This Popcorn Chicken is crispy, crunchy, and full of tender bite-sized pieces of chicken. Coated in a flavorful breading and fried until golden-brown, this chicken is a crowd favorite.
Who doesn’t love fried chicken?! Especially when it’s in finger food sized pieces that are perfect for dunking into your favorite sauce (or sauces) . . . I highly recommend my chick-fil-a sauce, fry sauce, honey mustard, or ranch dressing!
Why is it called popcorn chicken?
Popcorn chicken refers to small, bite-sized pieces of fried chicken that, because of the small size of the chicken pieces, somewhat resembles popcorn…hence the name popcorn chicken!
What’s the difference between popcorn chicken and chicken nuggets?
Although they are similar in preparation, chicken nuggets and popcorn chicken are slightly different in shape.
Chicken nuggets are small, round, and flat deep-fried pieces of chicken. Popcorn chicken is even smaller and shaped like mini balls.
Ingredients
There are three parts to this recipe: the chicken, the marinade, and the breading…and they come together to make the best popcorn chicken ever!
- Chicken Thighs – cubed into 1/2-1 inch pieces. Chicken breasts will also work, but thighs are extra juicy.
- Buttermilk, Pickle Juice, and Hot Sauce – the base for the marinade. The acidity in buttermilk and pickle juice break down the chicken, allowing it to become tender. The pickle juice also adds a great tangy flavor and the hot sauce adds just a kick of heat.
- All-Purpose Flour, Cornstarch, and Powdered Sugar – the base for the breading. The powdered sugar adds a touch of sweetness while the cornstarch allows the chicken to get ultra-crispy.
- Dry Ranch Seasoning Mix and Taco Seasoning – add flavor and spice to both the marinade and the breading.
- Salt, Black Pepper, and Cayenne Pepper – added to the batter along with ranch and taco seasoning for even more flavor and spice.
- Canola Oil – the best oil for frying. It has a high smoke point, is budget friendly, and has a neutral flavor.
- Fry Sauce, Honey Mustard, and Ranch Dressing – for serving, if desired!
How to make
After the chicken marinates, this popcorn chicken comes together in under an hour.
- In a large bowl whisk together buttermilk, pickle juice, hot sauce, salt, dry ranch mix, and taco seasoning. Stir in chicken thighs then marinate for up to 8 hours.
- In a separate bowl, mix together flour, cornstarch, powdered sugar, salt, pepper, cayenne, dry ranch mix, and taco seasoning.
- Remove 1.5 cups of the flour mixture and put it on a plate then take the remaining flour mixture and whisk it into 1.5 cups of the reserved marinade.
- Take each piece of chicken and fully coat with the dry mixture, then the wet mixture, then the dry mixture once more.
- Heat oil to 350ºF in a large stockpot or deep fryer then, working in batches, fry the chicken until golden-brown and crispy (about 3-5 minutes) then serve and enjoy!
How long to fry
Fry the popcorn chicken in preheated 350 degree F oil for 3-5 minutes. You’ll be able to tell it’s done when the outside has turned golden-brown and crispy and the inside of the chicken has reached 165 degrees F.
How to make popcorn chicken crispy
Here are a couple of ways you can ensure that your popcorn chicken is as crispy as possible!
- Use cornstarch. The cornstarch in the breading soaks up extra moisture allowing the outside of the chicken to get extra crispy.
- Make sure the oil is hot enough. You want the oil to be 350ºF before frying the chicken. If it’s not hot enough the breading will soak up too much oil and become soggy before the chicken is fully cooked.
What to serve with popcorn chicken
I love to serve this popcorn chicken with honey mustard, fry sauce, chick-fil-a sauce, and ranch dressing for dipping but here are some yummy sides to serve alongside it as well!
How to store
Store leftover chicken in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days or in the freezer for 2-3 months.
To reheat, thaw in the fridge if frozen then bake or air fry to warm and re-crisp.
– Jennifer
Popcorn Chicken
Equipment for this recipe
Ingredients
Marinade
- 1 cup fat free buttermilk
- 1 cup pickle juice
- 2 teaspoons hot sauce omit if you don’t like spice
- 3 teaspoons salt
- 1 tablespoon dry ranch dressing mix
- 1 tablespoon taco seasoning
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs cubed into 1/2 - 1 inch chunks
Batter
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper omit if you don’t like spice
- 1 tablespoon dry ranch dressing mix
- 1 tablespoon taco seasoning
- 1 ½ cups reserved marinade from above
Other
- Canola oil for frying
- Fry Sauce for serving
- Honey Mustard for serving
- Ranch Dressing for serving
Recipe Video
Instructions
Marinade
- In a large bowl, whisk together buttermilk, pickle juice, hot sauce, salt, dry ranch mix, and taco seasoning.
- Stir in chicken thighs, cover with saran wrap, and marinate in the fridge for up to 8 hours.
Batter
- Combine flour, cornstarch, powdered sugar, salt, pepper, cayenne, dry ranch mix, and taco seasoning in a bowl.
- Remove 1 1/2 cups of this flour mixture and place onto a large plate (this is our dry mixture).
- Add 1 1/2 cups reserved marinade to the remaining flour mixture and whisk until smooth (this is our batter).
- Drain and discard the remaining marinade from the chicken.
- Take one piece of chicken and fully coat it with dry mixture. Shake off any excess.
- Place it into the wet batter and fully coat, allowing excess to drip off.
- Coat the chicken in the dry mixture one more time, shaking off any excess, then place onto a clean work surface.
- Repeat with remaining cubed chicken.
Frying
- Heat oil to 350 degrees F in a large stockpot or deep-fryer.*
- Working in batches, fry chicken in the hot oil until golden, crispy, and no longer pink in the centers, about 3-5 minutes.
- Transfer to the clean wire rack.
- Repeat with remaining chicken.
- Serve with fry sauce, honey mustard, bbq sauce, ketchup, ranch, or your favorite dipping sauce.
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Notes
Nutrition Information
*Note: Nutrition information is estimated and varies based on products used.
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