Crispy, tender, and flavorful-to-boot! Just like the original, this gluten free and keto fried chicken and waffles is nothing short of scrumptious.
Keto ‘Fried’ Chicken and Waffles 🍗
i.e. Baked & Mess-Free!
Crispy, tender, and flavorful-to-boot. This keto ‘fried’ chicken and waffles is bound to tickle some tastebuds. The baked ‘fried’ chicken is incredibly tender and crisp, paired with our light and airy keto waffles*. A truly awesome marriage of flavors!
All in all, this is one of my favorite recipes on the site. Might be due to my crazy affinity for Southern-style fried chicken and waffles (who doesn’t have one?!). But this keto version is honestly a must-try.
And, it’s easy-peasy. The chicken is baked for a mess-free and more hands-off approach. And our keto waffles are as easy as they come (check out the video for guidance).
Oh, and be sure to serve it up with maple or sugar free syrup (love Lakanto’s!).
*(Updated VIP Note!): to make the waffles you’ve got two options! Feel free to use our extra fluffy waffle recipe (I know this is a favorite amongst many of you!)… but if you’re looking for a shorter route, know that you can also whip up waffles out of our staple keto pancakes (less fluffy, but they crisp up properly!).
The Coating
For the ‘fried’ chicken I went for a breading for baking rather than a batter (like in our fish tacos or ‘fish ‘n chips’). And I truly do love pork rinds (i.e. chicharrones!) more than anything for it. Plus, they’re the perfect balance between fat and protein with zero carbs (i.e. a keto dream come true!).
So before you freak out, there’s no after taste whatsoever. More like a wonderful crisp texture and amazing flavor. A lot of you ask me for brands, and I’ve loved the new baked variety from Epic for the task (also 40% less calories btw!). Because they’re not fried in lard, they’re drier and resemble panko crumbs so much.
Other than that, you’ll want to marinate the chicken in sour cream (with a touch of vinegar and spices). Then you’ll do three layers (almond flour, egg and pork rind blend) for the ultimate coating. And if dairy free, full-fat coconut milk actually does an awesome job in lieu of the sour cream.
Keto 'Fried' Chicken and Waffles
Ingredients
For the marinade
- 500 g chicken tenderloins or chicken breast sliced lengthwise into 2/3" / 1.5cm thick slices
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
- 2 cloves garlic ran through a press
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- kosher salt to taste
For the coating
- 1/2-1 cup almond flour as needed (or more pork rinds for a nut-free version)
- 1 egg lightly beaten
- 1 tablespoon sour cream
- 90 g crushed pork rinds crushed
- 25 g Parmesan cheese finely grated
- 1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- pinch cayenne pepper
- kosher salt to taste
Serving suggestions
- 1 batch our gluten free & keto waffles *
- sugar free syrup or maple syrup (if not keto)
- chives finely chopped
Instructions
- Rinse and pat dry your chicken pieces. Set aside.
- In a large bowl suitable for marinating, mix together the sour cream, vinegar, poultry seasoning, garlic, freshly ground black pepper and season to taste. Add in the chicken, cover with cling film and marinate in the fridge for at least two hours (though preferably overnight!).
- Preheat oven to 425°F/220°C. Line a rimmed baking tray with aluminum foil and place a rack over it. Brush with olive oil or cooking oil of choice.
- You will need three bowls for the three coatings. In bowl 1, place your almond flour (or more crushed pork rinds). In bowl 2, whisk your egg with sour cream. And in bowl 3, mix thoroughly together the crushed pork rinds, Parmesan cheese, paprika, oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, freshly ground black pepper, cayenne and season to taste with salt (will vary quite a bit depending on the saltiness of your pork rinds).
- Dip your chicken pieces one at a time in the almond flour, followed by the egg, followed by the pork rinds mixture. Place in the prepared baking tray.
- Roast your chicken for 25-30 minutes until fully cooked (i.e. no longer pink and the juices run clear).
- Serve right away with waffles, chives and a generous drizzle of syrup.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
For those of us who keep kosher, any ideas for a pork-free and dairy-free alternative?
Salted or seasoned chopped roasted nuts for the crunch? Gribenes (crispy fried chicken skins with fried chopped onions)?
You are now my kid’s hero! This was a huge winner!
Always love to hear when the kiddos enjoy 🙂
Would plain greek yogurt be a sub for sour cream? I have that in the fridge, sour cream is the only thing I am missing…
What is your dense and crispy waffle recipe!! Would love to try!! Thank you!
I’m making this tonight! I’m so excited! I’m wondering if the nutrition info is for 1 piece of chicken or for a 3-4 ounce serving. Thanks!
I am single and do a lot of cooking then freezing leftovers. This chicken looks like a great candidate for prepping and freezing for throwing into the toaster oven for a quick supper. Question is should I bread them and freeze before cooking or bread/cook/cool and then freeze? I guess I could experiment, but I really hate to take a chance on meat dishes not turning out edible.
I do LOVE your recipes. I mostly use your recipes since I discovered your blog. I also wanted to say I feel your pain with what you have gone through lately. I have been on disability for chronic back pain for almost 10 years now and it has turned into fibromylasia. Keep on fighting to keep life as normal as possible!! Isn’t it great to have something like your blog to keep your mind off pain?
