In grade school, whenever my mom let my sisters and me pick where we stopped for lunch, McDonald’s was the default choice. I always ordered the chicken McNuggets with honey for dipping, a habit that, in retrospect, I’m surprised my mother endorsed. She would have had no issue with the chicken nuggets—it’s the prospect of an open container of honey on the loose in the back seat that baffles me. Maybe I was neater than I remember. Or maybe the few minutes of silence the chicken strips and honey bought her were worth risking a sticky seatbelt.
These days, I’ve moved on from honey to mustard as my baked chicken tender dip of choice. (Does that mean I’m less sweet than I used to be? Mom, don’t answer that.) I’m also much more apt to make my own homemade chicken tenders versus pulling through a drive-through. Making your own baked chicken tenders from scratch is fairly quick and easy. (Plus, thanks to the air fryer, you can make crispy Air Fryer Chicken Tenders with barely any oil and grease!) Unlike heavy drive-through fare, homemade chicken tenders are healthy and something you can feel good enjoying on a regular basis (especially these Grilled Chicken Tenders).
About These Homemade Chicken Tenders
Today’s baked Honey Mustard Chicken Tenders combines my chicken finger favorites of then and now: honey and mustard. I used both to make an easy buttermilk honey mustard chicken marinade, then breaded the chicken in whole wheat Panko bread crumbs. The marinade locks in the honey mustard chicken’s moisture and gives it a lightly sweet, zippy flavor, and the crunchy Panko bakes into a crispy, golden crust. To make sure every spec of the honey mustard chicken’s surface area was properly coated with Panko, I first dipped the chicken strips in egg whites. You can separate the eggs yourself, or use liquid egg whites.
Although these baked Honey Mustard Chicken Tenders would be fantastic dipped in just about anything, I decided to take the honey mustard factor one step further by making a quick Greek yogurt honey mustard dipping sauce. It took about 10 seconds to stir together and was well worth the effort. The yogurt dip’s cool, creamy contrast with the crispy Honey Mustard Chicken Tenders makes for one happy meal!
More Homemade Versions of Childhood Favorites
Crispy Asian Chicken Tenders Mozzarella Sticks Jalapeno Poppers Tater Tots English Muffin Pizza Baked Fried Chicken
What Should I Serve with Chicken Tenders?
Salad. This Anytime Arugula Salad would be a tasty, fresh side dish. Vegetables. Roasted Frozen Broccoli is a healthy side for these tenders. Fries. For a crowd-pleasing side, serve your tenders with Crispy Baked Fries.
