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    🏠Home » Recipes » Chicken Recipes

    Grilled Chicken Tenders

    Jun 29, 2019 | Last Updated Aug 18, 2021 by Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan

    Recipe Table of Contents    
    4.24 from 55 votes

    Grill up these easy moist and chicken tenders for the kids or the kid in you. Ultra simple with these easy to follow step by step photo instructions.

    Grilled chicken tenders on a white plate

    Table of Contents
    • 🐓The Chicken
    • ♨️The Grill
    • 👨‍🍳The Technique
    • 📖Kid-Friendly Chicken Recipes
    • 🖼️Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
    • 📖Recipe
    • 💬 Comments

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    Introduction

    Do you have one of "those" kids? You know, the one who won't eat what you cook and you end up doing something separate and almost always unhealthy.

    This is the solution — minimal work, time, and guaranteed to calm that 3-year-old dinner monster. You have steak, and they have healthy chicken tenders.

    My Rating

    My rating system of a 4 out of 5 so very nice.

    A solid 4 for the adult but a 5 for little ones.

    🐓The Chicken

    Chicken tenders are the chicken equivalent of a beef or pork tenderloin. So moist and tender if done right.

    I like to cut the tendon that is attached to the meat off. You can't chew it, and the kids tend not to like it there.

    You can also cut strips of chicken breasts to do this if you want, but they will cook a bit slower. But you are cooking to a final internal temperature anyway so it will be fine.

    ♨️The Grill

    You want a grill surface temperature of about 450°. With tenders, a little under is much better than a little over on the temperature.

    On my grill that is about medium or slightly more. On most gas grills, it will be medium-high.

    A grill surface thermometer will help you a lot to be a better griller. Please see A Beginners Guide to Grill Temperature on a Gas Grill.

    This can be done easily on a charcoal grill but not directly over the coals.

    👨‍🍳The Technique

    Coat with a little olive oil. Then some salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste. Put over medium heat for 4-5 minutes flip once, and you're done in another 4-5 minutes. Make that about 12 minutes total time.

    Give them a little sauce to dip like some ranch dressing or BBQ, and they will be in kiddy heaven.

    📖Kid-Friendly Chicken Recipes

    Oven Baked Chicken Legs: The Art of Drummies

    Grilled Chicken Drumsticks: The Art of Drummies

    Healthy Baked Chicken Nuggets

    Spicy Baked Chicken Strips

    This recipe is listed in these categories. See them for more similar recipes.

    Chicken Recipes, Grill Recipes
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    🖼️Step-by-Step Photo Instructions

    Clean and oil grill grates

    Preheat grill to a surface temperature of about 450° which is medium-high on most gas grills and medium on a hot gas grill. Clean and oil the grill surface well.

    trimming the tendon off the tenderloin

    Pat dry the chicken tenders. Trim the tendon as much as is easy to cut.

    adding oil to raw chicken tenders in metal bowl

    In a mixing bowl, mix 6 tenders with olive oil, kosher salt, pepper, and granular garlic powder (optional). Adjust spices and oil according to the number of tenders and your taste.

    placing chicken tenders on a grill

    Place over direct heat.

    edge of tender turning white

    Grill until the chicken turns from a pink color to white along the edge (about 5 minutes). You will see the white moving up the sides. Flip and grill another approximate 4-5 minutes until internal temperature is 165°. Time will vary with the size and thickness of the tender and your exact grill temperature.

    chicken tenders on plate
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    📖Recipe

    Grilled chicken tenders on a white plate

    Grilled Chicken Tenders

    From Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
    Grill up these easy moist and tender fingers for the kids or the kid in you.
    Tap to leave a Rating
    4.24 from 55 votes
    Print Email CollectionCollected
    Prep Time: 2 minutes
    Cook Time: 10 minutes
    Total Time: 12 minutes
    Servings #/Adjust if desired 6 tenders

    Ingredients

    US Customary - Convert to Metric
    • 6 Chicken tenders - or as many as needed
    • 1 tablespoon olive oil
    • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
    • ¼ teaspoon pepper
    • ¼ teaspoon granular garlic powder - optional

    Instructions

    • Preheat grill to a surface temperature of about 450° which is medium-high on most gas grills and medium on a hot gas grill. Clean and oil the grill surface well.
    • Pat dry the chicken tenders. Trim the tendon as much as is easy to cut.
    • In a mixing bowl, mix 6 tenders with 1 tablespoon olive oil, ½ teaspoon of kosher salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper, and ¼ teaspoon granular garlic powder (optional). Adjust spices and oil according to the number of tenders and your taste.
    • Place over direct heat.
    • Grill until the chicken turns from a pink color to white along the edge (about 5 minutes). You will see the white moving up the sides. Flip and grill another approximate 4-5 minutes until the internal temperature is 165°. Time will vary with the size and thickness of the tender and your exact grill temperature.
    See the step-by-step photos in the post. Some recipes have an option to display the photos here with a switch above these instructions but the photos DO NOT print.

