Baked Chicken Tenders

Chicken tenders refer to the tenderloin of the chicken located on the underside of the breast. It is that narrow part that will sometimes separate when you are eating breast meat.

It is the chicken equivalent of the beef tenderloin or the pork tenderloin. It is a muscle that does very little work, so it is always tender.

While they may refer to tenders, the terms chicken strips and chicken fingers could refer to any strip of chicken—usually cut from breast meat.

Yes, definitely. I frequently cut strips of chicken breast of about the same size and ½ inch thick. Cut them as much as possible across the strain of the meat, or they may be stringy and not very tender.

Strips cut from a chicken breast will be less tender than tenderloins but also cheaper.

In this or any other recipe on this site that says chicken tenders, strips of chicken can be easily substituted. And when I say tenders, you can always use strips.

Usually, there are 4 to 5 tenders per pound.

You don't have to, but I suggest you do.

You can if you have time, and they will be even more tender.

The ratio for a chicken brine is 2 cups of water and one tablespoon of table salt. Some people will add some brown sugar equal to the salt. Remember that all salt is not equal, and 1 teaspoon table salt = 1 ¼ teaspoon Morton kosher salt = 2 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt.

As little as 15 minutes makes a big difference. But you can brine for up to 2 hours if you want. This brine is a "heavy brine" in salt, so please limit it to 2 hours maximum.

No. We no longer recommend washing any raw chicken due to the spread of contamination by droplets of water. See Chicken; To Rinse or Not To Rinse? for a more detailed discussion.

However, if the chicken is brined, we do a care rinse to eliminate surface salt.

This recipe uses a traditional type of breading to coat the chicken.

Set up a "dredge line" with several dishes with coating ingredients—flour, whipped egg, and top coating. Shake off any excess after dredging in each pan.

Baked chicken tenders use Panko bread crumbs to help provide the crunch instead of a flour coating.

1) Dry well before starting. Use a paper towel.
2) Shake off the excess after the base coats of flour and egg.
3) After fully coated, let rest for about 5 minutes before proceeding to help the coating stick better.
4) After coated, handle with a fork, not your fingers or tongs.

Baked breaded meats, like chicken or pork chops, can easily have a dry texture caused by the oven heat drying out the breading.

To help decrease this problem, give the top of your tenders a quick spray of PAM cooking spray.

I'm suggesting some paprika and garlic powder with salt and pepper—a very typical seasoning for chicken. If you want to simplify, you can use seasoning salt with pepper.

Other options would be to make it Italian with ½ teaspoon of each basil and oregano.

Bring on the heat with cayenne pepper. One-fourth teaspoon will get you a 5/10 heat, and a half teaspoon will be 8/10.

Yes. 2-4 tablespoons of grated or shredded Parmesan—fresh grated is always preferred.

It will be crispier if you use Panko. But regular bread crumbs will work.

There are various flavors of bread crumbs. Pick the one you like or just the plain crumbs are fine.

Yes, if you want a nice bottom coating of the tenders. Otherwise, instead of crispy, the bottom may be soggy.

If you skip the wire rack, use foil with a heavy spray of PAM. Flip the tenders halfway through cooking with a fork.

It will take about 15 to 18 minutes in a 400° convection or 425° conventional oven. A convection oven is preferred to get air circulation under the rack.

You can cook at 350° or 375°, but they will tend to dry more. The time will b a few minutes longer usually but cook to 165° internal temperature.

If the tenders are variable sizes, place the bigger ones towards the outside of the rack. Also, point the thick part of the tender to the outside.

The endpoint of cooking is an internal temperature of 165°. You may need to remove the smaller ones before the bigger ones.

They are much lower in fat and calories compared to the fried version, so in that sense, they are healthy.

You can use two egg whites instead of one whole egg to lower the fat even more.

Anything you like is fine. Some popular ones are honey mustard, ketchup, BBQ sauce, Ranch dressing, flavored mayo, and sweet chili sauce.

The texture of the coating will never be as good as fresh-cooked, but leftover tenders should be stored in an airtight container refrigerated for 3 to 4 days. They can be frozen for 2 to 3 months.