. What did I do wrong?
Same here!
Me too 🙁
Use air fryer parchment paper. Spray it with oil. Carefully flip the chicken. Also, make sure you coat the chicken well and don;t use too much oil.
I think I figured it out- I forgot to spray olive oil on top of the first batch before frying. Sprayed the tops of the second batch and they seemed to come out without the floury look.
The Martin Whole Wheat Potato Roll – how many calories? Is it a slider roll? I’m on calorie based food plan and sometimes I don’t use a roll. The slider shows as 100 calories but your roll looks larger. Is it 130 calories? Thanks you. Have been making your recipes for many years now
100 calories is what I always use
Hi! I’m confused with the calories. If it’s 2 breasts, each 16 Oz, each person would get an 8 Oz portion. And that would be close to 400 calories. Not including anything else. But the total for the meal is 334. Help! Thanks 🙂
16 oz total. A breast is 8 oz
You cut the breasts in half before you pound them.
Thanks! Making them tonight 🙂
It’s 16 oz of chicken made into 4 pieces so each person is getting a 4 ounce breast so with a whole wheat roll around 100-130 calories 334 calories total is spot on!
This was delicious! I knew I was going to have a lot going on this weekend, so I marinated the chicken around 8 PM the night before making this. I made a past salad that called for buttermilk, so it was perfect making this to use up the rest of the buttermilk.
For those asking about gluten free flour, I used it but some of the spots I dredged in flour were still all white after baking in the air fryer. Nonetheless, the flavor was fabulous.
I ended up with 2# of chicken breast, which meant lunch for everyone the next day! I used Famous Dave’s pickles and juice. So good!
Loved this recipe!! I didn’t realize how important the parchment paper would be, I’ve never used it with the air fryer before, but luckily I had some normal parchment paper and just poked holes in it. I changed the end just a little by adding a hot sauce/honey/coconut amino glaze and it was a total hit. Will definitely be making this one again and again!
How many of the calories stem from the bun you chose? I can never find whole wheat potato buns.
I love all of the recipes on this blog. Something odd happened on this one. I followed it to the letter and the chicken was tough and flavorless and the breading on the bottom of the chicken slid right off. I did use the air fryer parchment as instructed. I expected a crispier interior but, when I bit into the chicken, what remained of the breading came off in a slippery sheet, leaving the chicken behind.
You did it again Gina! Made these for dinner tonight. Haven’t had Chix-fil in years!! This was so good my 32 year old son kept asking “this is a diet recipe???” I too baked it on a rack in the oven @ 425 for 20 minutes. Perfect! Thank you!!!
Did you use dill pickles or bread n’ butter pickles?
Dill.
I am confused about the 2 lbs of chicken for 4 servings. We are cooking for 2. I made these tonight and cut the recipe in 1/2, but I only used one chicken breast that was about 8 oz for both of us. I’m thinking it should be a total of 16 oz for four portions. Anyway. We really enjoyed these. I served them on 647 rolls, which are only 2 points each on WW, but they had a hard time living up to the heft of the delicious sandwich. I would totally make these again.
16 oz total
By pickle chips do you mean pickle slices or like actually potatoes chips? It looks like slices but 🤷♀️.
Pickle slices!
Omg this recipe is delish. I didn’t marinade the chicken in the buttermilk over night – I only did it for like 30 minutes and it was stillll so good!!! I also don’t have an air fryer and cooked on low broil and it was amazing. Bravo, Gina!
Can this be made without flour – on a no sugar/no flour regimen?
This was delicious but my breading stuck to the parchment. Was j supposed to spray the parchment?
This recipe was very good and enjoyed by everyone. I doubled the amount of chicken since there was plenty of brine. The chicken was tender and juicy.
OMG made this tonight was sooooo yummy. Didn’t have Buttermilk only skim milk added some vinegar to it and then the pickle juice. Tasted great. Thanks again for your yummy recipes. I remember when you first started the Blog. Your a lifesaver.
Don’t know what happened but I just made this and the breading didn’t stick. I used parchment paper in the air fryer so that wouldn’t happen but it came off. How do I avoid this?
spray the patchment
What air fryer did you use? So many choices
Is the bread included in the WW points count?
Where can I buy pickle juice?
Buy a jar of pickles …
Yes, I know that but what happens to the pickles in the jar if they don’t remain in the juice?
Save your leftover pickle juice the next time you finish a jar of pickles.
I bought a gallon on Amazon.
Made this tonight – it was a huge winner! My husband immediately shared the recipe with his friends 🙂 The chicken was so juicy! I did 15 minutes , flipped once, and it was cooked perfectly. Don’t have parchment paper for the air fryer so I just sprayed it well with oil and it worked fine ! Thanks for sharing this recipe !!
This was delicious, I decided to include Japanese breadcrumbs in the breading process that you used in the Spicy Chicken Sandwich recipe in your One and Done cookbook. I didn’t have time for the chicken to marinate six hours but it was still very good. I have an oven style air fryer and sprayed the basket well with Pam and had no problem with sticking. Guess I’ll be saving pickle juice from here on!
This recipe is AMAZING! My husband wants me to make it again tomorrow. LOL! Even better is how easy it is! A WINNER !
YAY!!
This was a huge hit! My chicken didn’t take as long to cook, but they were fairly thin. My 12 year old had two sandwiches and my husband who doesn’t like mayo kept complimenting the Sriracha Mayo. Thank you for another awesome recipe!
Awesome!!
Is this 2 – 16ounce chicken breasts or 2 breasts totally 16 ounces?
a breast is around 6 to 8 oz. so 2 breasts total.
This looks so yummy but I abhor pickles…is there a substitute for the brine I can try?
Use plain salt water. You’ll get a siniliar juicy effect.
Do you have a recommendation for a good air fryer?
