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These gluten free chicken tenders, with the crispiest crust and the juiciest chicken, are breaded in a super easy, no-mess way. One bite, and this delicious, crowd-pleasing, and healthy dinner will be on repeat every week!
What makes this recipe special
These golden brown, crispy chicken strips taste like they were fried, even though they were baked in the oven.
Rather than dipping the raw chicken first in flour, then egg, and finally breadcrumbs, we make a super thick batter with egg, flour, mayo and spices. The batter is much less messy than dipping it separately, plus it's so thick it really clings to the chicken.
Plus, the strips are even crispier when you quickly and easily prep the raw dish ahead of time by letting the strips soak in the raw batter, covered, during the day. Coat in breadcrumbs and bake as directed about 20 minutes before you'd like to eat dinner.
How to make gluten free chicken tenders
1. Prepare the chicken
Slice skinless boneless chicken breasts into strips, cutting away any gristle or fat.
2. Make the coating batter
Whisk together mayonnaise, egg, salt, pepper, gluten free flour and savory spices in a mixing bowl. It should be smooth and soft, but thick.
3. Soak the chicken
Place the prepared chicken strips in the whisked batter, and toss to coat every piece of chicken evenly in the thick batter. Make sure it's coated on all sides. If you have the time, let the chicken sit at room temperature for at least 10 minutes or up to 8 hours, covered, in the refrigerator.
4. Coat in breadcrumbs
In a separate mixing bowl, place coarsely ground gluten free bread crumbs. Lift each chicken strip from the batter and press into the breadcrumbs on all sides. Make sure the strips don't have any bare spots without batter.
5. Place on a baking sheet
Place each piece of breadcrumb-coated chicken on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Leave just enough room between strips to spray with cooking spray on all sides.
6. Spray with oil
Spray the tops and sides of every strip generously with cooking oil spray. This will help them crisp and brown deeply and cook quickly.
7. Bake
Bake at 375°F for about 18 minutes, or until golden brown all over and measuring at least 165°F on an instant read thermometer so they're safe to eat. Since the batter is so thick, it protects the chicken from drying out so I like to bake the chicken until it reads closer to 185°F for an extra crispy shell.
Expert tips
I have never made a bad batch of gluten free chicken fingers using this method and recipe. Here are still a few tricks that can help guide you to success the very first time you make this recipe.
Use a very hot oven
If your chicken is really cold when you put it in the oven, the oven temperature will drop If you've prepared and soaked the strips in the refrigerator first, let them warm to closer to room temperature before you bake them or just plan to bake them a few minutes longer.
Prep the raw dish ahead of time
Batter the chicken and let it sit in the refrigerator for even 10 minutes before coating and baking it. The batter tenderizes the raw chicken pieces, and also helps protect them from the direct heat of the oven. Just slice the chicken strips and place them in the simple raw batter in the morning, before your day begins. Cover the bowl and place the battered but unbreaded chicken pieces in the refrigerator.
Tips for using the air fryer
I've made gluten free chicken nuggets in the air fryer, and you can use that same method to make these tenders crispy in the air fryer. Preheat your air fryer to 350°F, place the prepared strips in the air fryer basket, and spray lightly with cooking oil spray. Cook for 10 minutes, flip, and then continue to air fry until golden brown and the center of each registers at least 165°F (about 5 minutes more).
Changing up the spices
I like to make the simplest vegetable bouillon powder for this recipe, since I use it to make gluten free “Rice a Roni” all the time.
But I also sometimes substitute the bouillon with our gluten free taco seasoning with great results. Serve it with sriracha mixed with mayonnaise or sour cream, but only if you want rave reviews!
The vegetable bouillon powder just adds a rich, chicken-style flavor to the strips—even though it's vegetarian.
Be sure not to just leave out the herbs and spices, then. You'll want that flavor!
Ingredient substitutions
This gluten free chicken recipe is already also naturally dairy-free, so there's no need to discuss ingredient substitutions if you can't have dairy.
Mayonnaise is dairy free, but it's made from eggs and oil. There's also a separate whole egg in the batter.
Egg free
The mayonnaise helps seal in the moisture in the chicken, so that it bakes up crispy but still juicy every time. In its place, you can try a vegan mayonnaise. There are some really good ones, including Follow Your Heart brand “Vegenaise.”
In place of the whole egg, try a “chia egg.” That's made by combining 1 tablespoon ground white chia seeds and 1 tablespoon lukewarm water in a small bowl, and allowing it to sit until it gels.
Mayonnaise-free
If you can have eggs but you've run out of mayonnaise or just really don't want to use it, you can replace the 3 tablespoons of mayonnaise with 4 tablespoons neutral oil like canola, vegetable, or avocado oil whisked vigorously with the egg until it forms an emulsion.
Breadcrumb-free
If you don't have coarsely ground gluten free bread crumbs and don't want to make your own, you can use plain crushed gluten free crackers or a combination of crackers and crushed plain potato chips. I don't like using all potato chips since the dish tends to be oily.
Easy Gluten Free Chicken Tenders Recipe
Ingredients
For the easy vegetable bouillon powder
- 4 ½ teaspoons (8 g) nutritional yeast flakes
- 1 teaspoon dried onion flakes, can substitute 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon dried parsley
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon turmeric
For the chicken
- 1 ½ pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts
- 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 1 egg, any size
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ cup (36 g) superfine white rice flour, or gum-free gluten free flour blend
- 2 to 3 cups Panko-style gluten free bread crumbs, homemade or store-bought
- Cooking oil spray
Instructions
- Make the bouillon powder. In a small bowl, place all of the ingredients and whisk to combine well. Set the bowl aside.
