Pickle Brined Chicken Tenders can be made in the air fryer or the oven.  They’re a nice, lightened-up way to make chicken fingers!

You can always spot chicken tenders on a happy hour menu… and kids beg to eat the frozen variety of chicken tenders at home too.  But they’re so much better when you make them homemade. And this recipe seriously couldn’t be much easier.  These chicken tenders turn out completely moist and tender- just the way good chicken should be! They can either be made in the air fryer or the oven.  Instructions for both are included in the recipe.

The recipe comes from a new book by my friend Gina Holmolka (founder of Skinnytaste.com): The Skinnytaste Air Fryer Cookbook. Gina also has developed a new kind of air fryer branded as the Skinnytaste Air Fryer (you can purchase it on Amazon)!  So exciting!  Using an air fryer means that you’ll use hardly any oil in the recipes, and the food will cook more quickly than on the stovetop or in the oven. This is my first air fryer. I’ve tried a couple of recipes.  And now I want to air fry everything!

The book is packed with 75 healthy recipes for all meals of the day. Almost every single recipe is accompanied by a photo. Here are some recipes that are definitely on my MUST-TRY list: Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Icing, Petite Spiced Pumpkin Bread, Baked Clam Dip, Loaded Zucchini Skins, Asian Turkey Meatballs with Hoisin Sauce, Carne Asada Salad, Meat-Lover’s Pizza Stuffed Peppers, Crab Cake Sandwiches with Cajun Mayo, Buffalo Cauliflower Nuggets and Crispy Sweet Potato Fries.

Pickle Brined Chicken Tenders

I had to try out my new air fryer, and my kiddo requested that I try making the Pickle Brined Chicken Tenders.  The first thing you have to do is brine the chicken tenders in pickle juice for 8 hours (I only brined for 4 hours, and the tenders turned out perfect).  We always have pickles on hand, so it was easy for me to save the juice for the brining.  You can plan to do the same. The brining is an important step. It’s the pickle juice that will help that chicken take on its tenderness and remain nice and juicy after cooking.

If you’re not a huge fan of pickles, don’t worry… they really will not taste much like pickles at all.  My son absolutely despises pickles.  I did not share how these were made, and he ate them and enjoyed them without noticing any pickle flavor.

After brining, the brine is drained and discarded, and the tenders are patted dry with paper towels.  Then they’re dipped in egg and then into a mixture of seasoned regular and seasoned panko breadcrumbs.  After that, they’re set into the pre-heated air fryer and cooked for 10 minutes. Halfway through cooking, you’ll open the air fryer and turn each tender over. You’ll do this twice to make room for all twelve chicken tenders.  

How to make Pickle Brined Chicken Tenders in the Oven:

You can most definitely make these in the oven too.  In fact, in Gina’s book… she shares instructions for an oven option for most of the recipes in the book! For the chicken tenders, you’ll bake them at 425 degrees in the lower third of the oven for 8 to 10 minutes.  Then you’ll turn them over and bake for an additional 6 minutes.

Serve with ketchup or ranch dressing or just on their own.  They’re delicious!

Here are a few more recipes using chicken tenders that you might like to try:

• Chicken Fingers with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
• Thai Chicken Tenders with Broiled Pineapple Slaw
• Baked Parmesan Chicken Tenders
• Hoisin Orange Chicken Tenders

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