Chicken Fingers Recipe (Zaxby’s Copycat)

With this Zaxby’s chicken fingers recipe, you can make crisp, tender chicken fingers in your own kitchen. Plus, it’s easier and cheaper than going out to a restaurant!

Zaxby’s chicken tenders are really popular because the coating is crunchy and perfectly seasoned. And you can easily make them at home.

You simply bread chicken breasts with flour, bread crumbs, and Italian seasoning. Then, bake them in the oven until crispy and golden.

Zaxby’s chicken fingers are the perfect comfort food, especially with French fries and coleslaw. Pair them with your favorite toppings or dips, like honey mustard or honey sauce.

Then, share them with your friends and family! You can serve these tasty fried chicken fingers as an entree, but they also work great as finger food for a movie night or game day party.

How To Make It

Set your oven to 400 degrees F and allow it to preheat. Spray your baking sheet with cooking spray.

Slice the chicken widthwise, forming half-inch pieces. Place these pieces in the mixing bowl and pour the buttermilk on top.

Stir the chicken to coat it evenly, and finally cover the bowl and put it in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes.

In one of your shallow bowls, thoroughly mix the cornflakes, breadcrumbs, pepper, salt, and Italian seasoning.

Put the flour in the shallow dish and pour the beaten egg into a shallow bowl.

Take a piece of chicken, gently shake off the excess buttermilk, and dip the chicken finger into the flour.

Tap off the extra flour, dip the chicken finger in the egg mixture, and roll it in the bread crumb mixture.

Repeat with the remaining chicken fingers.

Line up the Zaxby’s chicken fingers on the baking sheet. Cook them in the preheated oven for about eight minutes, or until the chicken has cooked through.

To get Zaxby’s chicken tenders even crispier, let it cool slightly for a couple of minutes on a wire rack. Serve.

Easy Tips

• Use Cornflakes. Corn flakes are ideal to bread chicken because they’re light, crispy, and easy to find. But another great option is panko or Japanese bread crumbs. Panko is also very light and gives you a great crunchy texture.


• Bring Chicken to Room Temp. Before you bread and bake these Zaxby’s chicken fingers, bring the raw meat to room temperature. If you cook the chicken breasts directly out of the fridge, the meat can seize up. Then, it will release lots of water when it cooks, and that will make the coating soggy.


• Use a Wire Rack. For really even cooking, put the meat on a wire rack rather than a baking pan. That way, air can circulate around the pieces. As well, cool the pieces on a wire rack when you take them out. This helps them cool evenly, and it will keep the coating as crispy as possible.

Storing and Reheating

To store this great chicken recipe, put leftovers in an airtight container, and they’ll stay fresh in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.

If you want them to last longer, you can keep them in the freezer for up to 4 months.

When you’re ready to enjoy the chicken fingers, you can reheat them in 3 different ways:

• Oven: Cook for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees F.


• Air fryer: Cook for 5 minutes at 375 degrees F. Then turn the chicken over and cook for an additional 2 minutes.


• Stove: Add a tablespoon or two of canola oil to a pan, and heat the chicken pieces for about 2 minutes. Then, flip them over and fry for an additional minute.

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