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AIR FRYER SOUTHERN FRIED CHICKEN TENDERS

Air Fryer Southern Style Chicken Tenders

4 from 2 votes
Author: Fork To Spoon
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
Servings: 2 Servings

Description

Air Fryer Southern Style Chicken Tenders are amazing! If you have been looking for the PERFECT air fryer chicken strip recipe, this is going to be one of your favorites!

Ingredients 

  • 1 pound chicken tenderloins
  • 2 cups buttermilk
  • 1 cup Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup cornstarch
  • 2 tablespoons pickle juice
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 1/2 cup breadcrumbs, plain

Instructions

  • Place the raw chicken in a bowl or Ziploc bag. Using a fork, carefully poke holes in the chicken. Next, add the buttermilk on top of the chicken—cover and place the chicken in the fridge to soak in the buttermilk overnight. 
  • When you’re ready to cook the chicken, remove it from the fridge. 
  • Preheat the air fryer to 375 degrees F, air fryer setting.
  • Place the corn muffin mix in a large bowl, add the egg, flour, cornstarch, pickle juice, and water. Mix well. 
  • It should be the consistency of a slurry or a loose batter. 
  • Pour the bread crumbs into a *separate bowl.
  • Using a fork, individually dip each chicken tenderloin into the batter, coating it completely. Then remove it from the batter,  let any excess batter drip off into the bowl. 
  • Next, dip it into the bread crumbs, coating it completely on all sides
  • Place it right in your air fryer basket. You do not need to spray the basket with any cooking spray or oil.
  • Make one layer of chicken tenders, leaving a half-inch or so in between each piece of chicken, so they don’t touch. 
  • You may have to do a few batches, depending on how big your air fryer is. It took me two different batches. 
  • Place the basket in the air fryer and cook for about 10 minutes.
  • Repeat until you’ve cooked all of your chicken.
  • Chicken is done when the coating is a golden brown, and the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. It should be all white throughout the middle. 
  • Allow chicken to cool for a few minutes before serving.
  • Sprinkle with a little sea salt.
  • Plate, serve, and enjoy!

Equipment

  • Air Fryer
  • Cooking Spray
  • Parchment Paper, optional

Notes

  • This chicken is soaked in buttermilk overnight so that it’s perfectly tender! Then it’s breaded and cooked in the air fryer until it’s crunchy and delicious! Homemade chicken tenders ready in less than 20 minutes! 
  • Try pairing these delicious chicken tenders with ketchup, bbq sauce, or honey mustard!
  • Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix is commonly found in grocery stores and supermarkets as well as amazon. If you can’t find it, you can use yellow cornmeal in its place or add additional All-Purpose Flour in its place. Keeping the measurements the same (So, a cup for a cup.).
  • By soaking the chicken in buttermilk overnight really helps tenderize the chicken! If you don’t have buttermilk, you can make it.  Combine 2 cups of milk with 2 Tbsp of lemon juice or white vinegar. 
  • Your chicken should come out with a nice crunchy,  golden brown breading. If, for any reason, you’re not getting that color you want.  You can try spraying the top with a little cooking spray or drizzling a tiny bit of melted butter on top before it’s fully done cooking. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1ServingCalories: 1182kcalCarbohydrates: 156gProtein: 81gFat: 23gSaturated Fat: 8gPolyunsaturated Fat: 5gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0.04gCholesterol: 265mgSodium: 1922mgPotassium: 1534mgFiber: 8gSugar: 17gVitamin A: 599IUVitamin C: 3mgCalcium: 518mgIron: 7mg