The best recipe for juicy, flavorful Super Crispy Chicken Tenders made with chicken breasts and buttermilk. Plus oven and air fryer options!
When it comes to family-friendly Main Dishes, you can’t go wrong with some fried chicken pieces dunked in tasty sauces. For more dippable Crispy Chicken Recipes, check out my Homemade Chicken Nuggets and Boneless Wings too!
Table of contents
Sabrina’s Super Crispy Chicken Tenders Recipe
If you want to crack the code for making chicken tenders crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside, and incredibly flavorful, this is the recipe for you! The key is the buttermilk marinade, which does mean adding 30 minutes to the prep time, but the tender juicy chicken is worth it! Once the chicken is tenderized, it gets double coated in seasoned flour and deep fried. The result is an extra crunchy coating that tastes like you got it from a fried chicken restaurant!
Making homemade chicken fingers is perfect for fast food cravings especially when you are on a budget! They also make a great cheap and easy appetizer for game-day parties. Save even more money by making your homemade sauces – I’ve included some of my favorites with links to their recipes at the bottom of this post. Plus, there are directions for oven-baked and air-fryer versions in case you want to save some calories while you’re saving money!
Ingredients
- Chicken: Cutting chicken breasts into your own tenders is budget-friendly so that’s what I’m doing here. Cut them long-wise into even strips.You can flatten the thick part of the breast a bit to make them more even before cutting.
- Buttermilk: This is the secret ingredient for getting juicy tenders without having to buy expensive tenderloins. It breaks down the muscly cut of meat and adds a bit of fat for moist, flavorful chicken. See my Frequent Questions for how to substitute buttermilk.
- Hot Sauce: The hot sauce adds a little bit of flavor to the chicken but more importantly it helps break it down for more tender meat. Don’t worry, it won’t make the tenders spicy.
- Flour: I’m using regular all-purpose flour.
- Seasoning: I keep the seasoning simple with a little garlic powder, paprika, salt and pepper. Feel free to adjust, see my Variations section for ideas.
- Baking Powder: Baking powder adds some air to the breading mixture while it cooks, making it lighter for a crispier, crunchier coating.
- Oil: You’ll want to use a neutral cooking oil with a high smoke point like canola, peanut, or vegetable oil.
How to Make
Time needed: 1 hour.
- Marinade the Chicken
Marinade the chicken tenders. 30 minutes at room temperature is ideal. Don’t put it in the fridge or the breading will fall off.
- First Coating
Coat the fingers with the buttermilk on them in the flour mix. Don’t pat them dry before doing this. They need to have the marinade on them to help the flour stick.
- Second Coating
Coat the fingers a second time into the flour and then back into the whisked eggs. Don’t pat flat, really let it get thick on the chicken. You need all the nooks and crannies to get the desired crispy consistency.
- Fry and Serve
Fry in the oil (or bake them) until ready. Drain on a wire rack (NOT paper towel!) and serve while they are still warm. Enjoy!
Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts , boneless, skinless
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce
- 2 large eggs , beaten
- 2 cups flour
- 2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 3/4 teaspoon course ground black pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon paprika
- 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/8 teaspoon baking powder
- vegetable oil for frying
Instructions
- Cut the chicken breasts into four tenders each and soak them in a bowl with the buttermilk and hot sauce for 30 minutes.
- Add the eggs to one bowl and the flour and spices to a second bowl.
- Dip each piece of chicken from the buttermilk bowl to the flour mixture.
- Dip it into the eggs then back into the flour mixture.
- Shake excess flour gently off and put the chicken onto a baking sheet.
- Repeat with all the pieces.
- Heat the oil (three inches deep) in a Dutch oven on medium-high heat to 350 degrees.
- Fry the chicken in small batches for 5-7 minutes or until golden brown.
Notes
Nutrition
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Chef’s Note: Tenders or Tenderloins?
You may be wondering why I am using cut up chicken breasts instead of chicken tenderloins. The main reason is cost! Chicken tenderloins are a small piece of meat under the breast that has a little more fat and sodium so it’s a bit more tender and juicy. But since it’s a smaller cut, it is usually way more expensive per pound than regular chicken breast. For a dish like fried chicken, I just don’t think it’s worth the cost. My buttermilk marinade tenderizes the meat so you get a similar juicy piece of chicken without breaking the bank.
