THE MOST TRUSTED COPYCAT RECIPES
THE MOST TRUSTED COPYCAT RECIPES
Carl's Jr. Bacon Swiss Crispy Chicken Sandwich copycat recipe by Todd Wilbur

Carl's Jr. Bacon Swiss Crispy Chicken Sandwich

Score: 5.00 (votes: 1)
Reviews: 1
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If you love crispy chicken sandwiches—and especially if you don't live in the West, where this chain is located—you'll want to try out this clone of the tasty Carl's Jr. creation. 

My Carl's Jr. Bacon Swiss Crispy Chicken Sandwich recipe below makes four of the addicting chicken sandwiches from the California-based fast-food chain, but will also come in handy for making a delicious homemade ranch dressing. Try using some lean turkey bacon, fat-free Swiss cheese, and fat-free mayonnaise if you feel like cutting back on the fat.

Find more of my copycat Carl's Jr. recipes here.

Source: Even More Top Secret Recipes by Todd Wilbur.

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_main
  • 6 to 8 cups vegetable shortening
  •   
Ranch Dressing
  • 1/3 cup mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons sour cream
  • 1 tablespoon buttermilk
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons white vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon parsley
  • 1/8 teaspoon onion powder
  • Pinch dill weed
  • Pinch garlic powder
  • Pinch ground black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons hot water
  • 1/2 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
_main
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
  •   
  • 4 chicken breast fillets
  • 4 sesame seed hamburger buns
  • 4 iceberg lettuce leaves
  • 4 tomato slices
  • Kraft Swiss cheese Singles
  • 8 slices bacon, cooked
Do This

1. Preheat 6 to 8 cups of shortening in a deep fryer to 350 degrees F. If you don't have a deep fryer, you can also pan fry using a large frying pan and just a couple cups of shortening.

2. To prepare the ranch dressing, combine all of the ingredients except the water and gelatin in small bowl. Mix the water with the gelatin in a small cup until all of the gelatin is dissolved. Add this gelatin solution to the other ingredients and stir. Cover and chill the dressing until it's needed.

3. Beat the egg and then combine it with 1 cup water in a small, shallow bowl. Stir.

>4. Combine the flour, salt, paprika, onion powder and garlic powder in another shallow bowl.

5. Pound each of the chicken breasts with a mallet until about 1/4-inch thick. Trim each breast fillet until it is round.

6. Working with one fillet at a time, first coat each fillet with the flour, then dredge it in the egg and water mixture. Coat the chicken once again in the flour and set it aside until all of the fillets have been coated.

7. Fry the chicken fillets for 8 to 12 minutes or until light brown and crispy.

8. As chicken is frying, prepare each sandwich by grilling the face of the hamburger buns on a hot skillet over medium heat. Spread about 1 1/2 teaspoons of the ranch dressing on the face of the top and bottom buns.

9. On the bottom bun, stack a leaf of lettuce and a tomato slice.

>10. When the chicken is done frying, remove the fillets from the fryer and drain them on paper towels or a rack for a couple minutes.

11. Stack one fillet on the bottom of the sandwich (on top of the tomato), then stack a slice of the Swiss cheese onto the chicken. 

12. Arrange the bacon, crosswise, on top of the Swiss cheese, then top off the sandwich with the top bun. Repeat the stacking process for each of the remaining sandwiches.

>Makes 4 sandwiches.

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Reviews
Lisa
Jan 9, 2007, 22:00
Oh yes, very very good!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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    Exclusive signed copy. After 10 years of research in the Top Secret Lab, America's Clone Ranger emerges with his highly anticipated follow-up to the best-selling Top Secret Restaurant Recipes cookbook.

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    California Pizza Kitchen Thai Crunch Salad
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  • Score: 5.00 (votes: 11)
    Lawry's Taco Spices and Seasonings

    This is my clone recipe for the stuff you buy in 1-ounce packets to create, as the package says, "a fun-filled Mexican fiesta in minutes." Ah, so true. In fact, thanks to Lawry's, my last Mexican fiesta was filled with so much fun that I had to take a siesta. And I promise you just as much fun with my Lawry's Taco Spices and Seasonings recipe below. Maybe even a tad more. Just mix the ingredients together in a small bowl, then add it to 1 pound of browned ground beef along with some water and let it simmer. Before you know it, you'll be up to your nostrils in good old-fashioned, taco-making fun.

    Now, how about a cold margarita? 

    Source: Even More Top Secret Recipes by Todd Wilbur.

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  • Score: 5.00 (votes: 5)
    Carnegie Deli Classic New York Cheesecake

    Carnegie Deli's huge pastrami sandwiches were selected as the best in New York by New York Magazine in 1975, but it's the cheesecakes, which can be shipped anywhere in the country, that really put this famous deli on the map. 

    The secret to my Carnegie Deli traditional New York cheesecake recipe is creating the perfect not-too-sweet sugar cookie crust and varying the baking temperature so that you get a nicely browned top before cooking the cheesecake through. Get ready for the best deli-style cheesecake to ever come out of your oven.

    Find more famous dessert recipes here.

    Source: Top Secret Recipes Unlocked by Todd Wilbur.

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  • Score: 5.00 (votes: 5)
    Schilling Salad Supreme Seasoning

    This orange-colored spice blend has been perking up salads, pasta, potatoes, hamburgers, and vegetables for years now, but there has never been a Shilling Salad Supreme recipe. Time to change that. While it's obvious that sesame seeds are a major part of this blend, you may not know that the main ingredient is Romano cheese—in the bottle it's tinted orange by the paprika. Be sure to store this one in the refrigerator. You might even want to keep the seasoning in an empty shaker-top spice bottle. And if you're in the mood for some tasty pasta salad, just check out the Tidbit below that comes right off the bottle of the original product.

