Crispy Cornflake Oven-Fried Chicken Breasts give you a crunchy coating without a pot of frying oil. Boneless chicken breasts are seasoned with salt and cayenne, dredged in flour, dipped in buttermilk, coated with cornflake crumbs, and baked until crisp outside and safely cooked through.
This page used to be called “Best Southern Fried Chicken Batter,” but that title did not match the recipe. There is no frying and no liquid batter. It is a three-stage oven-breading method, so I renamed it around what readers are actually making.
Why the Coating Uses Three Separate Bowls
The flour goes on first so the buttermilk has a dry surface to cling to. The buttermilk then gives the cornflake crumbs something to grab onto. If I skip one of those layers, the crust is more likely to slide away from the chicken.
Cornflake crumbs bring most of the crunch. They brown and crisp in the oven much more readily than plain flour alone.
Ingredients
- Nonstick cooking spray
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, divided into four roughly 4-ounce pieces
- 1/2 teaspoon table salt, divided, or to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, divided, or to taste
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 fluid ounces low-fat buttermilk
- 1/2 cup cornflake crumbs
How I Set Up the Breading Station
I arrange the ingredients in the order I need them: seasoned flour first, buttermilk second, cornflake crumbs third, then the prepared baking dish. That keeps the process moving and helps reduce the amount of coating scattered around the counter.
Use one hand for the dry coatings and the other for the buttermilk when possible. It makes the breading less likely to build up in thick clumps on your fingers.
How to Make Cornflake Oven-Fried Chicken
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Lightly coat a 13-by-8-by-2-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- Season the chicken lightly with some of the salt and cayenne pepper.
- In a shallow bowl, combine the flour with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper.
- Pour the buttermilk into a second shallow bowl.
- Place the cornflake crumbs in a third shallow bowl.
- Dredge one chicken breast in the flour mixture, coating both sides.
- Dip it into the buttermilk and let the excess drip away.
- Press the chicken into the cornflake crumbs until both sides are evenly coated.
- Place the coated chicken in the prepared baking dish and repeat with the remaining pieces.
- Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes without flipping, or until the coating is crisp and the thickest part of each chicken breast reaches at least 165°F on a food thermometer.
- Let the chicken rest for a few minutes before serving.
How I Keep the Cornflake Coating Crispy
Crush the cornflakes into small crumbs, not powder. A little texture gives the finished crust more crunch.
Let excess buttermilk drip off. Too much liquid can create wet pockets underneath the crumbs.
Do not crowd the baking dish. Leave a little room around the chicken so hot air can reach the coating.
Check doneness with a thermometer. Browning tells me the coating is crisp, but it does not prove that the center of the chicken is safe. Poultry should reach at least 165°F.
Keeping the Chicken Breasts Even
This recipe is written for four approximately 4-ounce pieces. If one chicken breast is much thicker than the others, I would either split it horizontally or pound it to a more even thickness before breading.
More even pieces cook at a similar rate, which makes it less likely that one breast dries out while another is still undercooked.
What to Serve With It
Serve this with mashed potatoes, green beans, corn, coleslaw, a simple salad, roasted vegetables, or biscuits. The mild cayenne gives the crust a little warmth without turning the meal into a very spicy chicken dish.
For a completely different fried-chicken style, see my Homemade Buttermilk Fried Chicken, which uses bone-in chicken and hot oil instead of oven baking.
Storage and Reheating
Refrigerate leftover chicken promptly in a covered container. The crust will soften in the refrigerator, so I prefer reheating it in an oven or air fryer rather than the microwave.
Reheat until the center is hot throughout, taking care not to dry out the lean chicken breast.
Common Questions
Can I use regular cornflakes and crush them myself?
Yes. Crush plain cornflakes into small crumbs and measure the crumbs after crushing.
Why is the coating falling off?
Make sure the chicken goes through all three stages—flour, buttermilk, then cornflakes—and press the crumbs onto the surface rather than sprinkling them loosely.
Is this the same as deep-fried chicken?
No. This is an oven-fried version designed for boneless chicken breasts. The cornflake crust gives it crunch, but the texture is different from chicken cooked in deep oil.
