SWEET AND SPICY CHICKEN TENDERS
I think I never really grew out of the chicken tenders phase. I still love them to this day, and they must always be paired with French fries. Those are the requirements. Sweet & Spicy Chicken Tenders are the grown up version of those typical crunchy strips and they’re the most flavorful chicken tenders I’ve ever had.
Usually I love plain, crusted, crumbed chicken tenders dipped in batter and dunked in honey mustard (or the specific sauce preference of that day). But sometimes I want something different, a little change in my chicken tenders, so I found these on one of my pinterest searches.
Something about the sweetness in the sauce paired with the spicy kick made me think they would resemble fried chicken wings, and those are slightly more grown up right? I see those in a bar wayyyyy more then I see the chicken strips on anyone’s plate.
But who said you CAN’T enjoy chicken tenders occasionally even if you’re not 4 years old… Coming from the girl who frequently made Tyson chicken nuggets in college, I was on a tight budget.
To make this meal acceptable, I did make this scrumptious Blue Cheese Coleslaw to lighten the fried-ness and add nutrients in the form of vegetables. Just dismiss the crumbled blue cheese and half & half that were poured in there and think fresh cabbage and carrots = healthy! I was trying to be responsible.
These chicken tenders DO NOT REQUIRE a fryer. We baked them to golden perfection. But you could try and fry these if you really wanted too.
What is cool about these chicken tenders is that they are literally dunked in sauce after they are finished frying. The sauce is mixed in a small pot and combined together and these crispy crunchy strips are dunked (very gently) and tossed till they’re covered in the sticky spiced goodness and then they are ready to be dipped in ranch. You know I’m a sauce girl. The sauce comes together with an assortment of ingredients that you most likely have already. You can adjust the spice level to your preference as well and make this an all-around meal for the whole family. Or just eat them all yourself.
SWEET AND SPICY CHICKEN TENDERS
Ingredients
- CHICKEN
- 4 chicken breasts
- 1/2 cup flour
- 3 eggs
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 cup panko bread crumbs
- SAUCE
- 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
- 1/2 cup Franks hot sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- CHICKEN
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with spray and cook. Pound out chicken breasts slightly. Cut chicken breasts into 3 strips each. Place chicken strips into a ziploc bag and top with flour. Close bag and toss to coat.
- Crack eggs into a shallow bowl, add in 1 tablespoon water, set aside. In another shallow bowl pour in panko bread crumbs. Dip the floured chicken strips into the egg mixture and then press into the bread crumbs.
- Place chicken strips onto the baking sheet and cover with spray and cook. Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown and crispy.
- Toss the chicken tenders in the sauce gently. Once covered serve with ranch.
- SAUCE
- Mix brown sugar and hot sauce in a small pan on medium heat. Once boil remove from the heat and stir in garlic powder and water. Set aside.
Notes
I think these should be in your weekend plans. It’s only Wednesday but I’m thinking about the weekend.
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