Buttermilk Fried Chicken Tenders
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One of my most popular recipes, these chicken tenders are marinated in seasoned buttermilk and pan-fried to crispy, crunchy perfection.
Photo by Alexandra Grablewski (Chronicle Books, 2018)
Like most kids, my daughter prefers “kid food” to “grown-up food” any day of the week. Occasionally, it works to my advantage—a trip to McDonald’s makes excellent bribery—but most of the time I’m just dealing with a picky eater. Rather than desperately trying to coax her into eating dinner every night, sometimes I just make her favorites. These chicken tenders, marinated in seasoned buttermilk and pan-fried to crispy, crunchy perfection, are at the top of her list. They’re delicious plain, dipped in honey mustard sauce, or perched on top of a salad. And they’re not just for picky kids—everyone loves them.
What you’ll need To Make Buttermilk Fried Chicken Tenders
Step-by-Step Instructions
To marinate the chicken: In a large sealable bag, combine the chicken tenders with the buttermilk, paprika, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and salt. Seal the bag tightly and massage the chicken until it is evenly coated with buttermilk and seasoning.
Place in a bowl (in case of leakage) and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours.
When you’re ready to cook them, make the breading: In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika.
Whisk until well blended.
Add the buttermilk and stir with a fork until the mixture is evenly clumpy.
Remove the chicken tenders from the marinade a few at a time and toss into the breading mixture.
Be sure to press the chicken firmly into the breading so clumps adhere to the meat. (It’s a messy job: use one hand to remove the wet tenders from the bag and the other to toss in the breading.)
Set breaded tenders on a foil-lined baking sheet.
To fry the chicken: Line a baking sheet with a few layers of paper towels and set next to the stove. Add oil to a large, high-sided pot until the level reaches about 3/4-inch. Heat over medium-high heat until oil is shimmering (about 350°). (If a cube of bread sizzles when you drop it in, it’s ready.) Using tongs, place several chicken tenders in the hot oil without crowding the pan. Cook until golden brown on the bottom side, a few minutes, then flip and cook until the second side is also golden, a few minutes more.
Set the cooked tenders on the paper towel-lined baking sheet to drain.
Fry remaining tenders in batches adjusting the heat as necessary (if the tenders are browning too fast, lower the heat). Serve hot with honey mustard sauce.
Photo by Alexandra Grablewski (Chronicle Books, 2018)
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Video Tutorial
Buttermilk Fried Chicken Tenders
One of my most popular recipes, these chicken tenders are marinated in seasoned buttermilk and pan-fried to crispy, crunchy perfection.
Ingredients
For the Marinade
- 2 pounds chicken tenderloins
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
For the Breading
- 1½ cups all purpose flour
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 heaping teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon black pepper
- ¾ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¾ teaspoon paprika
- 3 tablespoons buttermilk
For Cooking
- 3-4 cups vegetable oil, for cooking
Instructions
- To marinate the chicken: In a large sealable bag, combine the chicken tenders with the remaining marinade ingredients. Seal the bag tightly and massage the chicken until it is evenly coated with buttermilk and seasoning. Place in a bowl (in case of leakage) and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours.
- To make the breading: In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika. Whisk until well blended, then add the buttermilk and stir with a fork until the mixture is evenly clumpy.
- Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil for easy cleanup. Remove the chicken tenders from the marinade a few at a time and toss into the breading mixture. Be sure to press the chicken firmly into the breading so clumps adhere to the meat. (It's a messy job: use one hand to remove the wet tenders from the bag and the other to toss in the breading.) Set breaded tenders on the prepared baking sheet.
- To fry the chicken: Line another baking sheet with a few layers of paper towels and set next to the stove. Add oil to a large, high-sided pot until the level reaches about ¾-inch. Heat over medium-high heat until oil is shimmering (about 350°). (If a cube of bread sizzles when you drop it in, it's ready.) Using tongs, place several chicken tenders in the hot oil without crowding the pan. Cook until golden brown on the bottom side, a few minutes, then flip and cook until the second side is also golden, a few minutes more. Set the cooked tenders on the paper towel-lined baking sheet to drain. Fry remaining tenders in batches adjusting the heat as necessary (if the tenders are browning too fast, lower the heat). Serve hot.
