This Baked Chicken Tenders recipe is the perfect way to enjoy that fried chicken taste without all the fat! They’re baked to perfection with a crispy crust and the perfect blend of herbs and spices, and only about 400 calories per serving!
Estimated reading time: 9 minutes
Here at The Busy Baker, one of our favourite things to do in the kitchen is to make easier and healthier versions of our favourite recipes. This Baked Chicken Tenders recipe is one of our family’s favourite comfort food recipes because it’s packed with delicious herbs and spices (read: FLAVOUR!) and it’s made with minimal fat, especially when you compare it to anything deep fried!
We love a good serving of crispy chicken tenders with some homemade potato wedges and homemade coleslaw, and if you’re looking to recreate restaurant-quality chicken tenders at home with that classic fried chicken taste and a healthier twist, you’re going to LOVE this Baked Chicken Tenders recipe!
Chicken tenders are a popular cut of chicken, located underneath the breast meat, attached to the underside of the chicken breast. This part of the chicken is considered tender – hence the name – because it is a muscle that’s rarely used by the chicken, resulting in a more tender texture than other cuts of chicken like thighs or breasts.
Chicken tenders are known for their soft texture and mild flavour. They are less fibrous than other cuts, making them a favourite, especially among children. They’re versatile and easy to cook, and they’re delicious in stir fries, on salads, in wraps, and made into breaded chicken tenders.
Chicken tenders are a good source of lean protein and they’re lower in fat and calories compared to darker cuts of chicken like thighs or wings.
If you’ve never made from-scratch chicken tenders before, this easy recipe is a great one to start with! Here’s a list of our best Pro Tips and Tricks to help you achieve the crispiest and most delicious result!
The best kind of pan for this recipe is a dark, non-stick pan. Using a dark pan will help the tenders crisp up a lot more than using a light-coloured pan.
We hate washing pans as much as the next person but you’ll get the crispiest result if you bake them right on the pan without parchment paper. Because you’re baking them with butter they won’t stick to the pan, and baking them right on the pan will cause them to become more crispy than if you bake them on parchment paper.
If you start with a hot pan they’ll will turn out extra crispy. Be sure to preheat the pan while you coat the chicken and prepare it for baking.
If you try to coat and bake frozen chicken tenders, they’ll release a lot of water as they bake and you’ll end up with a soggy mess. Be sure they’re fresh, or if you’ve got chicken in your freezer be sure to defrost it well and pat it dry before using them in this recipe.
Dipping the chicken tenders in beaten egg and then in the flour and panko mixture creates an ultra crispy coating, so don’t skip this step!
You might be tempted to use cooking spray, coconut oil, or vegetable oil in place of butter in this recipe, but we wouldn’t recommend it. Butter creates the crispiest coating that’s not too dry and crunchy but as close to a deep fried texture as possible.
Add some melted butter to the hot pan before you add the coated chicken tenders. This will prevent any sticking and help the tenders crisp up on the bottom.
Brush or drizzle the rest of the butter on top of the chicken tenders before you pop them in the oven.
Halfway through cooking, flip the chicken tenders so they brown and crisp up on both sides and cook evenly all the way through.
Having trouble with your baked chicken tenders? Here are some common issues you might encounter and how to fix them:
If your chicken tenders are pale, dry, and crusty instead of crispy, it means they weren’t brushed properly with butter. When the butter combines with the coating it creates a crispiness that’s not dry but resembles a deep-fried coating. To fix it, brush on a little more butter for the last few minutes of baking.
If the chicken fingers are soggy, it’s because they may have been frozen or partially frozen, or your oven isn’t hot enough. Be sure to check your oven temperature and be sure it’s hot enough so the chicken tenders crisp up nicely.
If they brown more than they should, check your oven temperature and reduce it. Be sure the chicken tenders are cooked through to an internal temperature of 74 degrees Celsius or 165 Fahrenheit, even if they look like they’re done on the outside.
Here’s a list of the basic kitchen equipment you’ll need when you’re baking chicken tenders (paid links):
- a Baking Sheet
- a few mixing bowls
- a pair of Tongs
- a large knife
- a Cutting Board
- measuring cups and spoons
Here’s a list of the ingredients you’ll need to make this baked chicken tenders recipe (paid links):
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 2 1/2 teaspoons seasoning salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
- 24 chicken tenders OR cut 4 large chicken breasts into thin strips (about 1-inch wide)
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 6 tablespoons butter melted
We love serving this recipe with some homemade coleslaw and our favourite potato wedges, but here’s a list of more delicious dishes we’d recommend serving alongside this recipe:
- Easy Potato Salad
- Best Mashed Potatoes
- Air Fryer Baked Potatoes
- Easy Caesar Salad
- Olive Garden Salad
- Air Fryer Green Beans
- Air Fryer Baked Sweet Potato
- Roasted Potatoes and Carrots
Time needed: 35 minutes
Follow these tips for the perfect crispy chicken tenders!
- Preheat the pan.
Preheat your sheet pan and pre-melt the butter! Preheating your sheet pan will encourage that extra crispy crust because the chicken will begin to caramelize as soon as it hits the hot pan and that hot butter.
- Bake in a hot oven.
Make sure your oven is nice and hot! Bake this chicken at 425 degrees Fahrenheit which cooks it quickly and keeps the meat inside nice and juicy while the outside develops that crispy crust.
- Be generous with the spices and seasonings!
The intense savoury flavour of this chicken is one of the best things about this recipe.
- Use fresh chicken tenders, not frozen.
The fresher the meat, the more juicy and tender it will be.
- Use real butter.
Butter helps create the perfect crispy crust – don’t skip it!
How long does it take to bake chicken tenders at 425 degrees?
