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Air Fryer Chicken Tenders are crispy and golden on the outside and so juicy on the inside! These homemade breaded chicken fingers are extra flavorful without all the added grease.
Who doesn’t love delicious crispy chicken tenders? Making them in the Air Fryer is not only easy but the end result is as tasty as the deep-fried version! They are a total crowd pleaser and will be loved by adults and kids alike!
Super tender inside and extra crispy on the outside. Serve them with your favorite dipping sauce for a delicious meal reminiscent of your childhood. Breaded with a mixture of panko breadcrumbs, flour, and lightly seasoned, these Air Fryer chicken fingers taste even better than those frozen chicken fingers your mum made.
If you love fried chicken, check out my Air Fryer Fried Chicken recipe or if you are looking for a chicken recipe without breading, check out my Air Fryer Chicken Breast!
Why this recipe is so good
- You know exactly what’s in it
- Air Fried with a deep fried taste
- Cooks fast and is done in 10 minutes
- Kid-friendly with a simple but tasty seasoning
- Easy to make with simple pantry ingredients
Ingredient Notes
Here is an overview of the ingredients you’ll need for this recipe. Scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom for quantities.
- Chicken Tenders – Using pre-cut chicken tenders is the easiest. But you can also cut your own chicken tenders from a chicken breast by slicing it lengthwise into strips.
- Buttermilk – Adds flavor, makes the meat more tender, and the breadcrumbs stick to the chicken tenders. If you don’t have buttermilk on hand see below how to make your own.
- Panko Breadcrumbs – Panko breadcrumbs are crispier than normal breadcrumbs and perfect for this recipe. If you don’t have panko on hand normal breadcrumbs will work too.
- Flour – All-purpose flour works best.
- Baking Powder – Helps to make the chicken tenders extra crispy.
- Salt and Pepper – I recommend using freshly ground black pepper but white pepper will work well too if you like it a bit spicier.
- Paprika – Adds a mild but not spicy flavor.
- Garlic Powder – I like to add some garlic powder to balance out the flavor but feel free to leave it out.
- Melted Butter – Unsalted butter works better. Butter adds a lot of flavor and makes the crust extra golden and crisp. But if you prefer you can also us a geneour spray of oil spray.
How to make this recipe
Detailed measurements and instructions can be found at the bottom of the page on the printable recipe card.
- Prep: Place the chicken tenders in a ziplock bag and pour the buttermilk into the bag. Squeeze the air out and seal the bag. Let marinate in the refrigerator for 15-30 minutes.
- Combine: In a shallow bowl combine the panko breadcrumbs, flour, baking powder, and spices.
- Coat: Remove the chicken strips from the buttermilk with a fork, shake off excess buttermilk, and dredge in the breadcrumb mixture to coat on all sides.
- Preheat: Preheat Air Fryer to 350°F (180°C) if necessary.
- Bake: Put the chicken fingers in the Air Fryer basket and air fry for 10-12 minutes, pause after 4 minutes and brush chicken with melted butter then turn it over and brush butter on the other side. Cook until internal temperature reads 175°F and the chicken tenders are golden brown and crispy.
- Serve: Serve right away with your favorite dipping sauce.
Expert Tips
- Marinate Chicken: The easiest way to marinate the chicken in the buttermilk is to put both together in a ziplock bag, press out the remaining air and put the bag in the fridge. You can marinate the chicken for up to 24 hours in the buttermilk.
- Breading: Shake off excess buttermilk before putting the chicken pieces in the breading mixture. Also, shake off any excess breading mixture that doesn’t stick to the tenders before putting them in the Air Fryer.
- Air Frying: Place the breaded chicken fingers in one single layer in the basket. They can overlap a little bit but don’t overcrowd the basket. I can cook about 1 pound of chicken tenders at the same time in my large Air Fryer (affiliate link).
- Oil: You can use melted butter to brush the chicken tenders or use a pure oil spray like avocado oil or light olive oil.