Can This Be Made Ahead?
It’s best to prepare these and serve them fresh for the crispiest texture. However, if you store them uncovered in the fridge overnight, you can reheat them in the oven at 300 degrees for 7-10 minutes to heat and crisp them up.
Nutritional Facts
How to Store
- Store: Serve these while they are still hot. They’ll be ready to serve after they have drained on the wire rack. Store in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Reheating: Reheat in the air fryer, oven, or toaster oven to maintain crispiness. The microwave will make them soggy.
- Freeze: You can keep these in the freeze for up to 3 months. Let it thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating.
Alternative Cooking Methods
Oven Baked Method
- Marinade as usual.
- You are going to use 1 cup flour and 1 cup of breadcrumbs, each in separate bowls. Divide the spices between the flour bowl and breadcrumb bowl.
- Dredge the chicken from the buttermilk into the flour, then to the eggs, and finally into the breadcrumbs.
- Add to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or coated with cooking spray.
- Melt 2 tablespoons of butter and brush the tops of each tender with melted butter. You can also spray with cooking spray but melted butter will give better flavor.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes, until cooked through.
Air Fryer Method
- Prepare the chicken for frying as usual, no adjustments to the marinade or breading.
- Preheat your air fryer to 400 degrees.
- Once the chicken has been breaded with flour, lay them in a single layer in the air fryer basket on the tray.
- You’ll need to work in batches. Don’t crowd them or let them touch, you want there to be enough room for the air to circulate.
- Cook at 400 degrees for 6 minutes, flip the tenders, and cook another 5-7 minutes until they are cooked through and golden.
Homemade Dipping Sauce Recipes
Whether it’s a popular fast food sauce or classic dip, these recipes are perfect for dunking homemade chicken fingers! Check out my complete Sauce Collection for more ideas.
- Ranch Dip
- Honey Mustard
- Chick-fil-A Sauce
- Buffalo Sauce
- Fry Sauce
- Barbecue Sauce
- Peri Peri Sauce
- Shake Shack Sauce
- Texas Roadhouse Cajun Horseradish Sauce
- Blue Cheese Dressing
Frequent Questions
Make your own buttermilk by adding 1 tablespoon white vinegar (or fresh lemon juice) to a liquid measuring cup. Add enough whole milk to bring it to 1 cup. Let the milk sit for 10 minutes. Stir and use as usual in your recipes! (For 2 cups of buttermilk, increase the vinegar to 3 tablespoons and rest for 15 minutes)
Once fried you can keep the chicken tenders crispy on a baking sheet or a cookie sheet in a low oven at 250 degrees while you finish frying the remaining chicken tenders or keep them warm until your event starts. The low temperature will ensure the chicken fingers stay juicy too, it isn’t hot enough to dry them out unless you leave them in there for hours. Do not cover the chicken or put it on paper towel as it will create steam which will ruin the texture of the crispy chicken.
The buttermilk acts as a tenderizer which makes the chicken juicy. Even just a half an hour soak will help with flavor and it also acts as a binding agent for the first coat of seasoned flour. Even if the chicken tenders are going to be oven-baked they should still be marinaded in buttermilk before baking.
No, for this recipe I would not recommend swapping in breadcrumbs one to one. The breading won’t stick well without adjustments and it won’t fry the same in general. If you want to use breadcrumbs, see my Breaded Chicken recipe.
If your breading keeps falling off, it could mean that the oil temperature might be too high or too low while cooking. The oil temperature should be held at 350 degrees. Also you don’t want to bread and fry the chicken when it’s cold, room temperature will fry faster and the breading will stick better.
Variations
- Italian: Swap out the paprika for grated parmesan cheese and ½ teaspoon of dried Italian seasoning. Serve with a squeeze of lemon juice.
- Spices: Add spices like cumin, onion powder, curry powder, or use spice blends to kick up the flavor. I like to add 1 teaspoon of Taco Seasoning a Cajun spice blend. You could also add some dried herbs like oregano or basil, but I like to grind them until they are fine to mix better. A little cayenne pepper or chipotle powder add a nice heat for spicy chicken.
- KFC Secret Recipe: The addition of the spices that are used in my copycat KFC Potato Wedges recipe takes these chicken fingers over the top.
More Tasty Chicken Dippers!
