Buttery, flaky biscuits with mouth-watering chicken like Chick Fil A but made completely from scratch and without any ingredients you don't want. These Southern baked biscuits with lightly fried chicken are a satisfying, hearty breakfast sandwich.
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Get ready y'all because I think I just died and went to heaven. Chicken biscuits... need I say more?
I mean "chicken biscuits" is really all I have to say to make my mouth start to water. Buttery, flaky biscuits with mouth-watering chicken like the yummy ones from Chick Fil A. And these chicken biscuits are 100% homemade from scratch.
Why you should make a homemade chicken biscuit
Let's compare the ingredients for fun:
The ingredients for my Homemade Chicken Biscuits: Biscuit (butter, unbleached all purpose flour, whole wheat pastry flour, baking powder, salt, milk, vinegar), Chicken (chicken breast, milk, pickle juice, whole wheat pastry flour, paprika, spices, salt, canola oil).
As opposed to this... Biscuit (enriched bleached wheat flour [niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid], vegetable oil shortening [palm and/or palm kernel oils], sugar, cultured nonfat milk, leavening [sodium bicarbonate, sodium aluminum phosphate, monocalcium phosphate], salt, maltodextrin, whey, natural flavor, dextrose, water, self-rising flour [enriched bleached flour {wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamin mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid}, baking powder {baking soda, sodium aluminum phosphate, monocalcium phosphate}, salt]), butter oil (soybean oil, palm kernel oil, soy lecithin, artificial flavor, TBHQ and citric acid added as preservatives, and artificial color), Chicken (whole breast filet, seasoning [salt, monosodium glutamate, sugar, spices, paprika], seasoned coater [enriched bleached wheat flour {with malted barley flour, niacin, iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid}, sugar, salt, monosodium glutamate, nonfat milk, leavening {baking soda, sodium aluminum phosphate, monocalcium phosphate}, spice, soybean oil, color {paprika}], milk wash [water, nonfat milk, egg], peanut oil [fully refined peanut oil with TBHQ and citric acid added to preserve freshness and dimethylpolysiloxane as an antifoaming agent]).
And while I don't mind eating ingredients like bleached white flour, shortening, artificial flavor, MSG, TBHQ, preservatives, more MSG, and dimethylpolysiloxane occasionally... they don't make me feel my best if I eat them on the reg. Which is why I like to make my own chicken biscuits so I can use simple ingredients.
Side note: I do really appreciate the fact that Chick-fil-a discloses all of their ingredients along with the allergy information. And they make it easy to find, unlike so many other restaurants/fast food places.
How to Make Chicken Biscuits
To make these delicious babies, you marinate the chicken in a mixture of milk and pickle juice which sounds weird but gives the chicken great flavor.
Then you make the biscuits. [see below for tips on making those]
Once the chicken has marinated for an hour or so, you toss it in a mixture of whole wheat pastry flour or white whole wheat flour and some spices. Then you fry the chicken in a little oil.
I used 1/3 cup avocado oil (or peanut oil), but the chicken doesn't completely absorb it all. You want to make sure there's enough oil in the skillet so these cook right. To fry the chicken, I prefer using a smaller skillet and doing it in batches.
Then you serve the chicken on the homemade biscuits and enjoy!
Tips for Making Chicken and Biscuits
I started out making my biscuits with all whole wheat pastry flour, but I thought they were a tiny bit on the too-healthy side, so I changed the recipe to use a combination of whole wheat pastry flour and all purpose flour.
Make sure you get the unbleached kind. And don't use regular whole wheat flour; use whole wheat pastry flour which has a much lighter texture and color.
When cutting the biscuits, make sure you make a straight cut and don't twist the biscuit cutter, which can cause the biscuit to not rise, i.e. bake into a hockey puck.
Don't skimp on the butter. That's what makes a good biscuit but is the reason I wouldn't eat these everyday (because hello, stomachache with all the butter).
Oh and you must brush the tops of the biscuits with softened butter right when they come out of the oven. It makes them extra heavenly.
Make Ahead Tips
You can make the biscuits ahead of time and marinate the chicken in advance. However, I found that the chicken tastes best if enjoyed right after frying.
Variations & Substitutions
Milk substitutions:
You can use 1%, 2% or whole dairy milk. I used 2% when testing. Another option is to make this non-dairy by using a plain non-dairy milk like almond or coconut.