While I have not “frybaked” with the epic pork rinds, I made eggplant parm tonight and for real fried em up. Spectacular. In the past when I had used bak-ets from nabisco it was “meh” this is game changer.
Next will be fried okra.
What can I substitute for pork as I don’t use and pig products! I am dying to make keto fried chicken but almond flour on its own burns and does not give a nice crispy coating! Thanks
Thank you for sharing your amazing recipes! I purchased your Keto Speedy Comfort Food cookbook and it is wonderful!! So glad I found you.
Thank you so much for your support Ann, so happy to hear you’re enjoying! Big kiss!
Thank you so much for these exciting and nutritious recipes. I have been using quite a few for my Diabetic husband and my self. We are feeling and looking so much healthier. Bless your heart for caring so much for others. Your Keto recipes are the Bomb! 💖
We don’t eat pork – is there something else we could use for the coating? Thank you.
Do you think vegan mayo would work in place of sour cream since we have to be dairy free or do you maybe have a more suitable substitution? I don’t think my usual replacement of coconut cream would be good here! Thanks!
Yeah tbh coconut cream was a no go (I tried too!)… I haven’t tried vegan mayo myself, have you tried cooking with it to see if it splits? I think I’ll have to do the rounds at Whole Foods soon and check out if anyone has come up with a suitable DF replacement 😉
Veganaise is soooo good Paola you should try that at WF. I eat tons of eggs but I actually prefer it to regular mayonnaise. I only buy the one with the lime green lid (there are like 6 different ones) because it’s soy free and most all soy products are GMO’d in the US and even if they’re organic soy tends to not be so good for females. The other ones they have are made with canola oil and other omega 6 oils that are not so great. I’ve heated it gently for a sauce and it did fine but I have not used it at high heat. If you do experiment please let us know! Or at least let me know 🙏🏼 Thanks!
I’m a chicken and waffles fan. I’ve had it at various restaurants, but your recipe was ridiculously good! In my opinion, it’s better than REGULAR chicken and waffles… it must be the spices in mixed in with the pork rinds. I’m fairly new to keto and I feel like it was such a blessing to have found your website. My girls (10 and 13 years old) both said, “Mom, this is the best thing you’ve ever made!” Thank you Paola!!
Hi Paola! First, I would like to thank you for your incredible recipes! I’m working my way through ALL of them and have LOVED. EVERY. ONE.!! Seriously!!
I have a question on this Fried Chicken and Waffle recipe. When I am ready to roll the chicken into the almond flour, do I keep the sour cream marinade on the chicken, or do I scrape it off? I’m thinking, keep it on. I won’t be making this until tomorrow, so I hope you have time to answer. Again, THANK YOU for making keto even better!!
Oh thats so awesome to hear Melinda!! Re your qs, I take off the excess (you want some for the almond flour to stick nicely, but not too much that it drips off). I think it will be more intuitive once you’re making it and you’ll know what I mean (I hope! explaining recipes can be hard 😂!). xo!
Just the images alone make this dish look so amazing, what a creative way to coat the chicken with pork rinds and then bake it for an easy mess free chicken and kitchen!!! superb recipe
P.S…..LOVE the jazzy music on your videos! 🙂
LOVE jazz! 😉
I’m so freaking stoked about all these wonderful recipes…bless your heart and thank you so much! I don’t really like saying negative stuff, and if it weren’t for the huge difference (retired and on a ridiculously rigid budget)…I wouldn’t mention it. I don’t think I’m alone in this predicament, but if you don’t want it on here, I totally understand if its deleted. Netrition.com has the exact size and flavor of the Lakanto Maple Syrup for $7.49 (vs Amazon at $10.00). Thanks so much for all your hard work, and sharing these recipes… I’ve been low carb for 5+ years and had no idea how much I’ve been missing out on! 😀
Hi Kate! I don’t see your comment as negative at all, if anything it’s super helpful! So thanks so much for letting me know as I was completely unaware of that site!
I also link to amazon (full disclosure, as stated at the footer), because we receive an affiliate commission from purchases you guys make (a way to be able to keep the content free!).
xo and so happy to hear you’re enjoying the recipes :)!
You always have the most outrageous keto recipes! LOVE YOU SO SO SO MUCH GNOM-GNOM!! Can’t wait to try this one!
Lol that’s awesome! Happy you guys are digging my outrageous cravings ;)! xo and hope you enjoy!
Is there a sub for Pork Rinds for those of us who keep Kosher? Otherwise it sounds wonderful!
Hi Denise! The next best thing I’ve tried is actually roasted cauliflower rice (it’s not my top choice, but also works surprisingly well)! What you need to do is roast the cauliflower rice in a baking tray until golden and mostly dried out and simply sub it in for the pork rinds. You’ll just need to spray some oil before baking for a ‘fried’ finish. Hope this helps xo!
Thanks as I was wondering the same thing. I am thinking of taking the keto cheese frackers I make, them fringing them into breadcrumbs to see if this works too!