Photos used in a previous version of this post:
Is the flour all purpose or self rising
All purpose. Thank you for asking.
This is the first time that the crispy skin stayed on my chicken when I fried it I followed the recipe except I added more seasoning thank you it was a hit at my house
Baking soda, baking powder or cornstarch?
This recipe was tested using flour to coat the tenders. Is that what you were asking?
i made this and loved it. thank you
Simple and delicious. Everyone loved these.
That is about as close as you can get! Excellent recipe! Will make it again for sure.
Thanks for sharing your talent
Can I bake the chicken instead of deep frying it
I would choose a recipe for baked chicken tenders instead, the batter on this wouldn’t bake well, it would taste very doughy.
I was wondering if I could bake the chicken instead of deep frying it
Great Recipe
Wow easy to make and so delicious ? thank you
We needs to see more video to your recipe please thanks for U
Hi, what are the directions for cooking in the oven? I am not seeing, but it was mentioned that it was part of the recipe. Thank you!
k
I made these and loved how crispy they turned out!
So glad you enjoyed it!
The fingers turned out great. Tried other recipes but my husband says these are the best. Will use this recipe again!!
Out of the dozens, if not 100s of chicken tender and chicken nugget recipes I’ve tried, this one is the best. I didn’t change a thing and I will be making it again.
Flavor is decent but not crispy long. Even after cooling on a wire rack, not stacked on each other. Breading separates from chicken.
Your doing something wrong. I would say your oil isn’t hot enough. If it’s not around 350F It won’t crisp up. Try a thermometer in your oil 🙂
I use buttermilk flour egg flour. Turned out fantastic. Don’t pat down your floured tenders, you need the nooks and crannies
How would you get the breading to stick to the chicken? It tastes good but it just slides off of the chicken?
Did you pat the chicken dry before dipping in the egg?
we dont need to add corn starch ?
Will this work for chicken breast for a chicken sandwich instead of tenders?
These were delicious! Prepared as written! A new perennial favorite! Thank you so much!
I’m glad I read reviews first, because otherwise this recipe would have no flavour at all. I used approximately 1 tsp for each of the spices (aside from salt- I didn’t adjust that) and also added in approximately 1 tsp of old Bay seasoning. I also needed to use 3 eggs for 12 chicken strips.
That being said- this recipe made for perfectly breaded chicken tenders! I will definitely be using this as my base the next time I make chicken tenders!
Made these tonight for us and extra for someone I’m taking to, double batch, along with KFC copycat coleslaw, Amish macaroni salad, and deviled eggs. They were excellent! Thank you for the recipe! Might have been a little heavy handed on the spices, but not much. Excellent the way it is written. I do have a question though. Since I’m not taking these to the recipient until tomorrow, what is the best way to reheat? I don’t want to dry them out.
Wat can u use instead of buttermilk
In recipes that call for buttermilk, it is not recommended to replace buttermilk with plain milk, because the absence of acid will not produce the same end result. But using an acidic ingredient combined with plain milk will create a substitute with properties closer to that of buttermilk.
Alternative options with acidic ingredient:
1/4 cup buttermilk: 3/4 teaspoon vinegar or lemon juice + 1/4 cup milk of choice.
1/3 cup buttermilk: 1 teaspoon vinegar or lemon juice + 1/3 cup milk of choice.
1/2 cup buttermilk: 1 1/2 teaspoons vinegar or lemon juice + 1/2 cup milk of choice.
Good Luck!
Absolutely perfect recipe, if followed word for word. Oil temp is critical, a Dutch Oven will maintain oil temp due to its thick construction and retention of heat. If one does not have a Dutch Oven, a deep fryer with thermostat must be used. Myself and my kids are chicken tender fanatics, and these stepped up to the top of the list, both for store bought and restaurant sourced. There was a comment to let them set up for a bit before frying, this is great advice. I now have to make a huge batch of these and freeze them to enjoy whenever my kids and I would like. Thanks for such a simple yet perfect recipe!
So happy you enjoyed it!
I’m going to attempt to make these tonight! Just to make sure, is the photo without the panko?
Hi Kimberly, yes that’s correct, this recipe does not call for any Panko.
This recipe is absolutely perfect! It’s my husband’s favorite and would gladly eat it 3 times a week if I made it!
Love to hear that Christa
I’m going to attempt to make these tonight! Just to make sure, is the photo without the panko?
