These crunchy baked chicken tenders are life changing! The secret to truly golden, truly crunchy baked breaded chicken is to toast the breadcrumbs in the oven first. Bonus: No dirty fingers with my quick crumbing technique!
This is a reader-favourite recipe included by popular demand in my debut cookbook “Dinner”!
Really crunchy Baked Chicken Tenders
There is no feel-good story behind these crunchy Oven Baked Chicken Tenders. Quite simply, I am yet to meet anything deep fried that I didn’t love, but a) my waistline can’t afford the real thing every time I feel like it; and b) I reserve deep frying for “special occasions”. Because… well, you know.
Mess, oil wastage, gluey fingers.
Waistline. Bottom expansion.
Etc etc.
It also irritated me no end that the breadcrumbs always came out splotchy, no matter how much oil I used.
So this is how I make baked crumbed chicken.
Baked breaded chicken – my way
Toast the breadcrumbs in the oven for just a few minutes. This is the path to truly golden, truly crunchy baked breaded chicken even with a short bake time (max 20 minutes for chicken tenders). PS Much MUCH easier than pan frying!
One dredge batter – the usual process for crumbing is flour then egg then breadcrumbs. For this quick ‘n easy recipe, I combine the egg with flour plus mustard and mayo for flavour + oil (attempt to replicate deep fried) to make a thick batter in which the chicken is dredged. This stuff is great glue for the breadcrumbs!
Clean fingers! Use tongs to transfer the batter slathered chicken into the breadcrumbs. Sprinkle over breadcrumbs to cover, press down to adhere. Transfer to tray. Marvel at clean fingers!!
Give it a light spray of oil, bake for 15 minutes and voila! This is what you get:
LOOK HOW GOLDEN THEY ARE!! Just imagine that crunch when you bite into the juicy chicken inside!
Dipping Sauces
It’s pictured above with a Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce. Just like Maccers. Only homemade. 🙂
Other Dipping Sauces: Try the Pink Steak Sauce from the Beef Kebabs, Sweet and Sour Sauce, Thousand Island, Tartare or even a classic Seafood Cocktail Sauce.
– Nagi x
Watch how to make it
This recipe features in my debut cookbook Dinner. The book is mostly new recipes, but this is a reader favourite included by popular demand!
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Crispy Oven Baked Chicken Tenders
Ingredients
Breadcrumb
- 1 1/2 cups panko breadcrumbs (Note 1)
- Oil spray
Batter
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1 1/2 tbsp dijon mustard (or other mustard)
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Black pepper
Chicken
- 500 g/1 lb chicken tenderloins (or breast cut into 2/3″ / 1.5cm thick slices, lengthwise)
- Oil spray
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200°C/390°F (180° fan-forced).
- Toast panko – Spread panko on a baking tray, spray with oil (spray vertically to avoid blowing the panko off the tray), then bake for 3 to 5 minutes until light golden. Transfer to bowl.
- Place a rack on a baking tray (not critical but bakes more evenly).
- Dredge batter – Place the Batter ingredients in a bowl and whisk with a fork until combined. Add the chicken into the Batter and toss to coat.
Crumbing (see video & photo in post)
- Pick up chicken with tongs and place it into the panko bowl.
- Crumb – Sprinkle surface with breadcrumbs, then press down to adhere. Transfer onto baking tray. Marvel at clean fingers, repeat with remaining chicken.
- Spray & bake – Spray lightly with oil, sprinkle with a touch of salt (optional). Bake 15 minutes (medium) or up to 20 minutes if gigantic. Any longer = dried out chicken.
- Serve – Remove from oven and serve immediately, with Sauce of choice (Honey Mustard pictured, see Note 2) and sprinkled with fresh parsley, if desired.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Originally published April 2015, updated with new photos, video, words in post. No change to recipe, though some minor writing tidying up has been done.
More crunchy crumbed chicken
A crunchy golden crumb takes any chicken from bland to delicious!
LIFE OF DOZER
That hopeful sparkle in his eyes…. (it was false hope) (Oh wait, I lied. I gave him a bite!)
tasty and definitely super crispy. not a fan of mustard and a bit leary as to the amount in the receipe, but it sure worked out.
I’m happy that you liked it Giuseppa!! N x
Perfect!! A bi-weekly go to!!
Woo hoo!!! Enjoy them Jim!! N x
I had a packet of chicken tenders what to do with them quickly and easily.Of course check Nagi’s recipes.WOW excellent recipe plus your honey mustard sauce recipe.thank you Nagi I will certainly be using again and again
If you cook them and then let them cool, will they taste okay if you freeze them and reheat?
I haven’t tested that Heather but I suspect they will be fine – I would blast them with some cooking spray and reheat until crispy – let me know how they turn out! N x
Longtime follower of your blog. Your recipes and tips are solid and they have been indispensable in my kitchen! This oven-baked chicken tenders recipe yielded the perfect amount of crunch with moist and tender chicken. Best recipe for tenders online IMO. Thanks!
Woo hoo!! Thanks Caroline!! N x
Will recipe for with fish?