Baking chicken tenders at 425 degrees Fahrenheit takes about 20 minutes.
What’s the best temperature to bake chicken tenders at?
We recommend baking them at 425 so the insides stay juicy and the outside gets crispy.
Why aren’t my chicken tenders crispy?
Baking them in a hot oven is necessary to make them crispy. Be sure they’re fresh, not frozen, and use some butter to up the crispiness too.
How many calories in baked chicken tenders?
There are just under 110 calories per piece, or about 430 calories in a 4-piece serving.
To get breadcrumbs to stick, make sure to fully dip the chicken tenders in beaten egg before then coating them with breadcrumb mixture. This will help the crispy coating stick.
We hope you like this recipe as much as we do! Let me know in the comments below, what’s your favourite side dish to enjoy with fried chicken? I’d love to know!!
More Chicken Recipes
Watch the video below to see exactly how we make this recipe. You can find many more deliciously simple recipe videos on our YouTube channel!
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Baked Chicken Tenders
Recipe: Ingredients
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 2 1/2 teaspoons seasoning salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
- 24 chicken tenders OR cut 4 large chicken breasts into thin strips (about 1-inch wide)
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 6 tablespoons butter melted
Recipe: Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 220 degrees Celsius (425 degrees Fahrenheit) and set aside a non-stick baking sheet.
- In a large bowl or plastic Ziploc bag, add the flour, breadcrumbs, paprika, seasoning salt, pepper, garlic powder, chili powder, and cayenne pepper. Toss or stir well to combine.
- In a bowl, whisk the eggs, salt and garlic powder.
- Add the chicken strips to the egg mixture and mix until evenly coated.
- Add chicken pieces one by one to the flour mixture and toss very well to coat, in the bag or in the bowl with a pair of tongs.
- Brush about half the butter on the baking sheet and add the chicken tenders in a single layer.
- Brush the rest of the melted butter on the tenders. Bake at 220 degrees Celsius (425 degrees Fahrenheit) for 10 minutes.
- Flip the chicken strips.
- Bake for another 5-7 minutes, or until both sides are crispy and the chicken tenders are cooked through to 74 degrees Celsius or 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Serve immediately.
Recipe: Notes
Storage Instructions
These chicken tenders keep well in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 days.Air Fryer Instructions
To make these tenders in an Air Fryer, follow the same instructions to make the tenders and air fry at 200 degrees Celsius (400 degrees Fahrenheit) for 4 min, flip and air fry for another 3-4 more minutes, brushing them with butter as recommended in the recipe. .Reheating Instructions
We recommend reheating these chicken tenders in a toaster oven, the oven, or an air fryer so they stay crispy when reheated. Reheat until heated through.Recipe: Nutrition
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
*This recipe was originally adapted from my friend Ashley’s recipe
This was totally amazing. Our family enjoyed it a lot, including my son who refuses to eat chicken for a while now, but he couldn’t resist these delicious chicken nuggets! Yummy! Favourite now!
So glad you enjoyed it as much as we do!! 🙂
Just made tonight for dinner.. love!!
Thanks! Glad you loved it!
How many strips are in a serving?
Hello Elva! Thank you so much for asking. It’s about 5 strips per serving or the equivalent of one breast.
Really good! Only thing I would change next time – needed more salt (for me) and I used panko and it didn’t stick as well as breadcrumbs probably will – so wasn’t crispy – but still delicious and great texture.
Thank you!!😊Yes we like our chicken tenders crispier too. Glad they turned out delicious!!
I made these Oven Fried Chicken Tenders for dinner and my husband loved them!!! They were not dry and were very flavorful and so much better than I expected! I will be making this recipe again and am so glad I found this on your website!! Even though its just 2 adults Im cooking for now, this is a dinner I will be making more. We had sweet corn and broccoli as our sides. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for the feedback Miranda!!🙂
Hello,
Can these be frozen and if made in advanced how long should they be cooked before frozen
I wouldn’t recommend this as the breading might become soggy.
Are you able to substitute the all purpose flour for any other flours?
I recommend you follow the recipe as is written for best results but if you have an alternative flour that performs similarly to all purpose flour, you could try. Happy cooking! ☺️
My husband and daughter enjoyed these for dinner. When I first coated the strips, most of the coating did not adhere. I took them out of the bag with the coating, sprayed them with cooking spray and returned them to the bag. More coating adhered, but there was still a lot left in the bag. I wonder about an egg wash before the coating to make the chicken stickier. Flavours are wonderful, though. Thanks for the recipe!
You’re welcome Vivian! Thanks for your feedback!😊
Do you really mean that a serving has over 400,000 calories? Maybe it should be 488 cal instead of kcal?
Hi Nathalie!🙂 To ease calculations, energy is expressed in 1000-calorie units known as kilocalories. That is, 1 Calorie is equivalent to 1 kilocalorie. Hope that is helpful!☺️
These tenders come out so flakey and chewy, very delicious!!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment! 🙂
Could you use chicken breast tenderloins or would I need to adjust the cooking time? Or would you cut the tenderloins in half or something?
Yes, you can use chicken tenderloins. You need to make 1 inch wide strips out of them. Happy cooking!
What do you mean by “coarse bread crumbs”??? Hope to hear back from you. I am excited to try this soon.
Breadcrumbs that are not very fine, like panko or homemade breadcrumbs (dried bread that you put in your food processor)
What is the butter for is that a must ? Just wondered if I can use something more healthy
The melted butter makes the chicken tenders crisp up. For a low calorie alternative I like to use a couple of sprays of ghee or avocado oil instead.
These were very good. So easy and Quick to make.
We’re so happy to hear that! Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback.