Hot Honey Chicken Tenders are AMAZING! Made with a few simple ingredients, these take less than 30 minutes to cook in the air fryer or oven and are packed with flavor. This recipe is easy, crispy, and best of all can also be made gluten free!
Jump to:
- What Are Hot Honey Chicken Tenders?
- Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- How To Make Hot Honey Chicken Tenders
- Expert Tips
- Serving Suggestions For Hot Honey Chicken Tenders
- Can I Make My Own Hot Honey?
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Storage and Reheating Instructions
- Related Recipes
- Did you make this recipe?
- Hot Honey Chicken Tenders
What Are Hot Honey Chicken Tenders?
Hot honey chicken tenders are going to be your next obsession. Strips of chicken are coated in a crispy, panko coating and air fried or baked to perfection. The juicy chicken tenders are tossed in a homemade hot honey sauce, and the result is *chef's kiss*
You only need a few pantry staple ingredients to prepare them, and this entire dish is ready in less than 30 minutes.
Pair these sweet and spicy chicken tenders with potato salad or mac and cheese for a delicious, family friendly meal.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Made with just a few ingredients
- Chicken tenders can be baked or air fried
- They're ready in under 30 minutes
- Juicy on the inside, crispy on the outside
- Super flavorful with a delicious hot honey sauce
Key Ingredients
*full ingredients list and measurements can be found in recipe card below*
- Chicken: I prefer to use pre-cut chicken tenderloins (just make sure to remove the white tenderloin part) but you can also use chicken breast and cut them to size
- Egg whites: The egg whites help the breadcrumb mixture to stick to the chicken tenders
- Breadcrumbs: My favorite to use is gluten free panko, but you can use regular panko or even homemade breadcrumbs
- Hot sauce: This is the base for the sauce you'll spoon over the cooked chicken
- Honey: The honey is combined with hot sauce to make the most delicious sweet and spicy hot honey sauce
How To Make Hot Honey Chicken Tenders
1. Set up your breading station- add egg whites to a shallow bowl and seasoned panko breadcrumbs to another shallow bowl.
2. Dip the chicken tenderloins individually in egg whites first and then into the season breadcrumbs
3. Place breaded chicken tenders onto a parchment lined baking sheet and repeat the process until they're all breaded
4. Bake or air fry (instructions listed below) Until golden brown and crispy
5. Make the hot honey sauce by combining hot sauce and honey in a small saucepan, heat over medium/low heat until the sauce begins to bubble
6. Turn off the heat and use a spoon to drizzle the hot honey sauce over all of the cooked chicken tenders
7. Serve and enjoy!
Air Frying Instructions
1. Preheat your air fryer to 380 degrees F
2. Once preheated, take the basket out, grease the bottom of it, and place breaded chicken strips into the basket. Spray the top of each chicken strip liberally with avocado oil spray, and return the basket to the air fryer
3. Air fry at 380 F for 12 minutes, flipping halfway through
4. Take the golden brown chicken strips out of the air fryer, coat in sauce, and enjoy!
Baking Instructions
1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper
2. Lay the breaded chicken strips onto the parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 18-20 minutes, flipping halfway through
3. Once cooked, take them out of the oven, drizzle over the hot honey sauce, and enjoy!
Expert Tips
- Remove the tenderloin: Pre-cut chicken tenderloins often have a white tenderloin running through them. It's best if you can remove them because they're tough to chew
- Save the yolks: This recipe only calls for egg whites, but the yolks can be saved for scrambled eggs, chocolate chip cookies, or lemon curd
- Meal prep: Hot honey chicken tenders are a great recipe to meal prep! Keep the sauce separate, then spoon it oven right before you're ready to enjoy
- Family friendly: Hot honey chicken may be a little too spicy for little eaters, so set some of the cooked chicken aside for kids and allow adults to spoon the sauce over theirs as desired
Serving Suggestions For Hot Honey Chicken Tenders
These delicious, spicy honey chicken tenders are a great lunch or dinner option. Pair them with potato salad and fresh veggies for a healthy meal.
They're also good with mac and cheese or sweet potato fries if you want a meal that both kids and adults will love.
Can I Make My Own Hot Honey?
Yes, you can! This recipe is actually made with homemade hot honey and is a different sauce than store bought. However, store bought hot honey also works!
Frequently Asked Questions
If you'd prefer frying the hot honey chicken tenders you can. I'd recommend adding 1 inch of oil to a heavy bottom skillet and heating it to 375 degrees F.
