Quick and easy Garlic Butter Chicken Tenders go great in wraps, salads, sandwiches or just on their own with a dipping sauce. Cooked on the stove top in minutes and wrapped up in a garlic butter sauce.
Today I’m bringing yet another easy Chicken Tender recipe! Yes friends, we have a lot of chicken tender recipes here on my page. They are affordable, easy to cook versatile and everyone in my house loves them. If you are looking for something easy to make with the kids being out of school soon, make these. You can easily double or triple the batch for bigger crowds and don’t forget the Country Fries on the side.
What are These Chicken Tenders Like
- Difficulty – This recipe is so easy! It’s uses minimal ingredients and takes a total of about 20 minutes.
- Taste – This is a simple recipe that brings great flavour. The chicken has a golden crust on the outside and it’s so tender inside. The garlic butter at the end levels it up an extra notch.
- Serving – As an appetizer, this will serve about 4 people. If you are serving it as a main course, I would say two servings. In the recipe card at the end of the post you can easily adjust the serving size up or down.
Ingredients
- Chicken – This recipe uses chicken tenders. Chicken tenders are a little different from chicken breast. They are, in fact, tenderloins that are located underneath the chicken breast along the breastbone. And like chicken breast, each chicken contains two tenderloins. Chicken tenderloins are much smaller and thinner than the chicken breast. Therefore, they do cook much quicker.
- Garlic powder – Garlic powder adds an extra layer of flavour to the chicken.
- Salt – Just regular table salt.
- Black Pepper – Fresh cracked black pepper works great.
- Olive oil – I used extra virgin olive oil to cook the chicken tenders.
- Butter – I used unsalted butter for the garlic butter.
- Garlic – Fresh minced garlic works best for this recipe.
- Parsley – Fresh minced parsley pairs really well with the garlic butter.
NOTE, The full recipe and ingredient list can be found at the end of the post in the recipe card.
Instructions
- Season chicken – In a large bowl, combine the chicken tenders with the garlic powder, salt and black pepper. Stir well to combine and set aside.
- Cook chicken – Set a large skillet over medium to high heat and add the olive oil. Add the chicken tenders and cook for about 4 minutes, flip over and continue cooking for a further 4 minutes or until cooked through. Turn off the heat and remove the chicken tenders from the skillet.
- Make garlic butter – In the same skillet set over medium heat add the butter and allow it to melt, about 1 – 2 minutes. Add the garlic and give a good stir until it sizzles. Reduce heat to low, add the parsley and stir well. Add the chicken tenders and coat completely with the garlic butter.
- Serve – Remove from pan and serve extra garlic butter over the chicken.
Recipe Tips
- Watch cooking time – These cooked perfectly for me in about 10 minutes. Yours may cook a little quicker or take a little longer. Depending on your stove, pan and the thickness of your chicken tenders.
- Cooking chicken on the stove top – It’s best to cook the tenders in a heavy bottomed skillet. Heavy bottomed skillets cook food evenly and they have even heating. Some thinner skillets and pans heat up too quickly and then food will burn or stick.
- Allow chicken to rest – It’s best to allow chicken to rest about 5 minutes after removing it from the heat. This will ensure the juices stay inside the and chicken will be more tender and juicer.
Substitutions
- Chicken tenders – I used pretty small sized chicken tenders for this recipe. You could use whole chicken breast. You could cut the chicken in small pieces and put it on skewer sticks. Even drumsticks, thighs or wings would work. Keep in mind cooking time will vary with the type of chicken you are using.
- Seasoning – I just used salt and pepper for this recipe. Feed free to use different seasonings for different flavours. You could use Everything Bagel Seasoning, Homemade Mild Taco Seasoning or the Homemade Cajun Seasoning.
- Can be cooked under a broiler in the oven – Place the chicken tenders on a baking sheet and place directly under the broiler in the oven. Cook them for about 10 minutes per side or until cooked through.
What To Serve With These Chicken Tenders
Chicken tenders go great with Salads, in wraps, on their own with any kind of dipping sauce. Here’s a few dishes you might like to serve them with.
- Crispy Oven Fries
- Beer Battered Onion Rings
- Zucchini Fritters
- Cheesy Garlic Fingers
- Stove Top Macaroni and Cheese
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can cook chicken tenders in the slow cooker. In fact like the Slow Cooker Chicken Taquitos, the slow cooker is a great way to cook chicken tenders. Because chicken tenders are so small, they should only take about four hours in the slow cooker.
No, chicken tenders and chicken strips are not the same. Chicken tenders are the entire chicken tenderloin. Chicken strips are pieces of chicken cut from the chicken breast.
As easy as chicken is to cook, it’s also really easy to over cook chicken and then it becomes really dry. Chicken is cooked perfectly at 165 degrees F/74 degrees C. The best way to tell is to use a meat thermometer. Just insert it into the chicken temperature and you will clearly see the internal temperature of the chicken.
Yes, most chicken tender recipes can be prepared about 24 hours in advance. However, be careful if the marinade contains a lot of acid like lemon or lime juice. These will break down the fibres in the chicken and should only be marinated for a few hours.
Honey Garlic Chicken Tenders
Cajun Chicken Tenders
Tandoori Chicken Tenders
Garlic Butter Chicken Tenders
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken tenders
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley minced
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the chicken tenders with the garlic powder, salt and black pepper. Stir well to combine and set aside.
- Set a large skillet over medium to high heat and add the olive oil. Add the chicken tenders and cook for about 4 minutes, flip over and continue cooking for a further 4 minutes or until cooked through. Turn off the heat and remove the chicken tenders from the skillet.
- In the same skillet set over medium heat add the butter and allow it to melt, about 1 – 2 minutes. Add the garlic and give a good stir until it sizzles. Reduce heat to low, add the parsley and stir well. Add the chicken tenders and coat completely with the garlic butter.
- Remove from pan and serve extra garlic butter over the chicken.
*A note on times provided: appliances vary, any prep and/or cook times provided are estimates only.
Thanks For Stopping By & Hope To See You Soon!
