Cornflake Chicken

Baked instead of fried, this Cornflake Chicken is crispy on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside, and so incredibly flavorful! The oven-fried chicken is a perfect family-friendly, easy dinner recipe when you’re ready for a comfort food classic!

This healthy Cornflake Chicken is an easy way to prepare oven fried chicken at home. It gives you all of the crisp texture and juicy flavor that you crave — without an oily mess on the stovetop and without too much prep time. The secret? Using Kellogg’s Cornflakes as a substitute for breadcrumbs or flour!

How to make Cornflake Chicken

Cooking chicken on the bone adds so much flavor and juiciness to the meat. I like to pull the skin off before adding the cornflake coating, but you can leave it on if you prefer. Let’s get started!

Ingredients for Oven Fried Chicken

• Bone-in chicken pieces (I prefer thighs and drumsticks)
• Mayonnaise
• Kosher salt and seasoned salt (such as Lawry’s brand)
• Garlic powder
• Corn Flakes cereal

First, whisk together the mayonnaise, salt, seasoned salt and garlic powder.

Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper, and then brush the mayonnaise mixture onto the chicken.

Roll the chicken in the Corn Flake crumbs to coat, and then place the chicken on a wire rack on top of a baking sheet.

Bake the chicken in a 425° F oven for about 35-40 minutes, or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees F. If you’re using chicken breasts, you’ll need to add some time since those pieces are larger.

What to serve with Cornflake Chicken

This oven fried chicken pairs perfectly with just about any of the classic Southern sides. Here are some of our favorites:

• Southern Buttermilk Biscuits or Drop Biscuits
• Pumpkin Bread or Pumpkin Muffins
• Cowboy Baked Beans
• Crock Pot Mac and Cheese or Creamy Stovetop Mac and Cheese
• Skillet Cornbread or Corn Muffins
• Southern Macaroni Salad
• Coleslaw
• Southern Collard Greens
• Baked Potato Wedges
• Easy Potato Salad
• Arkansas Green Beans with Bacon
• Broccoli Salad
• Fried Apples
• Southern Succotash

Is Cornflake Chicken healthy?

This recipe is healthier than traditional fried chicken because you’re removing the skin from the chicken, you’re not frying the meat in oil, and you can use light mayonnaise if you’re trying to cut calories and fat. Each 2-piece serving includes about 328 calories, almost 30 grams of protein, and less than 10 grams of fat!

Cook’s Tips and Recipe Variations

• I prefer the chicken thighs and drumsticks because they cook faster than the chicken breasts, so the coating doesn’t burn and the meat stays nice and juicy.
• The recipe calls for pulling the skin off of the chicken pieces before breading. If you prefer, you can leave the skin on the meat.
• Use the same process and Corn Flake coating to prepare Cornflake Chicken Strips (using boneless chicken tenderloins). Boneless chicken tenderloins will cook faster than the bone-in thighs, so you will need to decrease the baking time.
• What can I substitute for Cornflake crumbs? I don’t recommend substituting with alternative breading (such as Panko breadcrumbs). The Corn Flakes give this chicken a unique crispy texture that’s hard to replicate with flour or breadcrumbs, and they add more flavor than these other options.
• To reheat Cornflake Chicken, place chicken pieces on a wire rack on a baking sheet and place in the oven at 250° F just until heated through.
• To freeze Cornflake Chicken before baking: After the chicken is coated in the Corn Flake crumbs, place chicken on parchment covered baking sheet and place in freezer for 2-3 hours or until frozen solid. Then transfer the frozen chicken pieces to a freezer safe Ziploc bag and freeze for up to 2 months.

Have leftover cereal? You can use Corn Flakes in these recipes, too:

Corn Flakes are the secret ingredient in so many of our favorite recipes, because they give a dish that unique flavor and crunch that you can’t get from regular breadcrumbs. Put that cereal box to good use with so many different options!

• Cornflake Cookies
• Aunt Bee’s Southern Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecans or Mom’s Cottage Potatoes
• Dump-and-Bake Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole
• Chicken Divan (a Cornflake Chicken casserole that is an old-fashioned favorite!)
• Parmesan Ranch Cornflake Chicken Strips
• Baked Eggplant Parmesan

Cornflake Chicken

5 from 1 vote

Prep: 15 minutes

Cook: 27 minutes

0 minutes

Total: 42 minutes

Servings 4 people

Calories 328.1 kcal

Baked instead of fried, this Cornflake Chicken is crispy on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside, and so incredibly flavorful!

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Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 3-4 lbs. bone-in chicken pieces, skin removed (I use a combination of 4 drumsticks and 4 thighs or 8 thighs)
• ⅓ cup mayonnaise
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon seasoned salt (such as Lawry's brand)
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 cups crushed Corn Flakes cereal (about 5 cups measured before crushing)

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 425° F. Place a rack on top of a large rimmed baking sheet that has been lined with aluminum foil. Spray rack with cooking spray and set aside.
• In a bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, salt, seasoned salt and garlic powder. Remove skin from chicken, pat dry, and season the meat liberally with salt and pepper.
• Brush chicken pieces with the mayonnaise mixture. Coat chicken with crushed Corn Flakes, pressing gently to help adhere.
• Arrange chicken on prepared baking sheet. Bake for about 35-40 minutes, or until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165° F. If you're using bone-in chicken breasts, you will need to bake them for longer since those are larger pieces of meat. If the crumb coating starts to get too dark while the chicken is roasting, just tent loosely with foil.

Notes

The nutrition information provided is just an estimate. The specific nutrition facts for your meal may vary, depending on the size and type of your chicken pieces, as well as the amount of breading that you use on each piece.

• I prefer the chicken thighs and drumsticks because they cook faster than the chicken breasts, so the coating doesn’t burn and the meat stays nice and juicy.
• The recipe calls for pulling the skin off of the chicken pieces before breading. If you prefer, you can leave the skin on the meat.
• Use the same process and Corn Flake coating to prepare Cornflake Chicken Strips (using boneless chicken tenderloins). Boneless chicken tenderloins will cook faster than the bone-in thighs, so you will need to decrease the baking time.
• What can I substitute for Cornflake crumbs? I don’t recommend substituting with alternative breading (such as Panko breadcrumbs). The Corn Flakes give this chicken a unique crispy texture that’s hard to replicate with flour or breadcrumbs, and they add more flavor than these other options.
• To reheat Cornflake Chicken, place chicken pieces on a wire rack on a baking sheet and place in the oven at 250° F just until heated through.
• To freeze Cornflake Chicken before baking: After the chicken is coated in the Corn Flake crumbs, place chicken on parchment covered baking sheet and place in freezer for 2-3 hours or until frozen solid. Then transfer the frozen chicken pieces to a freezer safe Ziploc bag and freeze for up to 2 months.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/4 of the recipeCalories: 328.1kcalCarbohydrates: 31.5gProtein: 28.9gFat: 9.5gSaturated Fat: 1.9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4.5gMonounsaturated Fat: 2.8gCholesterol: 111mgSodium: 960.5mgPotassium: 357.7mgFiber: 1.3gSugar: 3.3g

Keyword: Cornflake Chicken, Cornflake Chicken Thighs, Oven Fried Chicken

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American, Southern

Author: Blair Lonergan

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