Healthier chicken tenders cooked in a simple delicious garlic butter sauce. The chicken tenderloins turn out so tender, juicy, succulent, and flavorful. A weeknight dinner ready in just 15 minutes! This one of the easiest and best chicken tender recipes.
Chicken tenders are so easy to cook. I always make them on busy weeknights as they’re ready in no time, and everyone in my family loves them. Sometimes I take out my grill pan and quickly make these grilled chicken tenders. And when I’m craving crunchy restaurant-style chicken tenders, I either make the crunchy buttermilk fried version or the healthier oven-baked chicken tenders.
If I’m not making a large batch, I make them in the air fryer. And another favorite recipe is these unbreaded garlic butter chicken tenders that I make in a skillet. They turn out so juicy, tender, and the garlic and butter make these tenders so special!
You can even use them interchangeably in pretty much any type of chicken recipe. The thing that really sets the breast and tenderloin apart is that chicken tenders have a higher fat and sodium content. Even still, they’re both lean and healthy white meat options that can adapt to many flavor profiles.
How to Make Chicken Tenders
- Add olive oil and melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a pan/skillet over medium heat.
- Add the chicken tenders, season with paprika, salt, and pepper.
- Cook for 3 minutes on each side (season each side as you cook).
- Make room for the garlic, melt the remaining butter, and add the garlic. Cook for 30 seconds or until the garlic becomes fragrant.
- Season with Italian seasoning, and cook for one more minute.
- Add 2 tablespoons of water to the pan to deglaze it, and scrape off any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan (that’s where all of the good flavor is).
- Garnish with chopped fresh parsley or basil leaves, and serve warm.
- Don’t overcook the garlic. Garlic cooks very quickly (about 30-60 seconds), and burnt garlic tastes terrible so keep an eye on it as you cook.
- Don’t overcook the chicken tenders, they cook so quickly and if they’re overcooked they can turn out stringy, dry, and tough.
- To create a flavorful sauce, make sure to deglaze the pan with a splash of water as that’s where the flavor is.
What are Chicken Tenders?
Chicken tenders are known as chicken mini fillets in the UK. Many people think that chicken tenders are just thin strips of chicken breast. But a chicken tender is a cut of meat found underneath and attached to the chicken breast, it’s the most tender part of the chicken breast even though it’s so small. Every chicken has 2 tenders, they’re moist and tender when cooked properly.
You can find chicken tenders sold separately from chicken breasts in supermarkets on trays, so you can buy a tray with 10-20 chicken tenders to grill up, fry, or bake.
They are also known as chicken strips, tendies, and chicken fillets.
So if you’re like me, and you prefer home cooked food, grab a tray of chicken tenders next time you go grocery shopping and make this recipe!
- Chicken tenders – if using frozen, then thaw in the fridge overnight. You can use a boneless skinless chicken breast cut into thin strips.
- Butter and olive oil – Olive oil gives the tenders a great flavor, but can be substituted with any neutral oil.
- Garlic – fresh garlic and lots of it! If using jarred, use 1 and half teaspoon of jarred garlic for every garlic clove.
- Salt, pepper, paprika, and Italian seasoning – I always make my own homemade Italian seasoning blend, it’s so easy to make, healthier, and cheaper than store-bought.
Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Cooking Tips : How to Remove Tenderloins from Chicken Breast
FAQ
Can I use tenderloins instead of breast?
Are chicken tenderloins the same as chicken breast?
Are chicken tenders just cut up chicken breast?
Can I substitute chicken tenderloins for chicken breast?
You are free to substitute chicken tenderloins for chicken breast, but make sure to pay attention to marinating and cooking time. Many people consider chicken tenderloins to be one with the breast. Thus, they assume that tenderloins have the same nutritional value as chicken breast.
Should you eat chicken tenderloin or chicken breast?
Therefore, if you need it for diet purposes, you may want to go for chicken breast, lower in calories. Whilst chicken breast is lower in calories, it is higher in magnesium, potassium, calcium, zinc, and vitamin B-6, sodium, and D, whilst chicken tenderloin only has minimal amounts of these nutrients.
Are chicken breast and tenderloin the same?
Chicken breast and tenderloin are both excellent sources of lean protein, but their caloric and protein content differ slightly. In a 100 grams serving: While both cuts are relatively low in calories, tenderloins have fewer calories than breasts. They also contain slightly lower protein content.
Is chicken Tenderloin healthier than chicken breast?
Tenderloin is very flavorful. Chicken tenderloin has a much higher sodium content than chicken breast. If you are on a sodium-free diet, you might want to avoid tenderloin, and it also contains more calories than chicken breast. Tenderloin has a trace of vitamins but does not have the health benefits that chicken breast can offer.