Go Wise https://amzn.to/3bUYiM8
Has anyone tried this with gluten free flour? I know it doesn’t always hold up as well.
Can I use spicy pickle juice?
I haven’t tried but I don’t see why not. Let me know how it comes out if you try it!
We didn’t have a full jar of pickle juice, so we subbed 1/2 cup of hot banana pepper brine and it was AMAZING!! It reminded me of the goodness of your Slow Cooker Italian Beef Hoagies recipe but without the red meat. Not spicy really, but we did top with extra peppers and pickles.
Sounds good!
What kind of air fryer do you use?
This one https://www.skinnytaste.com/triple-berry-crisp/
This sounds amazing! Do you have to use the parchment paper?
You don’t but it may stick and you’ll lose some breading.
And where does one get a cup of pickle juice? I mean, the first time, you can drain it from a jar of pickles, but what does that do to the pickles that are left? And what about the next time?
I’m wondering the same Angela.
I always just save up my pickle juice once I finish a jar or two of pickles and then put a recipe for pickle brined chicken on my meal plan that week.
I ordered a gallon of pickle juice from Amazon specifically for chicken recipes.
Sounds delicious. I am on KETO, and I use almond or coconut flour instead of regular flour? Thanks,Pam Giving it 5 stars as it sounds good
sure!
I don’t have an air fryer, can I make it any other way? It sounds delicious!
Skillet with a little oil
I have same question as Heather. No air fryer…can this be made in the oven?
DO you think almond flour will work instead of all purpose for keto reasons?
hard to say without testing, let me know how it works out if you try!
Any recommendations for what part of the recipe to freeze the chicken if making ahead? In other words, would you recommend freezing once brined and breaded, or air fry/cool/freeze and then air crisp to reheat?
I probably won’t freeze this one.
Can I “make” buttermilk by adding white vinegar to regular milk or do I should I just buy a small carton of buttermilk?
Can I just poke holes in regular parchment paper or do I need the special paper?
You should use the air fryer parchment paper which has holes for the airflow, the regular type can cause a fire. Or you don’t have to use any paper, but you may lose some breading if it sticks.
Does this call for 2lbs (“2 16 ounces”) of chicken or should it just be “16 ounces”? Thanks!
2 16 ounce breasts. 🙂
what if you can’t use dairy? Is there a sub for the buttermilk?
Did you find anything for this? I’m giving it a go with making my own dairy free buttermilk with 1c unsweetened plant based milk and 1T white vinegar. It may be a colossal fail but fingers crossed it isn’t
Did this work? I’d like to try tomorrow night?
Does the air fryer need to be preheated for this recipe? Cannot wait to try this!!
I’m so excited to make these! My son was just asking me to make fried chicken sandwiches! I won’t tell him they are ST even though he always loves the recipes I make of yours:) Question. How many points are your whole wheat potato rolls? I can’t find those in my area so I was just curious.
100 calories
Gina, I am trying this soon! I LOVE the Chik fil a chicken but definitely want to make my own! My question is have you tried a substitute for the pickle juice that would be just as good? My thinking is that I won’t have a full cup of pickle juice from my pickles. And also, I will want to make it a lot especially this summer, to avoid higher calorie barbecue foods. Sound I just make a quart of dill pickle brine? TIA!
just use more buttermilk and add salt
I’m curredairy free and usually substitute oat milk for any other milk. Do you know if that will work with this? How much flavor is lost?
use dairy free yogurt watered down.
Hi! Do you mean two chicken breasts, each weighing 16 oz? Or two chicken breasts, for a total of 16 oz?
2- each weighing 16 oz.
Anyone have an idea if thin greek yogurt could be a sub for buttermilk? Trying to think about what I could use if I don’t have buttermilk on hand…
That would work!
You can also do a teaspoon of vinegar or lemon juice in a cup of milk and it will make buttermilk
What kind of pickles do you use for the pickle juice? Bread & butter? Dill?
Ingredients say dill pickle.
I can’t seem to subscribe to your email broadcasts. Keeps telling me my email isn’t in correct format…..
weird!
If you use autofill it doesn’t recognize it. Type your email completely. I’ve had that problem on other sites also.
this recipe sounds so yummy… but I don’t have an air fryer 🙁 Do you have any guidance on how to cook this in the oven instead? Thanks so much!
I don’t have an air fryer (yet) either, but I do have a convection oven. Most of the air fryer recipes I cook in the convection oven and it achieves the same crispy ‘fried’ result. Just thought I’d chime in with that tip!
Would love to make this but I too don’t have an air fryer — any oven directions you can provide? (Temp/cook time)?? Thank you!!
I’ve made “fried” chicken sandwiches in the oven before. Just follow the posted recipe and after lightly spraying the floured chicken, put them on a baking rack (you might want to spray that as well) over a baking sheet and bake at 450 degrees for 20-30 minutes, depending on how thick they are.
Hopefully this helps.
Thanks so much, Joan! I’m going to give it a try!
Is letting them sit in pickle juice, for only 2-3 hrs ok? I don’t really want a super pickley taste, but also it’s because I don’t have a lot of time to do it. Would they still do what they need to do? 🥴
Oh my goodness, you were making this on Instagram last week and said the recipe would be coming soon. I couldn’t wait for the recipe, so my kids and I watched your Instagram video over and over again to listen and see what you were doing. We recreated it this weekend and OH MY were the results AMAZING!!!!! This is our NEW favorite sandwich and I’m SO glad that the recipe posted….I bet it will be even better!!!!!!
Yay I am so glad you liked it!!!
What brand pickle chips do you use?
Whatever I find, or you can just slice your pickles.
Have you tried this with gluten free flour? Any tips or suggestions on that?
Thank you!
should be fine!
What brand of dill pickle chips do you use?