Delicious finger food recipe for a perfect football night with our crispy chicken tenders recipe for crunchy chicken nuggets as a KFC copycat version. If you want to make these delicious hot chicken snacks yourself, you don’t need much time and only a few ingredients that you already have in the house. We’ll tell you how we make our crunchy chicken nuggets as delicious as if they were from Kentucky Fried Chicken – only homemade!
Crunchy and crispy chicken tenders recipe
Crispy chicken nuggets such as chicken nuggets or crispy chicken tenders are one of our most popular finger foods and, along with french fries, one of our fast food favorites. However, not all chicken nuggets are the same.
There are big differences, and if you’ve never eaten the crispy tenders at KFC and only know the chicken nuggets from McDonalds, you’re missing out. But sometimes there’s no Kentucky Fried Chicken around to enjoy a football night with a bucket full of chicken nuggets – that’s when we make our own crispy chicken tenders recipe.
Homemade delicious, crunchy crispy chicken tenders just like Kentucky Fried Chicken…
What are chicken nuggets?
Chicken nuggets are small, breaded pieces of chicken that are often cut into a distinctive shape and then deep-fried, like the classics at McDonalds. They are known for their crispy outer layer and the juicy, tender meat inside. Chicken nuggets are a classic on children’s menus and are loved by people of all ages. They taste particularly good with sweet and sour sauce.
What are chicken tenders?
In contrast to chicken nuggets, chicken tenders are longer, thinner strips of chicken breast that are also breaded and deep-fried. They are slightly larger than nuggets and often have a more tender texture. Chicken tenders are particularly popular because of their higher meat content and their versatility in sandwiches, wraps or simply on their own with a dip.
Crispy chicken tenders as a KFC copycat
The best crispy chicken pieces are available as Crispy Chicken Tenders or Crispy Chicken Stripes from KFC. That’s why I’ve found the best crispy chicken nuggets or crispy chicken tenders recipe for me, which comes amazingly close to the original taste and crispiness.
The real art lies in the preparation and seasoning. Crispy chicken nuggets and crispy chicken tenders, like those offered by KFC, have a unique flavor and perfect texture that sets them apart.
KFC is known for its secret blend of herbs and spices that add unparalleled flavor to every bite. In addition, each piece is rolled in a special breading that achieves a perfect crispy texture when deep-fried.
This combination of spicy note and crispy texture makes the nuggets or tenders irresistible. In our crispy chicken tenders recipe, we have achieved a very similar texture and the spices always vary a little, depending on your preference.
Make your own chicken tenders
You don’t need many accessories for our crispy chicken tenders recipe. A deep fryer or a large pan or pot with hot oil and you can fry them yourself. The secret is that you need a liquid and a dry coating.
Flour is the main ingredient in both coatings, with cornflakes in the outer dry coating for a crispy effect. This gives the best result for crispy chicken nuggets. However, you can also leave out the cornflakes and still get an absolutely delicious and slightly less crunchy result.
Snacks for football night
Of course, we don’t just stick to one finger food snack on a long evening of football TV. Even if it’s really unhealthy, it’s somehow part of it. I can’t imagine only eating vegetable sticks with dip while watching delicious American pizza commercials.
We’d love to show you lots more of our finger food snacks soon, where a cheese pizza or small pizza rolls always fit in well, of course. You don’t have to prepare everything yourself, but if you fancy fast food, it’s always the healthier alternative.
For us, classic Dr. Pepper from the can always goes well with our crispy chicken nuggets recipe. Nice and sweet with a light cherry flavor, a Dr. Pepper is the best drinkable USA version on the table for me. Otherwise, of course, many different dips and sauces go well with it. For me, a sweet BBQ sauce always goes best.
Crispy chicken tenders recipe – crunchy chicken nuggets (KFC Copycat)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 500 g chicken inner fillets elongated pieces approx. 5cm
- 1 tea spoon fine salt
- 1 tea spoon pepper
Breading 1 – liquid dip
- 120 g cake flour
- 1 egg
- 2 tea spoon fine salt
- 2 tea spoon pepper a bit bigger
- 2 tea spoon herb spice BBQ seasoning, paprika, chicken seasoning
- 90 g water, still
Breading 2 – dry breading
- 120 g cake flour
- 50 g corn flakes
- 40 g cornstarch
- 1 table spoon herb spice BBQ seasoning, paprika, chicken seasoning
Instructions
- First clean and dry the chicken breast fillets and cut into strips approx. 5 cm x 1 cm long – now season lightly with salt and pepper on both sides.500 g chicken inner fillets1 tea spoon fine salt1 tea spoon pepper
- Now mix the liquid dip breading by mixing the wheat flour with salt, pepper, egg and water until a slightly sticky mixture is formed. Depending on your preferences, you can also add other spices – we like BBQ spices that are not too hot and spicy.120 g cake flour1 egg2 tea spoon fine salt2 tea spoon pepper2 tea spoon herb spice90 g water, still
- Add the chicken breast fillet pieces to the mixture and toss until they are completely covered.
- Now prepare the dry breading by mixing the wheat flour, lightly crushed cornflakes, cornflour and spices in a bowl.120 g cake flour50 g corn flakes40 g cornstarch1 table spoon herb spice
- Fill the deep fryer or a large (wok) pan with oil and preheat to 145 °C.
- Dip the chicken breast fillets one by one into the dry breading and keep pressing the mixture down firmly. When all the pieces are breaded, you can now deep-fry them.
- Fry the chicken nuggets in 2-3 batches for approx. 5 minutes and then leave to cool slightly on a wire rack or kitchen towel for approx. 5 minutes.
- Finally, serve with a suitable dipping sauce and enjoy for football night!
Nutrition
Here’s to a crunchy evening with our crispy chicken nuggets recipe!
Thank you – really enjoyed your recipe! Tastes better than the original ones!
Thank you Khalee
Best recipe – tried it twice – better than the original!
Thank you Nathan! More fingerfood recipes will follow very soon!