Crispy chicken tenders are a tasty snack or dinner any day of the week!
This chicken tenders recipe uses fresh chicken tenderloins or sliced breasts coated in seasoned breading and then pan-fried to crispy perfection!
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Love at First Crunch!
- Flavor: Lightly seasoned with a crunchy outside and tender chicken.
- Difficulty: These are easy to make but take a bit of time to prepare.
- Technique: Double dipping the chicken makes it extra crunchy – let the breading rest for a few minutes before frying if time allows.
- Important: Fry the tenders in small batches to keep the oil hot and avoid overcrowding. Salt immediately after removing from the oil.
- Prep tip: Place the bowls of flour and crumbs on a rimmed baking tray, it makes for easier cleanup.
- Serving suggestions: Dip and dunk them in your favorite sauce or dressing, or try the one honey garlic sauce in the notes (it’s so good!).
Ingredient Tips For Chicken Tenders
- Chicken: Use either chicken chicken tenderloins or boneless, skinless chicken breasts. If using frozen chicken, thaw and pat dry so the breading sticks well.
- Egg: The egg helps the crumbs stick to the chicken.
- Flour: Flour is the base of the coating, while the Panko crumbs add some extra crunch.
Variations: Switch up the seasoning and make a new recipe every time! Try a spicy adobo blend or a zesty Cajun.
Storage and Leftovers
- Keep leftover chicken tenders in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Enjoy cold in a wrap or slice them and top a green salad.
- Fried chicken can be frozen for up to 4 months.
- Reheat them in the air fryer or microwave them, then pop them under the broiler to get them crispy again.
More Ways to Cook Chicken Tenders
Did your family love these Chicken Tenders? Leave us a rating and a comment below.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds chicken tenderloins or boneless chicken breasts sliced into ½-inch strips
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup Panko bread crumbs
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon seasoned salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 3 large eggs more if needed
- 3 tablespoons water
- vegetable oil for frying
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, bread crumbs, and seasonings. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, water, and 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil.
- Dab the chicken tenders dry with a paper towel.
- Working with half of the flour mixture at a time, dip each piece of chicken in the egg mixture and then in the flour. Dip it into the egg a second time and then the flour again to double-coat it. Gently press the flour into the chicken. Shake off any excess. Place on a wire rack and repeat with the remaining chicken. If time allows, let the chicken rest for 10 minutes.
- In a large deep skillet, heat 1-inch of oil to 350°F. Fry chicken in small batches until crispy and the chicken reaches 165°F, about 2 to 3 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels and season with salt.
- Serve with honey garlic sauce or your favorite dips.
Video
Notes
- Flour Mixture: When working with the flour mixture, I find it helps to work with just half of the mixture at a time, to prevent the flour from getting clumped or wet.
- Chicken: If using boneless chicken breasts, slice them ½-inch thick.
- Honey Garlic Sauce for dipping or drizzling (optional): In a small saucepan, combine ½ cup honey, ⅓ cup water, ¼ cup soy sauce, 4 cloves minced garlic, 1 tablespoon minced ginger, ½ teaspoon chili flakes. Simmer uncovered for 15-20 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat and cool before serving.
- Nutrition will vary. Information provided is an estimate and includes 10% oil absorption and ⅔ of the breading mixture.
- Nutrition information does not include optional sauce.
- Keep leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or in the freezer for 3-4 months.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 340 | Carbohydrates: 36g | Protein: 32g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 166mg | Sodium: 399mg | Potassium: 525mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 334IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 38mg | Iron: 3mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Appetizer, Chicken, Dinner, Lunch
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Can you air fry these instead?
I haven’t tried it so I can’t say for sure Stacy, but that should work great! If you try it I would love to hear how it turns out!
Crunchy chicken with a sweet heat sauce…..what more is there?!
I absolutely loved this recipe! So very delicious…thank you for sharing this recipe with me!
You are so very welcome Dawn! So happy to hear that you loved the chicken tenders so much!
If I dont have fresh ginger can I use ground ginger for the sauce?
Hi Kera, I haven’t tried using ground ginger in this recipe but I would recommend substituting it with ¼ teaspoon of ground ginger and altering it to suit your taste as needed.
Awesome recipe!! I doubled the sauce & added a bit more chili flakes. We like things spicy in my house. Will definitely make again!!
Recipe states to preheat oven to 370. Why? Recipe does not call for using the oven.
The oil is preheated, not the oven.
It says to preheat the oil not the oven
love honey garlic chicken
Awesome!
I must be missing something. Why do we preheat the oven when the recipe calls for frying the chicken?
Hi Margo, the recipe calls for you to preheat the oil, not oven :)
It says to preheat the oil to 375°
I did the chicken in the air fryer. came out very good!
I made these for the family this past Sunday and they were a hit. My husband kept saying after every bite “these are so good, good choice for dinner.” Thank you for the amazing recipes, I feel that the sauce would be great over chicken wings too. Yum!
Can you use seasoned bread crumbs if you don’t have Panko bread crumbs ?
We haven’t tried this recipe with regular breadcrumb Nacida, but other readers have with great results! Let us know how it turns out!
Do you think this could be done in an air fryer?
We have not tried these in an air fryer Robyn but that sounds like a great idea! Definitely let us know how they turn out.
If I want to bake these chicken tenders, will they still tast the same as the recipe you have or do I have to change it slitly?
Hi Katherine, We have never tried this recipe baked but you may enjoy these baked Honey Garlic Chicken Wings, Crispy Baked Parmesan Chicken or Oven Fried Chicken!
Question, do you cover chicken with oil completely when frying, or fry in an inch or so and flip over or?
These are covered only partially. There is a video just above the ingredients list that may help.
All this food looks very delicious and healthy Would be nice if I had someone to come and help me cook it all
Nice!
Perfect and good
Thanks Doaa!
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I have Celiac Disease and can’t have gluten. I always have to adapt everything. Do you have any gluten free recipes?
We have a few gluten free recipes Bonnie, you can find them here:
https://www.spendwithpennies.com/?s=gluten+free
You could use the same spices but use either Gluten Free flour mix, cornstarch or potato starch. Otherwise just follow the recipe☺️