Gluten-free Crispy Southern Fried Chicken

This gluten-free fried chicken recipe makes the best southern-style chicken that is flavorful and juicy on the inside with an extra crispy breading. No one will believe this is gluten-free chicken.

I grew up in the south, and if you know anything about southerners, we love fried foods. Now that I am gluten-free, I've had to figure out how to make all my favorite fried foods into gluten-free fried foods. One of the first recipes I had to tackle was this gluten-free fried chicken recipe.

Jump to:

• Is there gluten in fried chicken?
• The Secret to the Best Fried Chicken
• Ingredients
• Fried Chicken Without Eggs
• Dairy-free Fried Chicken Recipe
• Steps
• Gluten-free Breading Tips
• Gluten-free Fried Chicken FAQ
• Fried Chicken for a Crowd
• Make Ahead
• Storing
• Reheating
• Serving Suggestions
• 📖 Recipe

Is there gluten in fried chicken?

Traditional fried chicken does contain gluten, so if you think you can go get gluten-free chicken at KFC or another restaurant, you won't. There are a few places that do sell gluten-free fried chicken, but it's not common yet. I've got you covered because making homemade fried chicken gluten-free is actually quite easy to do.

The Secret to the Best Fried Chicken

The secret to making this the best gluten-free fried chicken lies in the marinade and the breading.

• This gluten-free chicken soaks in a marinade with a combination of buttermilk, pickle juice, and spices. Trust me, it might sound odd, but the combination makes the juiciest chicken.
• When making the crispiest gluten-free fried chicken, you need to add crushed potato chips to the breading. DO NOT skip this ingredient.

I've made this gluten-free chicken recipe for many people, and no one ever believes it is gluten-free fried chicken.

Ingredients

Okay, I am going to finally spill the beans on the ingredients to make the best gluten-free fried chicken that is not only delicious but extra crispy!

• Bone-in Chicken Pieces
• Buttermilk - See below for how to make this a dairy-free fried chicken.
• Pickle Juice
• 1:1 Gluten-free Flour - I use King Author 1:1 for this recipe.
• Corn Starch - You can also substitute with potato starch.
• Potato Chips - Use plain, salted potato chips. I like to use Kettle brand or plain Ruffles as both are gluten-free potato chips.
• Paprika
• Sage
• Celery Salt
• Onion Powder
• Garlic Powder
• Salt
• Pepper
• Oil fr frying

Fried Chicken Without Eggs

This gluten-free breaded chicken recipe does not use any eggs. While eggs are typically used for making a breading stick to chicken, the buttermilk marinade acts in its place. That makes this an egg-free fried chicken.

Can you make gluten-free chicken with an egg coating? You can, but you want to make sure you let the chicken really dry before frying. The extra moisture in the egg can make the breading harder to get crisp with the gluten-free flour.

Dairy-free Fried Chicken Recipe

This gluten-free fried chicken uses a twist on a traditional buttermilk marinade. However, if you want to make this a dairy-free chicken marinade, just swap the buttermilk for your dairy-free milk of choice and vinegar.

• This recipe calls for 3 cups of buttermilk, so use 3 cups of your dairy-free milk and 3 tablespoons of vinegar.
• You will want to let this mixture sit for at least 5 minutes to let it start to curdle a little bit before adding the rest of the chicken marinade ingredients.

I have found that coconut milk and apple cider vinegar make a good base to make this dairy-free fried chicken.

Steps

1. Marinade the chicken in the buttermilk brine.
2. Make the chicken breading.
3. Dredge the marinated chicken in the gluten-free breading.
4. Let the breading rest and dry on the chicken after dredging the chicken.
5. Fry the chicken.

The best gluten-free fried chicken is ready to be enjoyed!

Gluten-free Breading Tips

• Press the breading into the chicken - Do not shake off any excess breading. If you need to dunk the breaded chicken back into the marinade and then back into the breading to stick more, you can.
• Let the breading dry on the chicken - Allowing the breading to dry on the chicken before frying allows the breading to adhere to the chicken better and keeps the breading from falling off when you fry it.
• Do not overcrowd the pan when frying - Only frying a few pieces at a time helps to keep the chicken from bumping into each other, which can knock breading off. It also helps to keep the oil temperature more regulated, so the oil temperature does not drop, making the breading fall off the chicken.
• Be careful moving the chicken - Use togs and only touch one part of the chicken when moving it around. The more you touch the chicken, the easier the breading can fall off.
• Let the chicken rest on a cooling rack - Do NOT place the fried chicken pieces directly onto a flat surface to cool. The chicken will steam where it comes in contact, and the breading can get soft.

Gluten-free Fried Chicken FAQ

Fried Chicken for a Crowd

Absolutely, you can make this gluten-free fried chicken for a crowd. I do it all the time. One batch of this breading will coat about 12-15 pieces of chicken, depending on the size. I will often double the breading, and I can usually get about 30 pieces of fried chicken.

When you are making fried chicken for a crowd, I like to keep pieces warm in the oven as they come out of the hot oil. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and place a rack over a baking sheet. As the chicken comes out of the oil, transfer it to the rack in the oven. The heat will help keep the crust crispy until you are ready to eat.

Make Ahead

This gluten-free fried chicken is best served the day it is fried. However, there are a few ways you can prep this ahead of time.

• This chicken soaks in the buttermilk marinade for at least two hours. If you want to, you can make the chicken marinade the day ahead and let the chicken soak overnight. The flavors will be more developed in the chicken, with it soaking overnight.
• The gluten-free breading needs to dry on the chicken before frying. If I want to make this ahead of time, I will bread the chicken and place it on a cooling rack on a tray and place it in the fridge uncovered to dry. Then I will let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes while I get the oil hot before frying.

This can help you have the fried chicken ready on your time schedule. It's totally worth the wait.

Storing

This gluten-free fried chicken is best served the day it is fried. If you have leftovers, you can store them in the fridge for 2-3 days. The skin will lose some of its crispiness as it cools.

Reheating

• You can reheat fried chicken in the microwave, but you won't get the crispy skin that you had on it coming out of the oil.
• A better way to reheat fried chicken is to place it on a rack over a baking tray and bake the fried chicken at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes.
• The best way to reheat fried chicken is in the air-fryer. I don't recommend making fried chicken in the air fryer initially but reheating this fried chicken in the air fryer gets the crispiest crust that is the closest to coming right out of the hot oil.

Serving Suggestions

This gluten-free fried chicken recipe is delicious no matter how you serve it. My kids love it with a side of my gluten-free mac and cheese, and my husband loves it with my gluten-free loaded mashed potatoes and gluten-free country gravy.

I personally love something simple, like my gluten-free potato salad. You can also check out some of these gluten-free side dishes to serve.

📖 Recipe