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pile of air fryer chicken tenders on cutting board with parchment paper
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5 from 9 votes

Potato Chip Air Fryer Chicken Tenders

Fresh chicken tenders are dipped in a seasoned egg mixture, then coated in salty crushed potato chips.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: chicken fingers, chicken strips
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 2937kcal
Author: The Chunky Chef

Ingredients

  • 3 lbs chicken tenders (approximately 12-14 tenders)
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 Tbsp all purpose flour
  • 2 Tbsp mayonnaise
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp onion powder (optional)
  • 1/4 - 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 13 oz bag kettle cooked potato chips see chef tip #2 below

Instructions

Prepare

  • Add potato chips to a food processor and pulse until crushed into crumbs. Alternately, you can also add the chips to a resealable plastic bag, and crush with a rolling pin or empty skillet.
  • Line up 2 shallow bowls next to an empty plate. In one of the bowls, add eggs, flour, mayonnaise, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper. Whisk together the egg mixture until smooth. In the second bowl, add potato chip crumbs.
  • Preheat air fryer to 400°F.

Bread chicken

  • Add chicken tenders, one at a time, to the egg mixture, turning to coat all sides, letting the excess drip off.
  • Next add the chicken to the potato chip crumbs, turning and patting/pressing to coat all sides in the crumbs.
  • Finally, transfer the chicken to the prepared plate. Repeat with all remaining chicken tenders.

Air fry

  • Spray the basket of the air fryer with cooking spray (we like to use an olive oil or avocado oil spray), then place about 5-6 chicken tenders into the basket. Spray the tenders with a little more oil spray. Leave some space in between each tender, to make sure the hot air can really circulate.
  • Air fry for 5-6 minutes, then turn chicken tenders over, spray lightly with oil spray, then air fry another 5 minutes.
  • Chicken tenders should be golden brown on both sides, and have reached an internal temperature of 165°F.

Serve

  • Serve warm, with any dipping sauces you'd like.

Notes

  1. Recipe cook time assumes air frying the chicken tenders in 2 batches.
  2. Our favorite chip to use is Kettle brand potato chips, in the sea salt flavor, but feel free to use your favorite.
  3. Calorie count is per serving (and an estimate), but the calculator assumes all potato chips are used, when in reality, you'll definitely have a bit leftover after breading the chicken.
  4. Step by step photos in the post above depict a halved version of this recipe.

Oven Directions:

  1. All ingredients remain the same.
  2. Preheat oven to 400°F.
  3. Add breaded chicken tenders to a baking sheet topped with an oven-safe wire cooling rack.
  4. Bake in preheated oven for 20-23 minutes, turning chicken tenders over halfway through, until golden brown and chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165°F.

Nutrition

Calories: 2937kcal | Carbohydrates: 266g | Protein: 82g | Fat: 178g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 44g | Monounsaturated Fat: 97g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 209mg | Sodium: 3296mg | Potassium: 6774mg | Fiber: 15g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 162IU | Vitamin C: 109mg | Calcium: 127mg | Iron: 8mg