Christmas Day Chicken–chicken that is crispy on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside. It can be prepped ahead of time and baked in your oven or air fryer.
Christmas Day Chicken
Today’s recipe is adapted from Taste of Home. The author, Marcia, said, “I’ve been fixing this delicious chicken for Christmas dinner for over 10 years. It’s convenient since you refrigerate it overnight, then simply coat with crumbs and bake. It comes out crispy on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside.”
I’ve made similar recipes to this one before but this chicken was so much better than the others! The chicken turned out super moist and tender. The sour cream mixture helped to seal in the moisture and also gave the chicken incredible flavor. The cracker crumbs turned out crispy and buttery. I think you’ll really love this chicken and you can have it any day of the year…not just Christmas.
Ingredients/Substitution Ideas
- Chicken breasts–or chicken tenderloins
- Sour cream–or plain yogurt
- Lemon juice
- Worcestershire sauce
- Celery salt
- Pepper
- Paprika
- Seasoned salt
- Garlic salt
- Ritz crackers
- Cooking spray/Butter
Steps
In a large flat container add the sour cream, lemon juice, Worcestershire, celery salt, pepper, paprika, seasoned salt and garlic salt and whisk well to combine.
Cut the chicken into tenderloin size. Add the chicken into the sour cream mixture and turn to coat the chicken in the mixture. Refrigerate overnight (or at least 2 hours).
Crush the crackers and place them on a plate.
Take each piece of the chicken and coat it in the cracker crumbs.
Air fryer instructions: Work in batches to air fry the chicken. Place chicken in air fryer basket (so that it isn’t overlapping). Spray the chicken lightly with non-stick cooking spray. Air fry for 10 minutes at 375 degrees, flipping halfway through. Check chicken for doneness (it should be 165 degrees in the middle). Oven Instructions: preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place chicken in a 9×13 inch baking dish. Drizzle ½ cup of melted butter evenly over the top of the chicken. Bake for 30 minutes.
Serve and enjoy!
Notes/Tips
- Serve with mashed potatoes, green beans, corn, jello salad, dinner rolls and pie for dessert.
- I used my Instant Vortex air fryer*.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container* in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat leftovers in your air fryer…it will keep the cracker crumbs crispy.
- Other recipes you can make with Ritz crackers are Ritz Chicken and Instant Pot Gratin Of Chicken.
More Air Fryer Recipes…
Keep a Man Chicken (Air Fryer or Oven)
Juicy, flavorful and tender chicken. Make this for your man or your woman and win their hearts forever!
Air Fryer Weeknight Meatballs
Use your air fryer or Instant Pot air fryer lid to make these super fast and easy meatballs!
Air Fryer Almost Chick Fil-A Chicken
Homemade chicken nuggets made in your air fryer. They are juicy and tender and really simple to make! They taste just as good as the restaurant.
Air Fryer Appalachian Mountain Chicken
An air fryer take on fried chicken…it’s crispy on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside. It’s everything you want in your fried chicken with way less fat and calories.
Did you know you can filter the recipes on my website to search by meat type, IP or Crockpot, low carb, gluten free, etc.? Use the filter to find exactly what you are looking for.
Christmas Day Chicken
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
Description
Chicken that is crispy on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside. It can be prepped ahead of time and baked in your oven or air fryer.
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 pounds chicken breasts or chicken tenderloins
- 1 cup sour cream
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp celery salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp seasoned salt
- 1/2 tsp garlic salt
- 2 sleeves of Ritz crackers
- Cooking spray/Butter
Instructions
- In a large flat container add the sour cream, lemon juice, Worcestershire, celery salt, pepper, paprika, seasoned salt and garlic salt and whisk well to combine.
- Cut the chicken into tenderloin size. Add the chicken into the sour cream mixture and turn to coat the chicken in the mixture. Refrigerate overnight (or at least 2 hours).
- Crush the crackers and place them on a plate. Take each piece of the chicken and coat it in the cracker crumbs.
- Air fryer instructions: Work in batches to air fry the chicken. Place chicken in air fryer basket (so that it isn’t overlapping). Spray the chicken lightly with non-stick cooking spray. Air fry for 10 minutes at 375 degrees, flipping halfway through. Check chicken for doneness (it should be 165 degrees in the middle). Oven Instructions: preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place chicken in a 9×13 inch baking dish. Drizzle ½ cup of melted butter evenly over the top of the chicken. Bake for 30 minutes.
- Serve and enjoy!
- Category: Chicken
- Method: Air Fryer or Oven
*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
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