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Honey Butter Chicken Biscuit.
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Honey Butter Chicken Biscuit

This Honey Butter Chicken Biscuit Recipe will blow your mind! Juicy, perfectly seasoned chicken thighs get fried to crispy perfection, and are served with fluffy, tender buttermilk biscuits with flaky layers. Finish it all off with plenty of warm honey butter for an incredible biscuit sandwich, perfect for both breakfast and dinner!
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time1 hour
Marinating & resting time for chicken & biscuits2 hours
Total Time3 hours 30 minutes
Course: Breakfast, Main Course
Cuisine: American, Southern
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 1096kcal
Author: Briana

Equipment

Ingredients

Chicken Marinade

  • 1.5 cups buttermilk
  • 2 tablespoons hot sauce of choice
  • 2.5 teaspoons kosher salt
  • ½ tablespoon onion powder
  • ½ tablespoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • ½ teaspoon mustard powder optional
  • ½ teaspoon celery seed optional
  • 6 chicken thighs about 1 -1.5 pounds of chicken

Chicken dredge

  • 2 cups all purpose flour 240g
  • ½ cup cornstarch
  • 2 tablespoons kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon onion powder
  • 1 tablespoon garlic powder
  • 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
  • 2 teaspoons black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 teaspoon ground mustard optional
  • ½ teaspoon celery seed optional
  • vegetable oil for frying enough oil for it to be about 1.5-inches-2-inches deep, will depend on the pot you're using to fry

Buttermilk Biscuits

Honey butter (divided)

  • 10 tablespoons salted butter
  • 5 tablespoons honey

Instructions

Chicken marinade

  • Pat the chicken thighs dry with paper towels. Place the chicken thighs in a bowl, then cover with the dry seasonings, followed by the buttermilk and hot sauce. Mix to coat thoroughly. Cover with plastic wrap and transfer to the fridge, allowing the mixture to marinate for at least 30 minutes, preferably 4-8 hours.
    1.5 cups buttermilk, 2 tablespoons hot sauce of choice, 2.5 teaspoons kosher salt, ½ tablespoon onion powder, ½ tablespoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon smoked paprika, 1 teaspoon black pepper, ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper, ½ teaspoon mustard powder, 6 chicken thighs, ½ teaspoon celery seed

Chicken dredge

  • On a shallow plate or baking sheet, combine flour, cornstarch, salt, and seasonings to make a dredge for the chicken. 
    2 cups all purpose flour , ½ cup cornstarch, 2 tablespoons kosher salt, 1 tablespoon onion powder, 1 tablespoon garlic powder, 2 teaspoons smoked paprika, 2 teaspoons black pepper, 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1 teaspoon ground mustard, ½ teaspoon celery seed
  • Remove the chicken from the marinade, and shake off the excess marinade. You can shake some of the marinade into the dredge, as those will create delicious, craggly, crunchy fried bits on the chicken. Coat the chicken very well, in every nook and cranny, then shake the thighs off very hard to get rid of excess flour.
  • Transfer them to a cooling rack on top of a baking sheet to rest for about 20 minutes. (You can rest them in the fridge, uncovered for up to 24 hours if you'd like to do this ahead!)
  • Meanwhile, while the chicken is resting, heat oil in a skillet or Dutch oven over medium-heat and use a thermometer to monitor the temperature of the oil. You're aiming for 350-360°F.
    vegetable oil for frying

Frying the chicken

  • After the chicken has rested and the oil has reached between 350-360°F, place two thighs at a time in the hot oil. Don't overcrowd the pan! Fry until crispy and golden brown, about 7-10 minutes or when the internal temperature of the chicken reaches at least 165°F internally, preferably 195°F for chicken thighs! (Chicken thighs should be cooked to a higher temperature to break down the extra collagen in them, which will result in a juicier piece of meat!)
  • Continue frying the chicken until all pieces are cooked through, making sure to allow a consistent temperature to the oil while working. When the chicken is done frying, transfer it directly to a clean baking sheet with a cooling rack on top to allow the extra grease to drip off the chicken.