- Doneness: Check for doneness with an instant-read thermometer to make sure the chicken is cooked but still tender and moist. The internal temperature should be 175°F.
- Different Air Fryers: Different models of Air Fryers can cook faster or slower so make sure to keep an eye on the food.
- Seasoning: Looking for a KFC inspired seasoning? Combine 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp celery salt, 1/4 tsp dried oregano, 1/4 tsp cayenne, 1 tsp paprika, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp dried thyme, 1/2 tsp ground ginger, 1/2 tsp white pepper, and 1/2 tsp ground black pepper.
- Leftovers: Leftover chicken tenders can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Recrisp them in the Air Fryer at 350 F for a few minutes before serving.
Recipe FAQs
Chicken Tenders cook really fast in the Air Fryer because the meat is lean. Depending on the size of your chicken strips they’ll take about 10-12 minutes in the Air Fryer. Cook them until they’re no longer pink in the center and have reached an internal temperature of 175°F. Don’t overcook them because the meat will get dry!
Marinating chicken in buttermilk produces tender and moist meat and adds flavor. The buttermilk works as a tenderizer and makes the breadcrumb mixture stick to the chicken.
Yes, you can make baked chicken tenders from this recipe! Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F, follow the recipe until the chicken fingers are ready to cook, place them on a lined baking sheet, and bake them for 15-20 minutes. Turn them after 10 minutes and brush them with butter.
How to make chicken tenders from chicken breast
If you can’t get your hands on chicken tenders, you can cut your own from a boneless, skinless chicken breast. Cut the breast lengthwise into 1/2 inch thick stripes and you have perfect chicken-tender-sized pieces.
How to make your own buttermilk
The simplest way to make your own buttermilk is to pour 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar into a measuring jug and then fill it up to the 1 cup mark with milk. Give the mixture a stir, let it sit for about 5 minutes, and then use it in your recipe.
What to serve with Chicken Tenders
Serve these chicken tenders with Air Fryer French Fries or Air Fryer Potato Wedges.
Here are also some of my favorite dipping sauces to serve on the side:
- Ketchup
- Aioli Sauce
- Sweet and Sour Sauce:
- Honey Mustard Sauce
- BBQ Sauce
Leftovers
Leftover chicken tenders can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Recrisp them in the Air Fryer at 350 F for a few minutes before serving.
Leftover chicken also tastes great on a sandwich or cut into pieces and served over a salad.
Freezing
Yes, you can freeze the homemade chicken tenders! After they are cooked, let them cool down, then freeze them in an airtight container or a ziplock bag. Freeze them for up to 1 month. Reheat the tenders in the Air Fryer on 380F for a few minutes until heated through.
More Air Fryer recipes to try
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Air Fryer Chicken Tenders
Equipment
- Instant Read Thermometer
Ingredients
- 1 lbs chicken tenders, (10-12 tenders)
- ½ cup buttermilk, see above how to make your own
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- ¼ tsp garlic powder
- 3 Tbsp melted butter, or oil spray
Instructions
- Place the chicken tenders in a ziplock bag and pour the buttermilk into the bag. Squeeze the air out and seal the bag. Let marinate in the refrigerator for 15-30 minutes.
- In a shallow bowl combine the panko breadcrumbs, flour, baking powder, and spices.
- Remove the chicken strips from the buttermilk with a fork, shake off excess buttermilk, and dredge in the breadcrumb mixture to coat on all sides.
- Preheat Air Fryer to 350°F (180°C) if necessary.
- Put the chicken fingers in the Air Fryer basket and air fry for 10-12 minutes, pause after 4 minutes and brush chicken with melted butter then turn it over and brush butter on the other side. Cook until internal temperature reads 175°F and the chicken tenders are golden brown and crispy.
- Serve right away with your favorite dipping sauce.
Notes
- Marinate Chicken: The easiest way to marinate the chicken in the buttermilk is to put both together in a ziplock bag, press out the remaining air, and put the bag in the fridge.