- Note: I find that it's hard to tell how golden the chicken is when it's immersed in the oil. It may only look lightly golden, but it's actually a perfect fried chicken golden brown. If you're unsure, simply pull a tender out of the oil and rest it on the paper towels to see the true color.
- Note: Nutritional information was calculated assuming that approximately ¼ cup of the oil is absorbed into the chicken tenders when frying.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cooked chicken tenders can be frozen for up to 3 months. To reheat, put the frozen tenders on a wire rack on top of a rimmed baking sheet and warm in a 350°F (175°C) oven until heated through and crisp, about 25 minutes, flipping halfway through.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (4 servings)
- Calories: 925
- Fat: 51
- Saturated fat: 1
- Carbohydrates: 75g
- Sugar: 5g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 41g
- Sodium: 1866mg
- Cholesterol: 96mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I teach culinary arts and love any new recipe to teach my students Mise en Place. This recipe is easy to follow and resulted in a flavorful, crispy tender that put a certain fast-food chicken restaurant on notice with my teenage daughter.
Well written. I do have one suggestion for amateur cooks out there. Use a thermometer to make sure the chicken is at 165 degrees to avoid salmonella…
Thank you for sharing your recipe!
Chef Mike
Whatever I did, the flour ‘dip’ was sticky, gloppy and resistant. So I backed off and dried out the chic tenders just a bit and then rolled them in panko one by one. Grandson Alex helped by monitoring the fry pan and we got it done. Guess what? Our buttermilk soaked tenders were tender, juicy and delish. Saved!
Total big time fan of the Jen Segal cooking blog…………………
This was a Sunday night treat. Just perfect and so tasty, thank you for another winner.
Could you add a little more advertising – trying to watch this video ads ads ads – and your blog OMG – you need to rethink the layout – adds every other paragraph?
I tried this recipe once a long time ago and loved it, I’m coming back to it today and asking if it absolutely HAS to refrigerate for 4 hours? I just don’t have that time.
No, that’s not an absolute must (and glad you enjoy them)!
As someone who is absolutely terrible at frying chicken, I can honestly say this recipe is PERFECTION! Crispy and crunchy on the outside, moist and tender on the inside! I used a small electric fryer, so that made maintaining the oil temperature much easier.
Can you make these ahead, freeze and reheat in oven?
Yes – they freeze and reheat nicely! See the bottom of the recipe for freezing/reheating instructions. Hope you enjoy!
I have been making panko chicken tenders for years. I decided to try this recipe. omg my new way of making my chicken tenders. I will also use it for a chicken sandwich. Amazing!!!
This recipe did not work for me. The coating didn’t adhere to the chicken and the clumps of batter fell off so that I pretty much had buttermilk marinated chicken without any crust. It was a lot of prep for chicken that was not at all as I expected.
Hi Suzie, I’m sorry you had a problem with these! It’s likely that your oil wasn’t hot enough. If you want to try them again, a good way to ensure the oil is hot enough is to drop a cube of bread into the oil; if it sizzles when you drop it in, it’s ready.
The best fried chicken tenders I have ever made! The chicken tenders were crispy on the outside and tender in the inside. Tasted way better than a restaurant version. I marinated the chicken for 4 hours and they came out perfect! I will be saving this recipe.
This is absolutely the best chicken tenders recipe EVER! Everyone I’ve served them to gobbles them up and asks for the recipe… they are moist and tender with superb flavour and crunch. You are my “go to” for recipes that never fail to impress.
They were delicious!
I don’t ever write reviews but I tried your buttermilk fried chicken last night, absolutely amazing all my family loved it. Have tried other of your recipes too, everyone has turned out perfectly. Cheesecake was a big hit.
Can you bake these please? If yes, what time and temperature?
Hi Marisa, I don’t recommend it. If you’d like a chicken tender you can bake, I’d recommend these. They are also best fried, but you can get away with baking them. If you go that route, I’d suggest baking them at 350°F for 15 – 20 minutes. Hope that helps!
FABULOUS!!! (Mine looked just like the picture!)