Make the buttermilk biscuits

  • Simultaneously, while working on marinating, dredging, and frying the chicken, make the biscuits. In a mixing bowl, add the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Whisk to combine, then scatter around chunks of butter into the flour mixture. 
    2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour , 2 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon baking powder, 1.5 teaspoons kosher salt, ½ teaspoon baking soda, 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • Using a pastry butter or your fingers, work the butter into the flour mixture, until all of the butter is roughly the size of a pea or almond and the mixture looks a little sand-like. Don't overwork the mixture! Chunks of butter are good, and they will help the biscuits rise in the oven and become fluffy. 
  • Pour in the buttermilk, and using a rubber spatula, stir until a shaggy mixture is achieved. It will be quite sticky. It won't come together all the way on its own yet -- that's okay, trust the process!
    ¾ cup buttermilk
  • Cover a work surface with more flour, then scoop the dough out of the bowl and onto the work surface. Press and pat the dough together gently until it is a rectangular shape. 
    ¼-1/2 cup all purpose flour
  • Fold the right side of the rectangle over the left side using your hands or a bench scraper. Press gently together, it will be shaggy and messy still. Pat into a rectangle again, and turn the dough 90° before pressing it out into a rectangle shape again, and folding it in half once again. Fold the top half down to the bottom and press it out into a horizontal rectangle again. 
  • Repeat the steps above 2 more times for a total of 6 folds. Work carefully and don't overwork the dough. Creating folds is what makes layers in the biscuits.
  • After 6 folds, gently pat the dough into a rectangle/square-shape that is about ¾-inch thick. Use a sharp circle biscuit cutter, or a bench scraper or sharp knife to create rectangular-shape biscuits. Press down through the dough quickly, then lift up. Don't twist the biscuit cutter or move it around, or you will seal the edges of the biscuits, and this will prevent it from rising properly. Just push down, then pull straight up. You will have 6-large biscuits.
  • Place the biscuits on a parchment lined baking sheet, giving them a bit of space to rise. Transfer them to the freezer for at least 30-minutes before baking, and preheat the oven to 400°F. The biscuits can be kept in the freezer in an airtight container for up to 3 months if you'd like to make them in advance and bake them on the day of.

Honey butter

  • Place butter and honey in a bowl. Melt, and then whisk to combine until smooth.
    10 tablespoons salted butter, 5 tablespoons honey

Bake the biscuits

  • Brush the tops of the biscuits with some of the honey butter, reserving most of it for serving later. Take extra care to only brush the TOPS of the biscuits with honey butter before baking, and make sure it doesn't drip down the sides. If the honey butter drips down the sides before baking, it can prevent the biscuits from rising properly. Place in a 400°F oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, until the biscuits are tall, fluffy, and golden brown. 

Assemble and serve

  • To serve, cut the biscuits in half, and brush the insides and the top of the biscuits with warm honey butter. Serve with more honey if you'd like! Enjoy!
  • Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4-5 days. Reheat in the air fryer or oven at 300°F until warmed through.

Notes

    • Keep the butter and buttermilk COLD for the biscuits. This is probably our top tip, every time! Room temperature ingredients will not work for this recipe, and it's very important that they are kept super cold. The cold butter helps expand the biscuits in the oven, when the water escapes from the butter, which makes the biscuits fluffy and tall.
    • ​Marinate the chicken for as long as possible. You can marinate the chicken for up to 48 hours before frying! (Don't go longer than 48 hours, though or the chicken will become mushy). The longer it sits in the marinade, the better, as the marinade makes the chicken juicy and the seasonings help it become super flavorful.
    • Don't overwork the biscuits. You want to be very gentle when working the biscuit dough to ensure you end up with fluffy, tender biscuits instead of tough, dense ones!
    • Chill the biscuits before baking. Again, the colder the butter, the better, for tall, fluffy biscuits with pretty layers! We like to keep ours in the freezer just up until it's time to bake.
    • Shake off the excess dredge from the chicken. After ensuring the dredge gets in every nook and cranny of the chicken, shake it off very well to ensure there is no extra before resting the chicken. Extra flour will just fall off in the oil. It can also prevent the breading from sticking to the meat.
    • Let the chicken rest after dredging. This is another important tip to keep the breading sticking to the meat. Allow the breading to rest on the chicken for at least 20 minutes, but up to 24 hours before frying the chicken. Keep it in the fridge, uncovered, while it rests.
    • Don't overcrowd the frying skillet. For an even fry on your chicken, fry it in batches, about 2 thighs at a time. If you add too much chicken to the oil at once, it will drop the temperature too much, which will make your chicken greasy.
    • Monitor the frying temperature. Keep a consistent temperature to the oil to make sure the chicken doesn't burn or get too greasy. Using a thermometer really helps!

Nutrition

Calories: 1096kcal | Carbohydrates: 114g | Protein: 32g | Fat: 57g | Saturated Fat: 29g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 18g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 211mg | Sodium: 4635mg | Potassium: 576mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 28g | Vitamin A: 2000IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 281mg | Iron: 6mg