Crispy Panko Chicken Tenders (Printable)

Golden chicken tenders coated in seasoned panko, air-fried to crispness and finished with spicy hot honey.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Chicken

01 - 1.1 lb boneless, skinless chicken tenders
02 - 1 tsp kosher salt
03 - ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

→ Dredging Station

04 - ½ cup all-purpose flour
05 - 2 large eggs
06 - 2 tbsp water

→ Coating

07 - 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
08 - 1 tsp garlic powder
09 - 1 tsp smoked paprika
10 - ½ tsp onion powder
11 - 2 tbsp olive oil or neutral oil spray

→ Hot Honey

12 - ¼ cup honey
13 - 1 to 2 tsp hot sauce (such as Frank's RedHot or Sriracha), to taste
14 - ½ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)

# Directions:

01 - Preheat the air fryer to 400°F for 5 minutes.
02 - Pat chicken tenders dry and season evenly with kosher salt and black pepper.
03 - Set up three shallow bowls: one with flour, one with beaten eggs mixed with water, and one with panko combined with garlic powder, smoked paprika, and onion powder.
04 - Dredge each tender in flour, shake off excess, dip into egg wash, then coat thoroughly with the seasoned panko mixture.
05 - Lightly spray or brush both sides of the breaded tenders with olive oil or neutral oil.
06 - Arrange tenders in a single layer in the air fryer basket and cook for 7 to 8 minutes. Flip and continue air-frying for another 6 to 7 minutes until golden and cooked through to an internal temperature of 165°F.
07 - While chicken cooks, gently warm honey, hot sauce, and red pepper flakes over low heat in a small saucepan until combined, avoiding boiling.
08 - Remove tenders from the air fryer and immediately drizzle with hot honey. Offer extra hot honey alongside if desired.

# Expert Hints:

01 -
  • The panko coating gets shatteringly crisp in the air fryer without deep frying, so you skip the oil splatters and post-cooking cleanup guilt.
  • Hot honey has this addictive sweet-spicy thing going on that makes even plain chicken feel like you're eating something fancy.
  • The whole thing comes together in 30 minutes, which means weeknight dinner without the scramble.
02 -
  • Pat the chicken absolutely dry before any seasoning—even a little moisture will cause the coating to slide around and not adhere properly, and you'll end up with patchy breading.
  • The hot honey must go on while the tenders are still hot, because the warmth lets it soak into the coating slightly and makes the whole thing taste cohesive instead of like two separate components.
03 -
  • Make the seasoned panko mixture the night before and store it in a sealed container—it keeps the spices from settling and makes the actual cooking process faster and calmer.
  • If you're cooking for a crowd, bread all the tenders at once and arrange them on a tray in the fridge for up to an hour before air frying; this lets the coating set and adhere better during cooking.
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