I only had two hours to marinate the chicken tenders, but they were very tender and flavorful. I
pan fried them in a shallow float of olive oil in a cast iron skillet. We can’t wait to have these again!
Not having buttermilk, the old standby worked great…adding 1 Tbl. white vinegar to 1 cup of milk and waiting ten minutes for it to thicken.
This is the best chicken tender recipe I have found over the years. Our sons request it for every important day we celebrate. I’m making it again today, but the link for the honey mustard sauce isn’t working. Is there any other place to find it?
So glad your boys like them! I’m sorry that link wasn’t working. I’m going to fix it now. Here is a link to the sauce. 🙂
I’ve made this twice now. The second time came out better. The first time the breading fell off while cooking. However, BOTH times I forgot about the long marinating time. They only got about 45 minutes in the marinade. I’ll do it again and hopefully I’ll remember to plan ahead. I’d do this more often, but I hate using so much oil and it’s a pain to dispose of.
Once it’s cool, strain the oil (I use a small metal mesh strainer) into a jar. Refrigerate the oil to use again. Unless I’m using it to fry fish or another strong-flavored food, I use it 2 or 3 times before disposing of it.
Hands down the best fried chicken tenders recipe I’ve made. This is my go-to recipe when frying chicken. Delicious on its own, in a salad, or with a side of gravy and mashed potatoes. If this is your first time frying chicken, I recommend boneless chicken. I have fried bone-in chicken using this recipe, but can be a bit tricky getting the temp just right.
Can you make this in an air fryer? Instead of using oil? Preparing today and hoping I can use the air fryer I just bought!!
Hi Lea, I don’t think these will work in an air fryer. Sorry!
This was better than any restaurant tenders I have ordered! And even as an adult, I love ordering them, but when I don’t, now I snag a sample of my kids’, so I would know! I followed the seasoning recipe exactly. Marinated it for about 5 hours. The flavor was amazing… not overpowering, goes well with any dipping sauce, but you could eat these by themselves because the flavor was so good. I bought a pack of tenders that was 1.10 lbs and that soaked up almost all the flour mix, so I’m not sure how 2 lbs would make it. We even fried up some french fries while I was breading the tenders. An amazing meal that my kids scarfed down. I have a few leftover… now to decided how to eat them! Honey Mustard wrap? I think so….
I marinated the chicken tenders per the recipe, but breaded them with panko as I was running short of time. I pan fried then in olive oil rather than deep frying them. Absolutely the best chicken tenders ever! Next time I will make per the coating recipe. This recipe will absolutely go into the rotation!
Thank you !! These are the best tenders we have ever had!! I am now making my 4 th consecutive batch – my kids love them so much !! Thank you ! Btw I chopped the chicken ti smaller pieces to make nuggets for more crunch. I esp appreciate this doesn’t use any egg as much son has an egg allergy.
It’s always been one of my cooking fears to deep fry. But your recipe made it so easy! This was a delicious recipe that I’ll do again.😊
I can’t believe that I could make something this good! Fantastic recipe; I followed it as closely as possible, including using a thermometer to make sure my oil was hot enough. I marinated my chicken for 4 hours. Will be making this again!
My grandkids are picky about their chicken tenders and after trying numerous recipes, I decided to try this one and WOW…. it was a hit. They loved it!!! This is now my go-to recipe for chicken tenders. Thank you!!!
I made this chicken for my husband and we loved it.I used chicken pieces (small bits with bones)and it still turned out beautifully. I am making it for the family for Easter. Loved it!
I was disappointed with this recipe. The batter fell off as it fried. It seemed to fry better as it set longer on the foil lined sheet pan.
After breading them, pop them back into the fridge for about 20 minutes. It helps.
So good!!! I had some Grillo’s pickles in my fridge so I added a little bit to the marinade and it was an excellent choice.
This is VERY DELISH! I’ve tried several fried chicken tender recipes and followed them to the T, but this one is tops!!! Thank you for a great and easy meal! My family loved it 👍
I loved it, it is such a good kids food!!!
