Skip the drive-thru, and instead make these Copycat Chick Fil A Sandwiches! They can be traditionally fried or air fried, whichever you prefer. No matter which way you whip them up, you’re going to love this spot on copycat recipe!
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Chick Fil A Sandwich Recipe plus Copycat Chick Fil A Sauce
Picture this – it’s a Sunday afternoon, and all you’re craving is your favorite fried chicken sandwich from Chick Fil A. What are you to do?! Make this easy copycat recipe, of course!
Not only is the chicken in this recipe a pretty close duplicate of the original, but the sauce is nearly identical, too. The only difference, if I do say so myself, is that this copycat chicken sandwich is even better than the original. Don’t believe me? Find out yourself by taking a bite of this homemade sandwich.
I love a good copycat recipe! They’re more affordable and usually more delicious than the restaurant options. If you feel the same way, check out my recipes for Chicken Crunchwrap Supremes Copycat and Carraba’s Chicken Bryan Copycat.
Why You’ll Love this Copycat Chick Fil A Sandwiches Recipe:
- Copycat: I hate when copycat recipes don’t actually taste like the real thing. You won’t have to worry about that here, though! These copycat sandwiches are just like the ones at Chick Fil A!
- Fried or Air Fried: I go over both ways of preparing the chicken, and they’re both delicious!
- Saucy: The copycat Chick Fil A sauce recipe is JUST like the real stuff, too! Once you try it, I’m sure you’ll be using it in all kinds of recipes, not just this one.
How to make Chick Fil A Sandwiches and Sauce at home
Be sure to see the recipe card below for full ingredients & instructions!
Here’s how to fry them traditionally –
- Pound the chicken meat.
- Shake milk, pickle juice, and lemon juice in a bag and shake it up. Marinate the chicken in this mixture.
- Whisk together the milk and egg.
- Combine flour and seasonings in another clean plastic bag.
- Place the drained chicken in the plastic bag and shake well.
- Dredge each piece of chicken through the egg-milk mixture, then shake in the bag again.
- Fry the chicken, then drain it of excess oil before assembling the sandwiches.
To air fry the chicken, here’s what you need to do –
- Prepare the chicken the same way you would if traditionally frying.
- Prepare the air fryer by preheating it and spraying the basket with oil.
- Air fry the chicken for 6 minutes per side.
- Increase the temperature of the air fryer, then air fry the chicken for an additional 8 minutes.
To make the sauce, simply –
- Whisk the ingredients together in a bowl, then serve immediately or store it for later use.
Can I make these chicken sandwiches ahead of time?
I don’t recommend making these sandwiches too far ahead of time, as I don’t recommend doing that for any fried food. Fried food of any kind is best served when first made. If you wait too long, the fried chicken could lose its crispy texture.
How can I make these sandwiches spicy?
You can turn these into spicy chicken sandwiches pretty easily! For the chicken seasonings, add cayenne powder. For the sauce, add either cayenne powder or a drizzle of your favorite hot sauce.
How do I know when the chicken is fully cooked?
If you’re a little nervous that the chicken may not be cooked through all the way, use a meat thermometer to check for doneness. If it reads at least 165°F, the chicken is fully cooked and safe to eat.
Recipe Tips and Notes
- Don’t cook the chicken for too long in the oil, or you’re going to have greasy chicken sandwiches!
- While the traditional frying method is delicious, the air fryer method is also great, especially if you’re looking for a bit of a healthier option.
- Remember to pound the chicken not matter what, or it won’t cook evenly and the middle may be raw while the outside it burned.
This Copycat Chick Fil A Sandwich is authentic to the original recipe, and it’s available on Sundays! What’s not to love?!
More chicken sandwich recipes we love
- Chicken Sloppy Joes
- Juicy Skillet Chicken Burgers
- Chicken and Waffle Sliders
- Chicken Parmesan Sandwiches
- Fried Chicken Sandwich
If you’ve made this recipe, please be sure to let us know by leaving a star rating or a comment below. Enjoy!
Copycat Chick Fil A Sandwich and Sauce Recipes
Ingredients
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut in half
- 1 ½ cups milk divided
- ½ cup dill pickle juice
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- Peanut oil for frying
- 4 hamburger buns
- Dill pickle slices
For the Copycat Chick Fil A Sauce
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons barbecue sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 teaspoons yellow mustard
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
Instructions
Instructions for Frying:
- Place chicken breast between two pieces of plastic wrap and set on a cutting board. Use a meat mallet to pound them to 1/2-inch thickness.
- In a large plastic zipper bag, add ½ cup milk, pickle juice, and lemon juice. Seal and shake, then add chicken. Place in the refrigerator and marinate for at least 30 minutes. Drain well.
- Heat 1 cup peanut oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.
- In a shallow baking dish, whisk together the remaining milk and the egg. In a clean plastic zipper bag, combine flour, sugar, salt, paprika, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder. Seal and shake well.
- Place the chicken in the bag and shake to coat. Dredge each piece through the egg-milk mixture, then return it to the bag and coat well. Shake the excess flour off of each piece and allow them to rest on a metal cooling rack.
- Working in batches, add the chicken pieces to the skillet and cook until evenly golden and crispy, about 5-6 minutes, flipping once. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain.
- Serve chicken on burger buns with pickle slices and Chick-fil-A sauce.
Air Fryer Instructions:
- Prepare chicken up to step 5. Spray the inside of an air fryer basket with cooking oil, then preheat it to 350 degrees F.
- Place chicken in a single layer inside the air fryer basket, working in batches if needed. Lightly spray the chicken with cooking oil.
- Air fry the chicken for 6 minutes. Carefully flip the chicken, spray with additional cooking oil, and fry for 6 more minutes.
- Increase the temperature of the air fryer to 400 degrees F. Continue cooking for 8 minutes, until the chicken is crispy and 165 degrees F internally.
For the Sauce:
- Use a whisk or fork to mix sauce ingredients together in a small bowl.
- Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Greg says
Skinnytaste published their version of this ago and I tried fried and air fryed and couldn’t get them to come out without the flour still being visible on outside.. Breading came off immediately, disappointing all around. How is your version different?
Becky Hardin says
Hi Greg,
I am a completely separate company from Skinnytaste and I am not affiliated with them so cannot comment on their recipes. Definitely give this a try and see if it works for you!
ChickenKING says
ALMOST there but you forgot the secret ingredient: MSG!!!
Yes you read that correctly. The reason these sandwiches keep us coming back and that little delicious little somethin somethin is because they use MSG for umami. There’s nothing wrong with using flavor enhanced food but just wanted to let you know. Try it and you’ll see for yourself.
By the way I’m in no way saying this wrong of Chick-fil-A but I think for the full experience you’ll want to add it in the recipe.
Todd Eilbacher says
Good tasting recipie. I had to air fry the chicken in batches. The first batch was very crispy with the extra 8 mins on the end at 400 degrees. Next batch I did the last air fry at 400 for 4 mins and it was better!! Would make again!!
Becky Hardin says
Thanks for sharing, Todd!
Shaina Espey says
I LOVED this recipe! It came out perfect! I didn’t have pickle juice on hand so I used 1/4 tsp ground dill weed and it tastes better than Chick fil A!
Becky Hardin says
Thanks so much for sharing, Shaina!