I made this last night for the kids. And they loved it! Thank you for sharing with us.
Thank you, Jamie!
Made these tonight for dinner and wow they were amazing! Husband and children loved them!
Only thing I did differently was letting the tenders sit longer in the buttermilk.
Will definitely be making these again!
Thanks, Kristi!
Will low fat 1% buttermilk be ok?
I’m sure it will!
Delicious just the way it is! Thank you!
Delicious. Used crispy crushed ritz crackers & crushed rice Chex. My grandson said this was the best chicken ever!
Why do I not get the thick crispy breading, mine always look flat and have no crunch. I feel like there is some secret trick that is not listed on any recipe because I’ve tried them all. Your photo looks like what I’m going for the most though.
Hi, Your oil is not consistently hot enough or you may have too many pieces of chicken in the skillet. If the oil doesn’t keep it’s consistent temp, the breading will fall off as it’s cooking. Overcrowding can make turning chicken harder to do and the breading will fall off. Also.T try to turn the chicken only once or twice. The first turn shouldn’t be until the chicken is golden brown on it’s cooking side. Frying temp between 350 degrees and 375 degrees. Hope that helps.
Made these tonight. Didn’t have buttermilk so I substituted whole milk with lemon juice. Worked like a charm! Best homemade chicken tenders I’ve ever made, my dad had 5 pieces!!
Chicken Tenders are the best! So happy everyone loves them, Thank you for your support!
i tried this and it came out really well for the first time. Although i did create a doughy mess that stuck everywhere once the buttermilk gets into the flour bowl. Would it be worth removing the chicken from the butter milk and letting them drip a bit before dredging?
Totally up to you!
My crust fell off no good
too salty for my taste. not crispy at all. when I fried them to deep gold in an attempt to make them crispy chicken was over cooked.
Read all reviews. Heres what i did. Doubled all spices except salt. Used 3 tsps seasoned salt. Added onion powder & a splash of cajun spice. Patted fingers DRY after removing from marinate. Pressed into flour with fingers to get a good coat. Shook off excess. Dipped in egg & let it drain off & repeated pressing flour into chicken. Placed on waxed paper in fridge for 30 mins to set. Deep fried as directed in clean oil & they turned out just like ur pic. Perfect. This will be my go to recipe! Thank you!
Thank you Dan!
LOL your right on = this recipe is a guild and a pretty good one , for some people that cant cook lol , I am a real good cook and I but you are also = you looked up this recipe for a guild = I did this also = I knew id change it = thanks , for your take on this = I will be using yours for my base = but I am adding a few thingys of my own
Can you cook these in an air fryer and get a similar crispiness? Also, if you don’t want spice, do you leave out the hot sauce? Lastly, does the MSG add flavor? Can you do it without the MSG and still have a tasty chicken?
Hi! I have not tried these in the air fryer so I don’t know the level of crispy they would get. As for spice, I have seasoning options in the blog on how to make it different flavors, and the MSG does add flavor as well.
I haven’t tried this yet, but I will really soon. I have a question though. Previously when I try to fry up some chicken, the crispy breading would separate from the chicken after frying. I’m left with chunks of fried breading and bare chicken. What am I doing wrong? I’ve tried the flour-egg-flour method. Someone said to put it in the fridge to dry the chicken before breading it and I still get the same result.
Hi! We do a Buttermilk Marinade for this which helps stick the breading.
It sounds like the temp of your oil may be off. Also, if you put the chicken on paper towels to drain it will make it soggy and the breading will fall off. Use cooling racks placed over a cookie sheet to drain. Hope this helps.
Absolutely fantastic. I followed the directions as written. Easy to make and my family loved it.
Thanks for the 5 stars, JL.
Too much pepper and ginger!! Had to throw out the whole mix
Did I miss something I do not see any ginger in this recipe?
Artiste, my apologies but there isn’t any ginger in this recipe?
Ginger?? Ginger doesn’t go into this. . . . .why would anyone put ginger into fried chicken tenders anyway? Did you even give a single nanosecond to re-read this before making it public? (That was a rhetorical question)
The kfc spice actually has ginger in it. At least the one I found online does.
Actually, it is true. Ground ginger is in the recipe touted to be authentic. To read a fascinating story about how Colonel Sanders’ nephew came to have the 11 spices recipe, google KFC Dan Mikesell, then click on Copycat KFC Chicken-Oven Fried. I have not tried it yet, but will soon.