- Breading: Shake off excess buttermilk before putting the chicken pieces in the breading mixture. Also, shake off any excess breading mixture that doesn’t stick to the tenders before putting them in the Air Fryer.
- Air Frying: Place the breaded chicken fingers in one single layer in the basket. They can overlap a little bit but don’t overcrowd the basket. I can cook about 1 pound of chicken tenders at the same time in my large Air Fryer (affiliate link).
- Oil: You can use melted butter to brush the chicken tenders or use a pure oil spray like avocado oil or light olive oil.
- Doneness: Check for doneness with an instant-read thermometer to make sure the chicken is cooked but still tender and moist. The internal temperature should be 175°F.
- Different Air Fryers: Different models of Air Fryers can cook faster or slower so make sure to keep an eye on the food.
- Seasoning: Looking for a KFC-inspired seasoning? Combine 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp celery salt, 1/4 tsp dried oregano, 1/4 tsp cayenne, 1 tsp paprika, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp dried thyme, 1/2 tsp ground ginger, 1/2 tsp white pepper, and 1/2 tsp ground black pepper.
- Leftovers: Leftover chicken tenders can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Recrisp them in the Air Fryer at 350 F for a few minutes before serving.
Nutrition
Originally published 2018, updated 2022. Recipe updated to simplify seasoning. Original KFC-inspired seasoning can be found in the notes section.
I have to agree with everyone who found this very spicy. I read the reviews before making it, and after looking carefully at the ingredients I could tell it would likely be quite spicy. So I used half the cayenne, half the pepper, no white pepper at all, and half the paprika (not spicy paprika). It was tasty, but even with that much less pepper it was still almost too spicy for me. I don’t mind a little spice, but not so much. Just FYI for anyone wanting to make this. Beware the spice.
I’m not sure why I had this problem, but the breading did not stick well to my chicken, especially on the second batch. Those strips also tasted a little “flour-y” to me. At that point, I had run out of breadcrumb/flour mixture (I had a little extra chicken) so I set up a different breading station…. I took the chicken from my buttermilk (with hot sauce) to seasoned flour, then egg, then seasoned breadcrumbs. I sprayed with cooking spray and that coating stayed on much better. In the future I might use that process, but with your seasoning mixture – the seasoning and spice was great! Thanks for helping me learn to use my air fryer for something besides prepared foods like frozen french fries! My husband enjoyed these! :)
These are totally awesome with or without the cyan. If you didn’t think they were spicy you didn’t add the Cyan which is how I had to make them for Mom she can’t take the heat. I haven’t tried them with thyme but I picked some up yesterday and can’t wait to add it to the recipe. I loved the heat it wasn’t overly hot but definitely hotter than Mexican reasteraunt jalapenos or jalipickes as I call them no real heat at all anymore. I have passed this on to others and they loved them also.
I am new to air frying. I did these chicken tenders tonight and they were perfection. Easily the best ones I’ve ever tasted. So juicy and melt in your mouth tender.
Ninja foodie chicken tenders!
Om goodness. These taste great. Taste just like stated KFC’s. Love them
Idk what everyone’s talking about. This recipe is not spicy at all period. It gives a tiny tiny kick, I know this because I was able to give this to my 4 year old without question!
These sound delicious! If I don’t have baking powder will it affect the outcome?
It should not affect the outcome too much, so I think it would be ok to leave it out if you don’t have any.
Wow!! Â My hubby is the one who wanted to try chicken tenders made in the Air Fryer. I searched for a recipe and ended up on yours. Fantastic taste and nice and crispy, too. Will be making them again. And we thought it was just the right spice combination.Â
These were so good! I had a mess-up on my part for my first bath (I cut uneven sized portions so they were obviously cooked at different intervals) but once I got it right they were insanely juicy and delicious! Thank you for the recipe!
I saw one reviewer say they were too spicy – I beg to differ. I have zero tolerance for spice and found them quite pleasant. A small zing, but nothing close to spicy!