These were so good!! This is the second recipe I’ve tried of yours (the first the Baked Ziti with Sausage), and both have been huge hits with my family! So glad I found you. Definitely adding both to our rotation. Thank you for helping me satisfy 2 picky kiddos! 🙂
Hello! Do you think these would work with gluten free flour for the breading? Thanks so much
Sure!
Thank you, I finally learned how to fry chicken at 70years old! This is the best ever! Great instructions and tips.
One question, what do I do with the leftover oil?
So glad you enjoyed them! Here’s some guidance on what to do with the oil.
I was distracted while making the coating and added too buttermilk and made a batter. 🤷♀️ They actually turned out great – kind of like tempura. My husband and son loved them.
Have used many different buttermilk chicken recipes and this is by far the absolute worst!
Ricky, I guess it’s subjective… 98% of the reviews say otherwise. Maybe 🤔 it’s not the recipe. Maybe you did something wrong 😑.
Delicious! I marinated all day while at work. We all loved these.
I made this recipe with boneless chicken thighs and marinated for an hour and it turned out great. An oil/candy thermometer is a must for temperature management, chicken was crispy without excessive oil.
Roughly how long on each side when cooking?
Hi Alexis, It really depends on the temperature of your oil and the size of the tenderloins, but about 2 to 3 minutes per side.
Hi! Would this recipe work for air fryer? Thank you!
Hi Lacie, I don’t think these will work in an air fryer. Sorry!
Sooooo good! I made nuggets and they turned out great. Restaurant quality. This recipe will definitely be on rotation with our family.
Will they be much drier if I use chicken breast? Not easy to find tenderloins where I live.
Thank you.
It should be fine, Bianca!
This is the best marinade and dredge I’ve ever tried from a recipe, and I fry a ton of chicken. It is flavorful and super easy to make.
These chicken tenders are the best! Completely worth the messy process. The honey mustard sauce is absolutely amazing, too!
I was just wondering if these will work on the stovetop or oven instead of a fryer?
Hi Nicole, you do deep fry these on the stovetop. Are you referring to just pan-sauteeing them? If so, I don’t recommend it. If you want to use that method, I’d suggest this recipe. Hope that helps!
OMG Jenn!!! Everything I have tried from you is always above. I just tried these and we are in shock . They are amazing.. Thank you always!!
Could you air fry these? How long and what temp?
Hi Hannah, I don’t think these will work in an air fryer. Sorry!
Can you marinade these for more than 24 hours?
Sure, that should be fine.
Hands down the best and the honey mustard is amazing my kids love when I make these tenders ty Jenn!
Made these today and they were delicious- my eldest son loved them but said can we make a zinger version using the same recipe?
Hi Angela, Glad these were a hit! I’m not familiar with zinger chicken so you may want to find a proven recipe for it. 🙂
Can you bread these chicken tenders ahead of time?
Sure, Angie, that should work. Hope you enjoy!
These are the best chicken tenders I’ve ever made or tasted. I’ve made them a few times now and they are delicious every time. I just follow your recipe and they’re perfect. They are a bit messy to make but very much worth it. Thank you for sharing the recipe 🙂
We used this recipe for a family of 6 (all love C-F-A) & said these things rocked! One thing we changed …. we made our buttermilk w/ 1-1/3 cups of whole milk & added 1 Tbsp. of white vinegar. **CHEF TRICK** Once the chicken had finished marinating, we emptied the Ziploc freezer bag & dumped the powdered seasoning directly into the bag, zipped it up & shooooook it until the seasoning completely covered the chicken. We then poured out the tenders on an aluminum foil covered baking sheet & rolled them around for extra coating!
Best chicken seasoning I’ve ever tried😋
I love this recipe so much! It’s definitely a winner! I am going to marinate it for 24 hours. Do you think that’s okay?
Sure, you can get away with 24 hours (and glad you like them)!
I have made this so many times I lost count. A true family favorite! A+++
Hi,
Any advise on freezing please ? I see you can make and freeze raw but I buy premade nuggets and tenders for the kids and I don’t think they are raw because cooking is simple 10mins in the oven or fry.
Is there a way I can do the same with these ?
Thank you.
Hi Lexa, You can cook and freeze these. See the bottom of the recipe for more specific freezer-friendly instructions. 🙂