Beer Battered Chicken Sandwich Recipe
Crispy, juicy beer battered chicken sandwiches with sweet-spicy hot honey! Quick, easy, and perfect on buns—or try the batter on tenders, wings, or veggies for extra versatility.
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 562kcal
Ingredients
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts sliced thin*
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 12 ounces beer 1 bottle**
- cooking oil for frying
- 4 hamburger buns
For the Hot Honey:
- ¼ cup honey
- 2 teaspoons hot sauce ***
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cayenne, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and beer. Mixture should be thick but pourable. Let mixture rest for 20 minutes.1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon ground black pepper, 12 ounces beer
- If using whole chicken breasts, carefully slice each breast in half horizontally. If necessary, pound to an even thickness. The more uniform the chicken cutlets, the more evenly they will fry. The thinner the chicken cutlets, the quicker they will fry.2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- Heat about ¾ inch of oil in a heavy bottomed skillet to 325°F. Dip chicken in beer batter mixture to fully coat and allow excess to drip off. Carefully place each battered piece into the skillet. Do not over crowd the pan. Fry in batches if necessary.cooking oil
- Fry for 12-15 minutes, turning once until chicken is cooked through. Transfer to a baking sheet lined with a cooling rack to allow excess oil to drip off.
- To prepare the hot honey, whisk together honey and hot sauce.¼ cup honey, 2 teaspoons hot sauce
- Brush each fried chicken cutlet with a generous amount of hot honey. Serve on your favorite buns.4 hamburger buns
Notes
*Choose even-sized chicken cutlets so they cook at the same rate. Cut chicken breasts in half horizontally and pound them to an even thickness if needed.
**I usually use a light beer as it has a milder flavor and creates a crispier batter. A larger or pilsner are great options, but other beers also work well!
***I usually use Franks RedHot for the hot honey, but I've tried some other hot sauces, and they all work great! A chipotle hot sauce added some smokiness, and a habanero hot sauce brought even more heat.
Tips:
- Pat chicken dry before dipping in the batter. Moisture on the surface can prevent the batter from sticking.
- Use a thermometer to maintain an even temperature for the oil so the chicken doesn't burn. Aim for 325°F–350°F. Let the oil return to temperature between batches to ensure even frying.
- Never pour wet batter directly into hot oil—it can splatter violently. Dip the chicken first, then carefully place it in the oil.
- Don't overcrowd the oil; otherwise, the chicken may turn out soggy.
- Turn the chicken only once if possible; flipping too much can knock off the batter.
- Warm the honey slightly before mixing with hot sauce. It'll blend better and is easier to brush onto the chicken
- One of my readers said they used a combination of honey and sriracha for the sauce and loved it!
- Serve topped with pickles, lettuce, tomato, or coleslaw for added crunch and freshness.
- Reheat fried chicken in a 375°F oven for 8-10 minutes to retain crispiness rather than microwaving, which makes it soggy.
Nutrition
Serving: 1sandwich | Calories: 562kcal | Carbohydrates: 63g | Protein: 54g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 145mg | Sodium: 903mg | Potassium: 953mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 281IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 27mg | Iron: 4mg