Fry until golden brown on all sides then lay on a paper towel to drain excess grease.
Sure! Just cut the chicken tenderloins into 1 ½ inch chunks and proceed as listed in the recipe card.
Yes, these are fairly spicy. You can add more honey if you would prefer a sweeter sauce.
You can make them with gluten free panko breadcrumbs! I do it all the time they always turn out great.
If your chicken tenders are dry, then they're overcooked. You want the internal temperature to be 165 degrees F, you can use a meat thermometer or look for a rich golden brown color to form on the crust.
Storage and Reheating Instructions
STORING: Store any leftover hot honey chicken in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
FREEZING: Flash freeze chicken tenders on a parchment lined baking sheet first, then take frozen chicken tenders and place them into a freezer safe bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
REHEATING: To reheat, place hot honey chicken tenders onto a parchment lined baking sheet and heat in the oven at 325 F for 6-8 minutes. You can also microwave for 60-90 seconds.
Related Recipes
Did you make this recipe?
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PrintHot Honey Chicken Tenders
Hot Honey Chicken Tenders are AMAZING! Made with a few simple ingredients, these take less than 30 minutes to cook in the air fryer or oven and are packed with flavor. This recipe is easy, crispy, and best of all can also be made gluten free!
- Prep Time: 10 Minutes
- Cook Time: 12 Minutes
- Total Time: 22 minutes
- Yield: 5 servings 1x
- Category: Chicken
- Method: Air Fryer
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 2 pounds chicken tenderloins (white tenderloin removed)
- 2 egg whites
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ cup hot sauce
- ⅓ cup honey
- Avocado or olive oil spray
Instructions
- Decide if you're going to air fry or bake before starting (instructions listed below)
- Set up your breading station. In one shallow bowl add your egg whites and in another shallow bowl mix Panko breadcrumbs with salt, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, and black pepper.
- Take 1 chicken tenderloin and dip it into the egg whites, let the excess drip off, then coat the chicken entirely in the seasoned Panko mixture.
- Lay the breaded chicken onto a plate and repeat the breading process with the remaining tenderloins
- Once they're all breaded, it's time to cook
AIR FRYING INSTRUCTIONS:
- Preheat your air fryer to 380 degrees F
- Once preheated, take the basket out and spray the bottom lightly with avocado oil spray. Place the breaded chicken tenderloins into the air fryer, leaving space between them.
- Spray the top of the chicken liberally with avocado oil spray, then cook at 380F for 12 minutes, flipping halfway through
- Once that batch is cooked, place onto a wire rack on top of a baking sheet and cook any remaining chicken
BAKING INSTRUCTIONS:
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper
- Place the breaded chicken onto the baking sheet and spray the tops with avocado oil spray
- Bake for 18-20 minutes, flipping halfway through (spray the bottom once they're flipped)
- Place the cooked chicken onto a wire rack on a baking sheet to prepare for sauce
HOT HONEY SAUCE:
- Once all of the chicken is crisp and golden, you can make the sauce
- Add hot sauce and honey to a small saucepan and heat over medium/low heat until it begins to bubble
- When the hot honey sauce is bubbling, turn off the heat and spoon the sauce over the cooked chicken strips
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
Notes
- Remove the tenderloin: Pre-cut chicken tenderloins often have a white tenderloin running through them. It's best if you can remove them because they're tough to chew
- Save the yolks: This recipe only calls for egg whites, but the yolks can be saved for scrambled eggs, chocolate chip cookies, or lemon curd
- Internal temp: Chicken needs to be cooked to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F
- Meal prep: Hot honey chicken tenders are a great recipe to meal prep! Keep the sauce separate, then spoon it oven right before you're ready to enjoy
- Family friendly: Hot honey chicken may be a little too spicy for little eaters, so set some of the cooked chicken aside for kids and allow adults to spoon the sauce over theirs as desired
- Storing: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days
Keywords: hot honey chicken strips, hot honey chicken, chicken tenders with hot honey sauce
Lauren says
This hot honey chicken was delicious! We both couldn’t stop raving about it. Perfectly cooked in the air fryer too. Paired super well with Nicole’s potato salad (kind of cooled the meal down). I can imagine this would be a great game day recipe as well. Next time I might increase the honey or decrease the hot sauce just because it was a smidge spicy for my husband, but that’s just a personal preference!
★★★★★
Nicole Radcliffe says
This would be a fantastic recipe for game day, especially if you made it as chicken nuggets!
If you want it less spicy, you may want to do equal parts honey and hot sauce 🙂