These baked chicken tenders are coated in a deliciously savory crust, yet have zero breading, which makes for an awesomely low carb meal!
Eating healthy has never tasted so good! You won’t even miss the breading on these baked chicken tenders… and the flavor is crazy addictive. Who says you can’t have it all?
So for those of you with little munchkins… do they get stuck in food ruts? My kids sure do…. if it isn’t a fish stick, hot dog, or chicken nugget… they don’t want it. Sound familiar? Doesn’t it make you want to pull your hair out? Cooking a great meal for your family, working hard, and they take one look and promptly say “that looks gross, I want a hot dog”. *insert flip out moment here*
To be fair, I shouldn’t say my “kids”… because my son is the human disposal… he will eat just about anything, and in large amounts! There are some nights I swear he eats more than I do… which honestly, is hard to do… Mama likes to EAT! He is, however, picky about what he wants on certain nights. And my daughter used to be a fantastic eater, and still is, just ohhhhhh my lord is she stubborn!! I shouldn’t even complain because let’s face it, she got it from me… but I’m constantly wracking my brain to get her to eat something that doesn’t come out of a frozen bag.
Chicken is generally a safe bet, especially when I can cut it up into “nuggets” and voila… she’ll eat, especially with some dipping sauce. We eat a good deal of chicken around here 🙂
This chicken… it is beyond addictive and you’ll want it alllllll the time!
Does that look yummy or what?! But wait, it gets even better! These chicken tenders aren’t breaded… that’s right… no breadcrumbs, no panko… zero bread (bring on the low-carb!). A mix of Parmesan cheese and a variety of spices combine to make the “crust” on these baked chicken tenders. And what a delicious crust it is!!
These chicken tenders are also baked, so no babysitting them in a skillet… just pop them in the oven and relax. Okay, maybe not relax, because odds are you’re fixing something else to have alongside the chicken… but at least you don’t have to fuss with the chicken while you’re working on the side dish 🙂
Okay, here’s the breakdown… just mix up your cheese and spices in a large dish and set aside, and melt some butter in a microwave-safe dish.
Dip each chicken tender in the melted butter (seriously, how can you go wrong dipping chicken in butter first!), then roll it in the spice mixture and place in a foil-lined pan. Repeat with remaining chicken tenders and bake for 20-30 minutes. That’s it! So simple right? Plus it’s a fun one that your kids could help you with… they’ll love it! 🙂
These got gobbled up pretty quickly! It was lucky I was able to save a couple of tenders for the pictures the next day 😛
Recipe adapted from Food.com
I want to share that the original name of the recipe on Food.com was Heroin Chicken Tenders, and out of respect for that recipe creator, I originally kept the same name when I shared them. I have since re-named this recipe, but unfortunately the URL still reflects the original name. Any nasty comments pertaining to the name of the recipe will be deleted. I’m sure the original recipe creator named them before heroin was as prevalent a problem as it is today. No one is in poor taste here, just trying to share recipes 🙂
I love serving these with some 3 ingredient slow cooker ranch mushrooms, super crispy parmesan and garlic potato wedges, or a great Caesar salad with homemade dressing!
Helpful Tools for This Recipe:
- NORDICWARE HALF SHEET PANS – I’m a huge fan of these baking sheets, and own them in quite a few sizes!
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Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken tenders
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons parsley minced
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- Pinch of cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 cup butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Combine all dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and set aside.
- Line rimmed baking sheet with foil.
- Melt butter in a shallow dish.
- Dip each chicken tender in butter then roll in seasoning mixture and place on prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
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Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Crystal Hawkins says
I need to know how many carbs per serving and seeing size
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Crystal 🙂 I’m not a nutritionist, nor do I pretend to be, so I don’t give out nutrition information. There are a large variety of online tools you can easily plug the ingredients into and get the information you’re wanting. Best of luck!
Shelly Austin says
I just made this chicken tonight. In fact, I just got done eating it. I doubled the coating part of the recipe for the same 2 pounds of chicken because, well, I have to overdo everything in life…lol. I just have to say it was incredible. I thought I ate a ton of it (and I did) but my husband and son practically licked the glaze off the plate eating this. So so delicious. I will definitely be making this again. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Shelly 🙂 I’m SO glad that you all loved the chicken!!! Your comment about overdoing everything made me smile.. I do that too 😉
Valerie Solomon says
I always have excess of juices when baking my chicken. How do you avoid that in this recipe?
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Valerie 🙂 If you’re running into too much juice, you can bake the chicken on a rack. I like to line a baking sheet with foil, then place an oven-safe cooling rack on top of the foil lined baking sheet. Spray the cooling rack with cooking spray, then bake as directed 🙂
Stephanie says
Hello! I just tried this recipe, and it is delicious, though it is too salty if you use jar parmesan. I would suggest not adding salt if you use pre-grated cheese. My chicken also left a butter puddle in the pan and did not crisp up. I dumped some of the butter and broiled it, which helpe. I cooked it on an aluminum cookie tray. Next time I may try the wire rack. Thanks for posting!
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Stephanie! 🙂 I’m so glad to hear that you loved how the chicken tasted! Oh yes, jarred Parmesan is much saltier, which is why I definitely prefer the flavor and texture of the freshly grated 🙂
Pam says
I made these tonight and they were Amazing!!!! Chicken was super tender and juicy with the crust that was perfect without breading!! Thank you. I will definitely make again!!