It does work for fish. I’ve found it best to use fish that is thick and quite firm, like cod, and to cut the fish into 3-4″ squares before starting. Thin filets, like tilapia, don’t turn out as nicely as the crumb coating is a bit overpowering on a thin piece of fish. However, I used this recipe to make “oven-fried” XL shrimp and they were delicious. I may try it with oysters next!
These chicken tenders are unbelievably crispy and so tender. The whole family loves them!
Woo hoo that’s great Jessica!! N x
Oh Naginator. You really are the terminator in the kitchen. Another kick but recipe my whole family loves. Thank you.
BEST NICKNAME YET!!! N x
I made these for my family and they loved them. I do recommend salting them a bit before putting in the oven per her suggestion.
Thanks for that tip, Sarah! N x
Hi…..made these for dinner tonight for my son and myself. I am sorry to say…..they just were nothing to write home about. I followed the instructions and had all the right ingredients and fresh chicken…….however they really just lacked flavour. You definitely need a dip to give them any flavour. Won’t make again but I appreciate her approach to making them……being free of sticky fingers.
It’s quite easy to oomph-up the flavor by seasoning the panko w/garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, even a bit of cayenne. Old Bay works great, too. I don’t think there’s a better method for getting a crispy coating in the oven than this recipe. After this recipe, I’ve stopped doing separate flour and egg dips and always toast my panko when using it as a coating. I even sprinkle the toasted panko over roasted veggies and over salad greens when using a vinaigrette-styled dressing. They really jazz-up side dishes!
Hi…….what temperature do you cook the chicken at…….my panko crumbs were not browning at 200……I had to turn my oven up to 350.
As per step 1 of the recipe: “Preheat oven to 200C/390F”. If you are using Fahrenheit it should have been at 390F. N x
The 200° is Celsius. If you live in the US, that’s about 385-390°F. I believe the author of this recipe lives in Canada. Perhaps, the difference in temperature is why you and your son weren’t that fond of the recipe. It really is worth trying again using a 385-390°F oven
Wow this chicken tasted amazing without the dirty fingers and less time to make and less oil !! The whole family loved and I ate it cold the next day in a tortilla wrap !! Yum 🤤
That’s amazing Mirella! And clean fingers are the bonus with this method! N x
Loved this recipe! I’ve tried 3 other recipes but I like this one best! I didn’t have spray oil so I poured 1/3 c. olive oil in crumbs, mixed with my fingers and it turned out great when toasting. I’m going to make more batter next time because with making 12 tenders I wanted more on each tender.
These are by far the best chicken tenders I’ve ever made. Will definitely be saving this recipe for future use! So simple and delicious!
I am happy you liked them Katy! N x
Hi. This might be a silly question but I want to make sure I don’t mess this up. When you toast the bread crumbs, do you put them directly on the baking sheet or do you line the backing sheet with something? Thank you!
I don’t line the baking tray for this one Dalenna! N x
Perfect! Thank you!
I have loved every recipe I’ve tried from Nagi. She’s the ONLY one I follow the recipe exactly as written. (at least the first time).
I made these last night, including her two dipping sauces. While they were good they just didn’t have the wow factor going. Yes, they’re just chicken tenders. But I guess I always expect all her recipes to blow my mind.
Regarding the ranch dipping sauce? I forgot the milk and I’m very glad I did. Try it before adding the milk.
If someone can suggest how to take these up a notch I’m all ears. Maybe Frank’s in the batter?
Oh, I’m in need of tasty finger foods for happy hours. Thanks.
Wow!! This is my first attempt at BAKED chicken tenders. I cannot believe how delicious these are and so easy to make. The toasted panko really makes all the difference. They just did not taste baked. They were juicy and crispy! Yum!! And the honey mustard sauce recipe, I love that stuff!!
I had been craving chicken fingers for a week but I did not want to go to a fast food place. These really hit the spot and filled that craving.
I agree with Michael P. I, too, had to stop myself from eating them all. I did want to save some. I did take an extra piece tonight. LOL
I didn’t flip halfway and all was good. But, next time, I am gonna flip.
I can’t wait to make it for my daughter. I am sure it will be her new favourite!!
Thanks for a scrumptious dinner!
I am happy that you liked them so much Lynda! N x
OMGoodness these are good. Could have eaten the whole batch as they are so addicting. Made as directed and was very happy with the result. Had these with the ranch dipping sauce. Very yummy. Will make again and with try the other dipping sauces. Good recipe. Toasting the bread crumbs was the key
Your crumbing method is a game changer! I was slightly skeptical that the crumbs would adhere, but it formed a perfect crust. I’ll be using this method any time I need to put a crumb on something.
These are SO amazing and amazingly easy. I sliced a chicken breast in to tenderloins and followed the recipe. The toasting of the panko is just one of those magically simple things. Creating a batter of the egg wash really cemented the breading. I’ve struggled with unstuck breading in the past. The breading stayed on the chicken and not the pan.
This is the first time I’ve had tenders in the oven and NOT missed the deep fried version. I had to keep myself from eating all of the dozen I made and instead save some to reheat the next day. So freaking good.
I tweaked my temp and cook time only slightly. I did 400F for 20 min, flipping the chicken at 10 min. They were juicy and perfect. The flip likely was entirely unnecessary as the panko was already toasted. Again. Amazing little tip!!! Toasted crumbs.