Healthy COPYCAT Chick-fil-A W/ Raising Cane's Sauce

Yep, you read that right. In this recipe we’ll be making a healthy version of the Chick-Fil-A sandwich – and then smothering it in a copycat Raising Cane’s sauce; this is a copycat recipe, and so obviously there will be no MSG, and for this healthy version, we will be using a flax and ancient grains gluten-free flour mix for the breading, and will be semi “deep-frying” the chicken in a mixture of avocado oil and coconut oil. There is no need to deep-fry in this particular kind of oil; you may use peanut oil or another oil with a high smoking point.

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However, I do recommend using avocado oil for its health benefits, as avocado is high in omega-3 fatty acids, a healthy fat found rarely in our diets, but also present in fish. To make this recipe entirely gluten-free you may wish to substitute the flour buns for gluten-free ones; the only thing at risk here is the texture and taste.

The Raising Cane’s sauce is a rather simple burger sauce with a mayo-ketchup base and Worcestershire sauce and garlic powder as a couple of the additional ingredients.

Chicken breast size is crucial, so its important that you cut your chicken breasts to the desired size. In my case, the pieces I had came extra large, so I cut them horizontally in half, then in quarters to achieve the right proportions. Chick-Fil-A reportedly marinates their chicken breasts in pickle juice, so in this recipe, guess what we’re doing? That’s right, marinating in pickle juice. You definitely don’t want to marinate it for too long, however, since pickle juice is mainly acid, and will “cook” your chicken if left too long. So the marinade time is relatively short. You can obtain pickle juice from a jar of pickles. Enjoy, and be sure to check out my other recipes!

Step 1: Ingredients

Toppings: (pictured)

6 pairs hamburger buns

6 leaves romaine lettuce

1 beefsteak tomato

24 pickle slices

Chicken: (pictured)

3 whole chicken breasts (6 halves)

1 cup pickle juice

1 tablespoon sugar

¼ cup water

1 egg

½ cup milk

1 1/4 cups avocado oil

Breading: (not pictured)

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

1 teaspoon pepper

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon paprika

Raising Cane's Sauce: (not pictured)

1 cup mayonnaise

½ cup ketchup

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon garlic powder

Dash of salt

Dash of pepper

Step 2: Marinate the Chicken

Using a sharp knife, slice whole chicken breasts in half horizontally. If too large, cut in quarters.

Place chicken in a glass dish or ziploc bag with pickle juice, sugar, and water. Marinate for around 35 minutes.

Step 3: The Raising Cane's Sauce

While the chicken is marinating, make the Raising Cane’s Sauce by combining all the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and mixing until incorporated.

Place in the fridge in a sealed container until needed.

Step 4: Prep the Flour and Egg Mixture

In one bowl, mix egg and milk together, and in a second bowl, mix the breading ingredients together.

Step 5: Bread the Chicken

Drench chicken in milk mixture, then coat with the flour mixture.

For thicker crust, repeat this process on each piece of chicken.

Step 6: Fry the Chicken

Heat 1 ¼ cups avocado oil in a deep pot to about 350 degrees.

Shallow-fry (or deep fry, if you use more oil) the chicken breasts until golden brown, around five minutes.

Place on a paper towel to dry.

Step 7: Build the Sandwich

To build the sandwich, place lettuce and tomato on the bottom sandwich bun. Place fried chicken on top, followed by four pickles, and the Raising Cane’s Sauce.

Top with the last bun, and enjoy.