I haven't tested it, so I don't know if it would change the flavor of the biscuits or chicken.
Flour substitutions:
I used a combination of unbleached all purpose flour and whole wheat pastry flour. I do not recommend using all whole wheat pastry flour because it feels a little too "healthy."
Regular whole wheat flour will be too dense and have an overpowering flavor in my opinion.
Storage Tips:
The recipe makes 12 biscuits and 8 pieces of chicken, so save the leftover biscuits for the next day or freeze them for later.
Store the chicken in the fridge in an airtight container separate from the biscuits, so the biscuits don't get soggy.
What to serve with this dish
Chicken biscuits have you covered in the carbohydrate, protein, and fat department, but they are lacking in the fruits & veggies. So I personally like to serve them with a piece of fruit at breakfast or a salad with lunch or dinner.
Final thoughts:
I won't be eating these everyday; that's what my protein pancakes are for. But man oh man are these chicken biscuits gooooooooooooooooooood and worth every single second in the kitchen.
MORE BREAKFAST RECIPES YOU'LL LOVE:
- Skillet Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole
- Breakfast Tostadas
- Breakfast Stuffed Peppers
- Breakfast Pizza
- Apple Protein Pancake Muffins
Homemade Chicken Biscuits
Ingredients
For the chicken:
- 1 lb chicken
- 3/4 cup milk 2% or plain non-dairy
- 1/4 cup pickle juice
- 1/3 cup avocado oil or peanut or canola oil
- 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour or white whole wheat flour
- 1 TBSP powdered sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp salt-free all purpose spice
For the biscuits:
- 1 TBSP white vinegar or lemon juice
- 1 cup milk scant, 2% or plain non-dairy
- 1 1/8 cup whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
- 1 TBSP baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup cold butter cut into pieces {reserve 1 tsp for brushing on top of biscuits}
Instructions
- Put the chicken, milk, and pickle juice in a zip top bag or container, and refrigerate for at least one hour, preferably two.
Meanwhile, make the biscuits:
- Put vinegar in a measuring cup and add almost 1 cup of milk to total 1 cup of liquid. Set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Lightly oil a baking sheet or line with parchment.
- Whisk together whole wheat pastry flour and all purpose flour with the baking powder and salt.
- Cut in the butter {use all but one teaspoon - save one teaspoon for brushing on top of cooked biscuits} into the flour mixture with a pastry cutter or two knives until the butter looks like tiny pebbles. Then add in the milk mixture. Stir until just combined.
- Flour a work surface, and add the biscuit dough. Knead for about 20 seconds, then fold it a few times like you're folding a piece of paper. Pat into a circle that is 1/2 inch thick.
- Cut out 3 inch rounds {using a biscuit cutter or a cup or an empty can} and put on prepared baking sheet. Bake immediately in the preheated oven for 18-20 minutes. Right before you put the biscuits out of the oven, brush them with softened butter. Set aside to cool.
Cook the chicken:
- After the chicken has marinated for at least one hour, add about half of the oil to a small skillet or saucepan {I used a cast iron skillet} and heat over medium/medium-high.
- In a zip-top bag or a shallow bowl, stir together flour, powdered sugar, salt, pepper, paprika, and spice. Take a piece of chicken from the marinade, let excess marinade drip off, then add to the flour mixture. Coat completely in flour. Set aside and repeat with remaining chicken pieces.
- Once the oil is hot {sprinkle a pinch of flour in the oil and if it slightly sizzles, it's ready. Turn down the heat if the flour pops}, add one or two pieces of breaded chicken to the oil. Do not crowd the pan. It's best to do this in batches.
- Fry chicken on each side for about 3-5 minutes or until lightly brown and chicken easily flips to the other side and doesn't stick to the skillet. Transfer cooked chicken to a paper towel lined plate, and repeat with remaining pieces of chicken. Once you've cooked half of the chicken, add the remaining oil to the skillet as needed.
- Serve chicken on the biscuit. Enjoy!
Notes
What to use in this recipe:
Meme
Doesn't this recipe look good?! You should probably pin it for later:
Bethany says
Best biscuits I've made. They are flaky and layered like Pillsbury, and quick and easy to make.
Meme says
YESSSSSSSS!!!! Thank you so so so much for sharing! And I am so happy you enjoyed them!
Now I've got a craving for homemade biscuits 😉