    My Private Notes

    Click here to save your own private notes only you will see. These will print and be saved for your next visit.
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    Recipe Notes

    Pro Tips

    1. This recipe is easy to combine with grilling chicken or pork since the grill temperature is the same.
    2. If you do this with beef, you will need to turn down the heat on part of the grill.
    3. The recommended surface temperature is 450°. If you cook much hotter, they will dry.
    4. The seasoning is approximately my 7:2:2 seasoning. Use that if you have it.
    5. The final internal temperature of 165° is important for safety.
    6. You may cut chicken strips out of chicken breasts. They may take a few minutes longer but you are cooking to the final internal temperature.
    7. Kids love to dip so use a dip if you want. Just some Ranch dressing, BBQ sauce, or mayo is fine.

    To adjust the recipe size:

    You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.

    Nutrition Estimate

    Serving : 1 tender | Calories : 78 kcal (4%) | Carbohydrates : 1 g | Protein : 11 g (22%) | Fat : 4 g (6%) | Saturated Fat : 1 g (5%) | Cholesterol : 32 mg (11%) | Sodium : 252 mg (11%) | Potassium : 185 mg (5%) | Sugar : 1 g (1%) | Vitamin A : 15 IU | Vitamin C : 0.6 mg (1%) | Calcium : 3 mg | Iron : 0.2 mg (1%)
    Serving size is my estimate of a normal size unless stated otherwise. The number of servings per recipe is stated above. This is home cooking, and there are many variables. All nutritional information are estimates and may vary from your actual results. To taste ingredients such as salt will be my estimate of the average used.
    Course : Main Course
    Cuisine : American

    © 101 Cooking for Two, LLC. All content and photographs are copyright protected by us or our vendors. While we appreciate your sharing our recipes, please realize copying, pasting, or duplicating full recipes to any social media, website, or electronic/printed media is strictly prohibited and a violation of our copyrights.

    Editor's Note: Originally Published May 30, 2013. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.

    Jake chewing a ball
    « Chipotle Lime Grilled Pork Tenderloin a la Alton Brown
    Summer Food Safety »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Tom

      May 11, 2019 at 9:18 am

      5 stars
      Superb!! One of the best things about grilling is very often the best recipes are amazingly simple. This easy chicken tender prep and grill is a great example. Simple=Zen grillin’ Thanks!!

      Reply
    2. Ian

      November 30, 2016 at 10:12 am

      I've been doing these for years, but out of practice and found this post for time guidelines. A good grill pan like an Isla cast iron will make it look amazing too. I prefer to brush both sides with a dot of harissa paste (north African chili and herb pase from a tube, champ du bon is my favorite).

      Reply
      • DrDan

        November 30, 2016 at 10:02 pm

        Thanks for the comment and your experience.

        Dan

    3. Judy

      March 30, 2016 at 5:57 pm

      I've been using your chicken recipes for awhile now. My daughter 3 and husband love the chicken I make. Thanks for sharing!

      Reply
    4. DrDan

      April 01, 2014 at 2:06 pm

      It is one of those you know you can do it but a quick tutorial is helpful. This is so easy to do separately for the kids and keep everyone happy.
      Thanks for the comment.
      DrDan

      Reply
    5. Sheila H.

      April 01, 2014 at 11:28 am

      I have fed my kids lots of grilled chicken over the years, but they gobbled this up better than any I have made. I did sub Herbamare for the half of the salt. Easy and soooo good. Thanks for this quick lunch idea.

      Reply
    6. spence wainright

      December 07, 2013 at 1:36 pm

      great recipe

      Reply
    7. Chris

      May 31, 2013 at 8:01 pm

      Great idea and not just because it is healthy, but because it sounds like it tastes great.

      Reply

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