I love the Cap’n Crunch Chicken at Planet Hollywood! I honestly can’t go there and without ordering this favorite appetizer. This Captain Crunch Chicken has a delicious savory sweet crunch, and a flavor unlike anything else you have tried.
We love figuring out how to make our favorite restaurant recipes at home. It is a great way to save money, and to test new skills in the kitchen! One of our very first, and our most popular recipes is the Cafe Rio Sweet Pork. We also love to make Panda Express Chow Mein, and Outback Steakhouse’s Alice Springs Chicken.
Captain Crunch Chicken
I first tried Captain Crunch Chicken when Planet Hollywood opened in Las Vegas. Captain Crunch cereal was always a favorite of mine as a kid, and the idea of it breading chicken was so intriguing! It did not disappoint. The coating on the chicken is crunchy and yummy and bursting with flavor. On the inside, the chicken is moist and tender. The sweet honey mustard sauce balances out the flavors of the chicken perfectly. We also sometimes like to dip the chicken in fry sauce (recipe HERE). It also makes a great appetizer for having friends over to watch your favorite team play.
A Recipe Your Whole Family Will Love
This recipe for Captain Crunch Chicken is a real kid pleaser, my daughter couldn’t get enough of them! Kids love the lightly sweet crunchy flavor of this chicken and tangy dip. My kids especially like to make them with our potato wedges and some carrot sticks or cucumber slices for a dinner of finger foods. This chicken is a meal the whole family will love again and again.
More Chicken Recipes
We have so many delicious chicken recipes, it’s hard to pick a favorite. We like to get the big bags of frozen chicken and use it to make all kinds of dishes. You can find all our best chicken recipes HERE.
More Copycat Recipes
If you like copycat restaurant recipes you are in luck! We have a big selection of restaurant favorites from sit down dining, to quick service, to fast food selections that you have got to check out. Find the full list HERE.
How To Make Captain Crunch Chicken
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts boneless, skinless
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 egg
- 2 cups Cap’n Crunch cereal
- ½ cup panko bread crumbs
- ½ cup Wondra flour
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- vegetable oil
Creole Mustard Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons Grey Poupon dijon mustard
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
Honey Mustard Sauce:
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
- 1 teaspoon honey
Instructions
- Use a kitchen mallet or rolling pin to flatten each chicken breast to about 1 inch thick. Cut each chicken breast (lengthwise) into 4 to 6 long slices to make the chicken strips. Place chicken in a bowl, cover with buttermilk, and marinate several hours or overnight.
- Using a food processor or blender, crush the Cap’n Crunch cereal into crumbs. You can also place the cereal into a resealable plastic bag, squeeze out all the air, and roll over it with a rolling pin until the cereal is crushed into crumbs.
- Place the cereal crumbs in a bowl and add bread crumbs, flour, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Stir well.
- Remove chicken from buttermilk marinade and set aside. Whisk one egg into the remaining marinade. Add the chicken back in and stir well.
- Coat each piece of chicken in the cereal crumb mixture.
- Deep Fry Method: Fill a deep fry pan with 2 inches of vegetable oil. Heat to 375 degrees. Fry each chicken strip for 4 to 6 minutes or until golden brown. When fully cooked, place each chicken strip on a paper towel or rack to drain the oil. Air Fryer Method: Preheat air fryer to 350. Spray each side of the chicken strips with a little bit of cooking spray. Cook at 350 for 8-10 minutes, flipping halfway through.
- For the Sauces: Mix ingredients together and let chill in the fridge at least one hour before serving.
baltisraul says
Just tried this last evening. I took Donna’s advice and put some of the seasonings in the buttermilk. Nice touch. To keep it crunchy, place on a wire rack. Placing fried foods on paper towels will steam the crust and will make it less crunchy. Next time I will try boneless skinless thighs
Favorite Family Recipes says
Great ideas, thank you for haring your wire rack idea! Definitely trying that next time!
Val O. says
I wonder how this would work in an air fryer?
Favorite Family Recipes says
We aren’t super familiar with how to convert recipes to the Air Fryer. If you are able to figure it out, please come back and let us know!
Jen says
For the cereal do you use all of it or do you leave out the crunch berries?
Erica says
No crunch berries. You can get plain cereal without the crunch berries so you don’t have to pick it out. They even have a variety that you can get at Winco in their bulk bins without the berries. Hope this helps!
preceah says
thank you for post this ..i love it
Donna says
when you put in buttermilk, put seasoning in buttermilk, then your chicken absorbs the seasoning. fresh herbs work real well. i have tried other coatings and lots of other cereals work also. as long as you are relaxed and cook with love your dinner or anything comes out great. also use friends family, and neighbors as testers. just have fun.!!!!!
Echo says
Thank you so much for your comment – I agree 100%
Tanya says
This was great! I used the exact ingredients and fried it in my “Mac Fry.” The texture of the chicken came out crispy on the outside, moist on the inside. Mine must have been really thin because they cooked in less than two minutes. My entire family of seven ate it which is saying a lot.
sherry says
what is fry sauce please let me know thank u
Donna says
Fry sauce is kind of a regional thing in Utah and Idaho. It’s basically ketchup and mayonnaise mixed together. Some people get all fancy and add a tiny bit of mustard or BBQ sauce too. You can customize it however you want. All proportions are “to taste”. Start with a big blob of ketchup and add mayo until it’s nice and light pink and creamy. Yummy!
Kathy says
In the receipe, does it have to be Wondra flour or is that just a name brand? Can it be just regular flour?
Erica says
Wondra flour is just a lighter flour that makes it extra tasty… regular flour would work OK though!
Jasmine says
Just made this its amazing. I only let it marinate in the buttermilk for 2 hours because I decided to make it last minute, but its still so good. My twins love it! Thanks for the recipe!
Marianne says
Do you think it could be made in a healthier way-baking it??
Erin says
Now I know what to make with all of that Cap'n Crunch cereal I got for cheap at Smith's!
Aaron and Kristi says
Great recipe!!! I made this for dinner tonight and everyone loved it (which for my picky family is saying a lot!!!) Thanks!
Melody says
I tried this many years ago and it is so good! I had totally forgotten about it though until now. Thanks for sharing this great recipe!