    Click here for more famous seasoning recipes.

    Source: Even More Top Secret Recipes by Todd Wilbur.

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  • Score: 4.55 (votes: 44)
    Girl Scout Cookies Thin Mints

    If those cute little cookie peddlers aren't posted outside the market, it may be tough to get your hands on these thin mint cookies—the most popular cookies sold by the Girl Scouts every spring. One out of every four boxes of cookies sold by the girls is Thin Mints. 

    My Girl Scout cookie thin mint copycat recipe uses an improved version of the chocolate wafers created for my Oreo cookie clone in the second TSR book, More Top Secret Recipes. That recipe creates 108 cookie wafers, so when you're done dipping, you'll have the equivalent of three boxes of the Girl Scout Cookies favorite. That's why you bought those extra cookie sheets, right? You could, of course, reduce this recipe by baking only one-third of the cookie dough for the wafers and then reducing the coating ingredients by one-third, giving you a total of 36 cookies. But that may not be enough to last you until next spring.

    Click here for more of your favorite Girl Scout Cookies

    Source: Even More Top Secret Recipes by Todd Wilbur.

    Update 11/16/17: You can make an even better clone using a chocolate product that wasn't available when I created this recipe. Rather than using the semi-sweet chocolate chips combined with shortening and peppermint for coating the cookies, use Ghirardelli Dark Melting Wafers. You will need 2 10-ounce bags of the chips, mixed with 1/2 teaspoon of peppermint extract (and no shortening). Melt the chocolate the same way, and dip the cookies as instructed.

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  • Score: 3.67 (votes: 3)
    Papa John's Dipping Sauces

    John Shnatter was only 23 years old when he used $1600 in start-up money to buy a pizza oven and have it installed in the broom closet of an Indiana tavern. John started delivering his hot, fresh pizzas, and in 1984, the first year of his business, he was selling 300 to 400 pizzas a week. 

    John keeps the Papa John's menu simple. You won't find salad or subs or chicken wings on his menu. The company just sells pizza, with side orders of breadsticks and cheeseticks made from the same pizza dough recipe. With each order of breadsticks or cheesesticks comes your choice of dipping sauces. I've got clones for all three of those tasty sauces—Special Garlic, Cheese, and Pizza. You can make your own breaksticks by making your favorite pizza dough, and slicing it into sticks. If you want cheesesticks, brush some of the Garlic Sauce on the dough, then sprinkle it with mozzarella cheese and bake. Slice the baked dough into sticks and use the dipping sauce of your choice. 

    Source: Even More Top Secret Recipes by Todd Wilbur.

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  • Score: 4.30 (votes: 10)
    Jack in the Box Taco

    Older than both McDonald's and Burger King, Jack in the Box is the world's fifth-largest hamburger chain, with 1,089 outlets by the end of 1991 in thirteen states throughout the West and Southwest. The restaurant, headquartered in San Diego, boasts one of the largest menus in the fast food world.

    The Jack in the Box Taco has been served since the inception of the chain, with very few changes over the years. I've duplicated this classic here in my Jack In the Box taco recipe below for you to enjoy anytime.

    If you're a fan of Jack in the Box Jumbo Jack or any of Jack's Shakes click here for my clone recipes.

    Source: Top Secret Recipes by Todd Wilbur.

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  • Score: 4.83 (votes: 6)
    Long John Silver's Batter-Dipped Fish

    Jerrico, Inc., the parent company for Long John Silver's Seafood Shoppes, got its start in 1929 as a six-stool hamburger stand called the White Tavern Shoppe. Jerrico was started by a man named Jerome Lederer, who watched Long John Silver's thirteen units dwindle in the shadow of World War II to just three units. Then, with determination, he began rebuilding. In 1946 Jerome launched a new restaurant called Jerry's and it was a booming success, with growth across the country. Then he took a chance on what would be his most successful venture in 1969, with the opening of the first Long John Silver's Fish 'n Chips. The name was inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island. In 1991 there were 1,450 Long John Silver Seafood Shoppes in thirty-seven states, Canada, and Singapore, with annual sales of more than $781 million. That means the company holds about 65 percent of the $1.2 billion quick-service seafood business.

    These days, it seems there are less and less Long John Silver restaurants. Good thing you can follow my Long John Silver's Batter-Dipped Fish copycat recipe below and enjoy that same great flavor at home. 

    Make my Islands French Fries copycat recipe for the classic fish 'n chips experience.

    Source: Top Secret Recipes by Todd Wilbur.

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  • Score: 4.88 (votes: 8)
    Applebee's Almond Rice Pilaf

    You're grilling some steaks or baking some chicken and don't know what to serve on the side? Try out this simple clone for a dish that's served along with several of Applebee's entrees. Since the recipe requires converted rice because instant rice is gross, you have to plan ahead about 25 minutes to give the rice time to cook. It's worth the wait. The secret to an authentic, great-tasting rice pilaf is sauteing the uncooked rice kernels in butter first, before adding the liquid—in this case chicken broth. Then, as the rice is cooking, you have plenty of time to saute the almonds, celery, and onions that are tossed into the rice at the end.

    Want some more of my Applebee's recipes? I've got a bunch right here.

    Source: Top Secret Restaurant Recipes 2 by Todd Wilbur.

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I'm Todd Wilbur, Chronic Food Hacker

For over 30 years I've been deconstructing America's most iconic brand-name foods to make the best original copycat recipes for you to use at home. Welcome to my lab.

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