Pam says
I used the jar Parmesan and Romano combo because I didn’t have fresh Parmesan and it was delicious!!
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Pam 🙂 I’m SO glad to hear that you loved the chicken!! It’s one of our favorite ways to eat chicken 🙂
Julie says
Wondering if you can use the jar parmesan in steady of fresh ?
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Julie 🙂 I think that would be fine… the texture might be a bit different, but the flavor would still be good.
Princy says
Have you tried using olive oil instead of butter? I can’t wait to try these out. They look delicious!
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Princy 🙂 I haven’t used olive oil instead, but I think that would work just fine 🙂 Hope you love them!
Lori Shaulis says
I thought this recipe sounded familiar! Love heroin chicken!!! One of my first low carb recipes I tried when just starting out almost 2 years ago. I need to save this to my pinterest page so I don’t lose it again! Thanks
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Lori! 🙂 This is definitely one of my favorite recipes too, even with all the backlash about the name lol 🙂
terry_dP says
This is the first recipe I’ve gotten anywhere that actually has enough ingredients to coat the chicken. Every other one creates way too little coating, requiring me to stop what I’m doing and make another batch. This is utterly delicious! My picky grandsons and my son couldn’t get enough. My youngest grand (he’s five) said it was better than any chicken he’d ever had. My house smelled mmmmm. I bet my neighbors were jealous. Had they tasted this chicken, they would have been even more so. Thank you for this heavenly recipe.
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Terry 🙂 Thanks so much, and I’m SO glad you loved the recipe! I always get irked when I run out of breading, so I’m glad you found there was plenty to do the job 🙂
angel says
Hi. This sounds and looks amazing!!!! Dumb question. Is the parmesan from a jar or fresh grated? Thanks
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Angel 🙂 Not a dumb question at all! I use freshly grated 🙂
eva says
I made these tenders a few weeks ago and they were delicious, full of flavor! I am going to make them again tonight yum! thanks for sharing,
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Eva 🙂 I’m so glad to hear that you loved these chicken tenders!!
Kara says
Tried these for dinner tonight and they were absolutely delicious!! They will definitely become a regular around this house.
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Kara! 🙂 I’m SO happy to hear that you loved these chicken tenders!!
Beth says
can you give us the nutritional info on this recipe please! Thx 🙂
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Beth 🙂 I don’t post nutritional information, as I’m not an expert on that… but feel free to import the ingredients into a calorie counter of your choice 🙂
JoAnna says
Thank you so much for the recipe. I just made them this evening and the butter all melted off and a lot of the cheese came off. Just a big buttery mess in the pan and the tenders are not crisped at all. Followed your recipe exactly and was wondering if you had any ideas what I might have done wrong. Thanks in advance for your help.
The Chunky Chef says
Hi JoAnna. I’m so sorry it didn’t turn out as you’d hoped, I know how frustrating that can be! Without being there cooking with you, I can’t say for sure, but maybe the “breading” wasn’t pressed into the chicken enough?
Haley says
Hi,
Do you have the nutritional values for this and how many people it serves? Thank you!
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Haley 🙂 As I’m not a nutritionist, I don’t feel comfortable providing nutritional values for my recipes, but you could use something like http://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/calculator and enter the ingredients if you’d like 🙂 The 2 lbs of chicken would feed about 6-8 people, but of course that all depends on how much they eat 🙂
Pam Fuller says
What is the matter with some people how many times do you have to say that you tried to change the name!!
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Pam 🙂 This is one of those posts that definitely brings out some strong feelings in people! Whew… since I changed the title the comments have died down a bit, but yeah, occasionally, enough is enough!
christy says
loved the flavor of these (and I didn’t have any paprika so had to sub in chili pepper and they were still great).
but…mine weren’t so crispy. any suggestions?
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Christy 🙂 Glad to hear you loved the flavor! If you found the original method didn’t make for very crispy chicken tenders, alternatively, you could place a wire rack (like a cooling rack) on top of a baking sheet, spray the wire rack with cooking spray and place the chicken tenders on that and bake them. This will allow the hot air to circulate and hopefully get the tenders crispier 🙂 I also love to broil the tenders for a minute or so at the end to crisp up the tops a bit more.
Carole says
Hi. I want to try these but was going to replace butter with egg dip. Has anybody tried this?
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Carole 🙂 I haven’t tried it that way, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. If you try it, I’d love to know how it turned out 🙂
Lisa Jones says
I made these with butter and also a batch with egg, they turned out pretty much the same, so if you prefer to use egg, feel free! They were delicious, by the way.
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Lisa 🙂 I’m so glad to hear you loved them! Also, great to know they turn out with the egg as well 🙂
Samantha says
Unfortunately my family did not like this so much. It looked good, surprisingly crispy for no breading. But they didn’t like all the spices. Had to use my emergency pizza stash!
The Chunky Chef says
Hi Samantha, thanks for coming by to comment! I’m sorry your family didn’t enjoy these tenders as much as all the other people have :/ Unfortunately, people have different tastes and some don’t like as much spice and flavor as others. Glad you had some pizza on hand though!
T says
Food looks good. But I can NOT believe anyone would have the audacity to name a food recipe after a drug that is killing so many of our youth! That part of this recipe is tacky, distasteful and heartless.
The Chunky Chef says
As I mentioned in the post… I did NOT come up with the name for these. But thank you for taking the time to comment