So good and so easy, perhaps you won’t ever go back to the original version of chicken fire poppers. We’re not sure we will either.

At BCP, some people might say that we’ve been guilty of making a generation a bit lazier. After all, we can now all bake delicious cakes without taking out a mixer or making any dishes dirty. We don’t agree. We think we’re making it more accessible and possible to get home-cooked family-friendly meals on the table, especially on those time-pressed days when the task seems so overwhelming. This recipe is going to be one of those automatic go-to’s that everyone loves, doesn’t entail any dirty dishes, and can go from scratch to ready-to-eat within 20 minutes.
If you have a bigger family and need to double the recipe, you can prepare this on a lined baking sheet.

First, just combine all the ingredients except for the chicken directly in the pan.

Mix to combine,

then add the chicken and mix to coat well.

And. That. Is. All. That’s right. No breading. No plate with egg and plate with crumbs.

You can mix the sauce together while the chicken is baking.

We’re not sure if you will be able to bread poppers again after you’ve made these!
9×13 Poppers
Ingredients
- 1½ lbs chicken cutlets, cut into small bite size nuggets
- ⅓ cup breadcrumbs
- ⅓ cup cornflake or panko crumbs
- ⅓ cup oil
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- dash black pepper
Hot Maple Popper Sauce:
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tbsp hot sauce franks
- 1 tsp soy sauce
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F or 400°F on a convection oven.
- In a 9×13 pan, combine all ingredients except for the chicken. Add chicken and toss to coat directly in the pan. Make sure chicken is in one layer (if you are preparing more than 1½ lbs, you will need to do this on a baking sheet).
- Bake for 15 minutes. Toss lightly and bake an additional 5 minutes.
- Combine sauce ingredients. Serve alongside or toss with chicken before serving.


wow cant wait to try this!!
THIS! This is the best hack I learned from BCP. I make this
https://betweencarpools.com/chicken-nuggets-and-fries/
all the time without the fries (since they usually come out soggy and my kids don’t like them) and have since learned that most breaded chicken will work like this. I also make the pieces very small which makes it more appetizing for my kids. Thank you!
I’ve done that recipe in the Betty crocker constantly, fries were perfect!
Gonna try this recipe tonight! Thank you
Amazing recipe my whole family enjoyed and it was so easy to make!! Thank you!!
Made this for supper tonight, it was a hit!
I had a crowd so I did two 9x13s was amazing and super ez!
This is amazing!! Made it tonight and was delicious!
Will the consistency be good if i subsitute the bread crunbs for only Corn flake crumbs?
Won’t be as crispy but will work fine.
Can it be done in Betty Crocker?
Should work fine.
Thanks!
Did it for dinner. Was a hit!
I always avoid the poppers in Dinner done because of the breading of small chicken pieces – too annoying for me but this method is a game changer!! Made for supper last night and was devoured by all!
Mom friendly? Picky eater friendly?
Oops, pressed enter too fast! Mom friendly? Check, under 10 minutes and done! Picky eater friendly? YES, hot sauce optional! Whole family loved!
This recipe was in the evergreen booklet that came to my door. Got me through y”t season! Must’ve made them 10 times . Served as an extra main with meat .. so easy . Tysm bcp
This was a huge hit!!!
thanks so much!!
I will defiantly make it again and again!
Would this freeze well?? What would be the best method to reheat? Thanks!!
Freeze it raw, then bake to serve
Hi! Is this the same as the evergreen planner one? Bc that calls for 1/3 c breadcrumbs and this calls for 1 and 1/3 c breadcrumbs. I happen to have had tons of breadcrumbs extra in the pan when I made this version so I’m curious if it’s a typo
Looks awesome thx!
I’m not sure about the ‘lazier’ part in your intro……I’m managing to churn out food for soldiers, evacuees, friends in need and even my own family thanks to your amazing recipes. Your cookbook is permanently on my counter, I’m gonna need a new one soon! I’m cooking food almost every day for someone at the moment and literally would not manage without your awesome recipes.
I can’t thank you enough!!
I can’t wait to make this recipe tonight. I’m sure it’s going to be a hit like everything else I’ve tried.
This is an amazing hack. Love the mixing the chicken in the pan no separate plates!
The sauce is great as well. I subbed the maple syrup for honey since thats what I had on hand.
Kids loved it.
We all love your other poppers so I tried these. They were incredibly easy and delicious. I couldnt make enough!! thanks!!
So I just made these poppers tonight. This week the breading stayed on ! (I made the nuggets/fries combo last week and my crumbs didn’t stick.) However, we aren’t maple flavor fans so I used the “buff schnitz” sauce instead. Big hit! Thanks so much.
Update–big hit at my Chanuka party! Prepped in the morning, kept in fridge, put in oven at maoz tzur-and they were amazing! We had different sauces so all enjoyed. Everyone really liked that they weren’t oily! The texture, flavor , ease of preparation- this is definitely my recipe of the year.
These were a hit
Even more so than the individually breaded poppers! I used chicken cut into stir fry size instead of nuggets- I think they soak in even more flavor, and I’m also more sure that they cooked though well.
Thanks for an amazing recipe that enjoyed rave reviews. A few minutes prior to hosting a party for about 40 people, I was afraid there wasn’t enough good. I made 2 pans of this within 5 minutes and was enjoyed and got better feedback than the catered poppers we spent triple the price on:)
Genius hack! Life changing 50 schnitzel fingers done in 15min prep. Thank you for giving my life back !!
I’d love to try this! Can it be made in a regular oven? I dont have convection
sure! Bake it on 425F
These were delicious! I have a different super easy dinner I make – I put chicken nuggets in a ziplock with olive oil, I then dip them into crumbs, bake them the same way as the recipe above, but after 15 minutes I take them out and generously drizzle them with honey, then stick them back in for 5 minutes. I decided if the above recipe worked in one pan, why couldn’t I try it for my honey glazed chicken nuggets? So I did! (i took the same ratio oil, cornflake crumbs and breadcrumbs) now it’s not even super easy, it’s ridiculously easy!
Is the sauce hot n spicy?
Was so good and super easy to prepare. Definitely a keeper. Thank you!
i copied the basic idea last night. it was delicious and took about 3 min 🙂
cornflake crumbs, spices, and oil mixed together on a parchment-lined baking sheet. dredged whole dark chicken cutlets and spread them out.. baked at 375 for 25 min.
They were very popular. But there is so much oil in the recipe, that I almost feel guilty to serve them!
If the Baked Smokey Schnitzel recipe has only 3 Tbsp of oil to 1 cup of crumbs, then surely, this amount of oil is way too much?
To alleviate mom guilt, you can always tell yourself that it’s better than frying lol☺️
Thanks BCP for amazing recipes!
Kids favorite chicken,.it’s part of weekly menu. Thanks for the amazing recipe!
Looks amazing! Is there a way to freeez this for YT?
Can I substitute the maple syrup with honey instead?