If you love bacon, you get 2-thumbs up.
KFC Spice blend: Marion Kay 99x. Read their back story. It’s the 11 herbs and spices (99) plus one more (X). This nails the seasoning. They recommend 2C flour/1-1/2 Tbsps salt/1 Tbsp 99x). For my taste buds it’s 2C flour/3 Tbsps salt/6 Tbsps 99x/1 tsp MSG.
If brining pieces overnight, reduce salt to 1-1-1/2 Tbsps. I recommend starting with their recommended measurements, then tweak from there. When brining, I use 1 Tbsp salt per pound of chicken pieces with enough water to cover well. Bag, chill over night; drain, blot dry then proceed with the recipe. The chicken is so moist and tender this way. For extra crispy coating, bake in a 350°F oven for 15-20 minutes.
I’m really after the gorgeous craggy coating shown on your photos. I’ll let you know soon if I have achieved that.
Will the hot sauce make these spicy? I’m making them for my 3 year old and she hates even a hint of spicy.
You can leave it out if you’d like. It does add a hint of spice to it.
Absolutely perfect recipe no changes needed! We live way out in the mountains so quick grocery stops aren’t an option, so I keep powdered buttermilk on hand – worked perfectly for this. I fried them in a combo of Safflower oil & tallow from our beef, they turned out so good, served them with air fried yukon french fries – my family absolutely loved dinner. I mostly cook low carb but every now and then I like to throw in something like this for a real treat, I will continue to use this recipe from now on. This is one of those rare recipes you don’t have to tweak or add a lot of spices to make it palatable. So glad I found it, thank you!
You just made my day, Liz. Thanks for taking the time to come back and let me know.
Can you do these in a ninja foodie and if so what degree and how long
I haven’t tested it using one but if you decide to try, I’d love to know how it turns out. Thanks!
I used tenderloins, came out great for someone that struggles frying chicken.
Glad you decided to give it a try, Doug.
This is my third recipe I have tried from you and you now have a devoted fan. All were fantastic! I have a dozen more marked to try.
Made this tonight and they were super! Crispy and so juicy inside. Now if there is a secret to avoiding the mess we made doing it I’d love to know but the taste was outstanding!
You can always use a splatter guard to help with the mess. So glad you enjoyed it!
I used a deep fryer outside which made it much easier from a mess stand point and it also avoid the lingering smell of fried food in the house.
That’s smart! My mom used to do that too.
I am terrible at frying chicken. My family loves KFC mashed potato bowls so I thought I give it another go. NEVER have I ever fried chicken without breadcrumbs. I was skeptical to say the least. But this turned out amazing!!! I can hear the crunch! This was hands down the best fried chicken! My husband said, “you need to leave a great review “ Never using bread crumbs again!
Yay!! I’m so glad you all enjoyed it! Thank you for taking the time to come back and let me know.
Saw this, made this, Loved it! As is. Come to your site often for recipes; Thank you for sharing & caring!
I’m so glad you love the site and the recipes! Thanks for the 5 stars, Rene’
Followed the directions thoroughly and the recipe was bland. The process might be right but the amount of seasoning is lacking. Had to serve it with sauce, and a slaw to cover up the lack of flavor.
Thanks so much for this recipe. I too added much more seasonings and spices to the flour (we like spicy food). But the process and recommendations was SPOT ON. I was actually wanting to replicate the Chicken Bowls from a famous Fried Chicken Chain. The first time I pretty much made the chicken, I cut them into longer tenders and they turned out great. But for the bowl with mashed potatoes, gravy and corn, I decided to cut the chicken in to nugget size. I stilled followed the process of soaking them in buttermilk over night then dredging them in seasoned flour, egg (added water to the egg) and one again seasoned flour. Frying took less time for the smaller pieces and I the taste was FABULOUS!!! I got great review for the 10-15 people I served on a wintery day. Classic comfort food. Thanks for this great recipie!
That bowl sounds amazing! Thanks for the 5 stars, Grace.
My family and I loved them and it’s made me never want to cook them any other way again because it was amazing
Wow, thanks for taking the time to come back and let me know.
Just made this – completely perfect! Thanks for the recipe!
You’re welcome, Kelli.