- Trim the chicken breasts of any fat or gristle. Cut it into strips about 4” long x 3/4” wide x 1/4” thick. Set the chicken aside.
- In a medium-size bowl, place the mayonnaise, egg, salt, pepper, and bouillon powder blend. Whisk until very well-combined.
- Add the rice flour and whisk until very well-combined again. The batter will be thick.
- Using the tines of a fork, add all of the prepared chicken strips to the batter. Toss to coat all sides of each piece of chicken in the batter.
- At this point, the battered raw chicken can be covered and refrigerated for up to 8 hours.
- When you’re ready to bread and bake the chicken tenders, preheat your oven to 375°F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set it aside.
- Place 2 cups of gluten free bread crumbs in a medium-size bowl. Again using a fork, add about 1/3 of the battered chicken strips to the bowl at a time.
- Toss to coat all sides of each piece of chicken fully in the bread crumbs. Press the chicken pieces gently to help the crumbs adhere to the batter, and add more bread crumbs as necessary to coat all the chicken.
- Lift each piece of breaded raw chicken out of the bowl, one at a time, and place flat on the prepared baking sheet. The chicken pieces can be right next to one another, as long as they don’t overlap.
- Spray the tops of the chicken strips liberally with cooking oil spray.
- Place the baking sheet in the center of the preheated oven. Bake for about 18 minutes, or until the chicken strips are golden brown all over.
- Test the thickest pieces of chicken with an instant read thermometer. They should read at least 165°F (but will likely be closer to 185°F).
- Serve immediately with your favorite dipping sauce.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I didn’t have any breadcrumbs so I used some crushed up potato chips and they turned out awesome. Loved the mayo/egg/spice combo. Very yummy!
Good idea in a pinch, Chelsie! So glad you like the method, and thank you for sharing your experience!
Can I make and bake this a day ahead of time for a cold chicken tender for a pic nic?
Hi, Mardi, anything breaded tends to taste dry if not eaten right away. You can sprinkle it lightly with lukewarm water and reheat it in a 300°F toaster oven until warm throughout before packing and serving it, but don’t try to serve it cold.
Love these. Only changes are almond flour and add a li because that’s what I had and a little extra of every spice. These are by far our favourite, I make strips or nuggets and these are always adored. Chicken anywhere else is a disappointment now.
Thanks you for the great recipe!
Love it, Liz! Thanks for sharing that!
I don’t usually comment on recipes because most of the time I use them as an idea or guide on the process of making something and put my own spin on them. I made these tenders and stuck very close to the original recipe. The only things I changed was a little more garlic powder, no tumeric and I added a little dried dill. I also didn’t have fine rice flour so I used regular and let it sit in the fridge most of the day. I have to tell you, these we’re amazing! I had to go gluten free about 8 months ago and it’s been an interesting road. My daughter and I agree that this is the only tender recipe I will ever need. Thank you so much!
You’re so welcome, Kim. That’s a good idea in this instance, to let the grittier rice flour sit so it softens. In real baking recipes, it won’t get you all the way there, but in a recipe like this, I could see it working out just right. Thanks for sharing your experience!
Loved this! I didn’t have mayo so I used plain yogurt and it worked fine. The chicken was crunchy and delish. I will make it again!
Good to know that it worked with plain yogurt, Janet. Thank you for sharing your experience!
Delious, thank you for sharing.
You’re very welcome, Shelley! So glad you enjoyed the chicken tenders. We just had them last night in our house!
Can the chicken fingers be made up completely and then frozen raw ?
Hi, JK, that’s a good question and one thing in particular I haven’t tried. I think that would probably work, but unfortunately I can’t promise since I haven’t tried it! If you want to give it a try, I’d recommend freezing the prepared chicken strips in a single layer on lined baked sheet, then once frozen place them in a freezer-safe ziptop bag, and squeeze out all the air. Then, defrost in the refrigerator on a baking sheet, and bake as instructed.
Hi Nicole! The tenders were fantastic, gluten free or not. Followed your recipe completely. Thank you. My 2 & 5 year olds gobbled it and the older one gave it a 10/10 and wants it every Saturday!! Thank you for making this gluten free and dairy free.
Sincerely,
Dalia
That’s so great to hear, Dalia! I remember when my kids were that little, and I’d be on a high for days if one of them rated any dinner a 10/10! Well done!
Hi Nicole. Thank you for this. I spend so much money on fish fingers and breaded chicken! I didn’t have the garlic powder and onion powder so I used some Cajun seasoning. I will definitely get those 2 things and do this again! My 2 5 yr old son gave me 3 high 5s🤭
You’re so welcome, Stacy! This breading is amazing on fish fingers, too! So much easier than frying, and still so crispy. So glad you loved them. I remember those days with little ones. I love that you got 3 High 5’s out of it. What a win! ❤️
Hi!
I read through everything, including older comments/questions, but did not see what I needed. I cannot abide mayonnaise. I understand I may not be able to taste it; I just cannot handle the smell – never have! Can I sub sour cream or Greek yogurt – my usual go to’s?
I’ve been using your recipes since my kids gifted me your early cookbook many years ago.
Hi, Rosanna, I do talk about replacing mayonnaise, but recommend a vegan mayonnaise. I have actually made this recipe without mayonnaise using a combination of an extra egg whisked with about 2 tablespoons of neutral oil, whisked vigorously until emulsified. That’s essentially mayonnaise, reduced to its components. If you can have eggs, it’s not quite the same, but it works similarly. Thank you for being around for such a long time, and I’m so glad you’re still here!