Honey Chipotle Chicken Tenders from Scratch
(
REVIEWS)
PREP:
15 minutes
TOTAL:
SERVES:
4
Chicken Tender are one of those things that I never have a problem serving the kids. Outside of them being shaped in a letter or dinosaur, who doesn’t love them?!
These chicken tenders are breaded from scratch, then tossed in a honey and chipotle barbecue sauce that make this easy to serve plain for the kids, and dressed up for Mom and Dad!
I made the breading for these chicken tenders similar to my old Chicken and Waffles recipe. Marinate your chicken overnight in buttermilk to tenderize. Then use the dredge, egg wash, paper bag method to get these bad boys breaded!
When frying chicken there’s a couple things you want to keep an eye on: temperature, oil, and crowding.
Make sure your temperature ranges between 350F to 375F, and based on those temps you’ll want a oil that can handle the temperature without smoking. I like to use peanut oil
When dropping your chicken in the skillet, do a couple at a time, and keep from over crowding. Too many at once, and you’ll cool down your oil too much!
For my BBQ sauce I used off the shelf, then blended a it with a chipotle pepper in adobo* to add a little smokey heat. Toss your chicken tenders in this sauce. Drizzle with honey. And serve!
And feel free to use frozen chicken tenders on a weeknight, the sauce goes good on any way you make them!
Honey Chipotle Chicken Tenders
Ingredients
FOR THE CHICKEN BUTTER
- 2 lbs chicken breasts boneless, skinless, cut into strips
- 2 whole eggs
- 2 cups buttermilk
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp black pepper
FOR THE FLOUR DREDGE
- 2 cups white flour
- 1 tbsp poultry seasoning
- 1 tsp salt
FOR THE SAUCE
- 16 oz barbecue sauce
- 1 chipotle pepper in adobo
- 1/2 cup honey
Instructions
PREPARE THE CHICKEN TENDERS
- In a large bowl, wisk together eggs, buttermilk, salt, garlic powder, and pepper. Place chicken strips in the bowl covering in the buttermilk mixture. Seal and refridgerate overnight.
BREADING AND FRYING
- Before breading, preheat a cast iron skillet with peanut oil to 350F. In a large paper bag (or a zip-loc) shake flour and seasoning until mixed.
- Take each strip of chicken out, and let excess butter milk run off before placing in the bag. Add all the chicken in the bag and shake! Remove each chicken strip and place on a wire rack.
FRYING
- Place in chicken strips in the fryer, and cook for about 5-7 minute until golden brown. place on a paper towel or wire rack to remove excess oil and let cool for 3-4 minutes.
- While chicken is cooling add barbecue sauce, honey and chipotle pepper in a blender and pulse until smooth.
- Toss chicken tenders in a bowl with about 1 cup of the barbecue sauce. Serve with extra sauce on the side and enjoy!
Nutrition
