How to make perfectly crispy frozen chicken tenders in air fryer or Ninja Foodi! Way better than when you cook breaded frozen tenders in the oven. This is how to make them taste like theyโre from a restaurant.
Air Fryer Frozen Chicken Tenders
This easy air fryer recipe is probably by girlsโ favorite snacks, or lunch. Now that theyโre older they can make them by themselves. Itโs so nice when they reach that age. ๐ Just preheat, pop as many in as they would each like and in just a few minutes itโs like eating at Chick Fil A but way cheaper.
Ingredient Notes
- You are going to use a bag of breaded and frozen chicken tenders that has not been defrosted. Cook time below is accurate for meat right out of the freezer.
- There isnโt a necessity to add any seasonings if you donโt want however it will enhance the flavor if you do. Choices would be garlic salt, onion powder, Lawryโs seasoned salt we love or even a sprinkle of Old Bay is great.
Forget about using the microwave anymore, that leaves these soft and limp. We all want crispy chicken tenders that crunch with every bite right?
Now you can have them right at home without frying in oil. Just a light spray if you want to get them super crispy, or none at all works too. This is a game changer friends.
We started with air fryer frozen chicken nuggets and I couldnโt believe the difference. I mean I had been making these for my 3 girls for years and years.
Always thought โman I wish I could get them crunchy just like McDonalds nuggetsโ but there really wasnโt a way to do that back then.
Fast forward when my oldest became a teen and this magical hot air machine came out. I couldnโt wait to get my hands on one yโall. First time I tried it out I was in love. A quick cook time plus how crunchy the outsides got. I even ate them for lunch that day!
How long to cook frozen chicken tenders in air fryer
Just check out the temp and timing on our air fryer cook times but for the breaded Applegate, Tyson and Perdue brands we tried they landed right at 8 minutes to cook with 5 minutes beyond that to sit in the machine, not bad! In that time you can get your dipping sauces ready for lunch. ๐
If you like quick and easy meals that get crispy, including Frozen Pot Pie in Air Fryer in the afternoonโฆthis is the way to cook all the things! You will never go back to the oven again ever.
- If you want to make a low carb version, try our air fryer chicken tenders no breading recipe.
- These homemade Ninja foodi chicken tenders are great wrapped with bacon. They take 12 minutes to 14 minutes to cook with bread crumbs.
- Then try crispy chicken legs in air fryer and air fryer frozen corn dogs next, your kids will love these too.
Of course you can use ketchup, but our favorite for chicken strips would be all of our Dipping Sauce for Chicken Wings choices here! We use this on our frozen chicken tenders Instant Pot pieces too.
Printable recipe card and nutritional information for this brand of tenders is below. That will vary with the size of each piece and/or brand used.
Air Fryer Frozen Chicken Tenders Recipe
Equipment
- 1 air fryer
Ingredients
- 1 bag frozen chicken strips
- 1 pinch salt and pepper, to taste when done
Instructions
- Preheat air fryer to 400 degrees.
- Lay frozen tenders in one layer, not overlapping, in basket and cook for 8 minutes. (timing will vary slightly depending on how large and thick your pieces are)
- When time is up leave them in the closed basket for 5 minutes so the middle can continue to heat up.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Ninja Foodi Variation
Want to try other versions of fried chicken tenders? If you use a Foodi you will use the lid that is attached with the air fry button. The cook time remains the same, about 8 minutes with some time to rest in the warm basket when done as well. Total timing is about 13 minutes.
If you love extra crispy food and quick recipes, here are some resources to start with:
- My Favorite models are this Cosori or for a dual machine, the Foodi.
- You can find more Ninja Foodi recipes here as well; bookmark them both!
- It is best practice to put food into a hot basket. this is how to preheat air fryer first.
- Hereโs a printable free air fryer cooking time chart here for your fridge.
I think I have to. Hear. It !!!!!!
Was what I was just looking for to finish a leftover bag from a local shop. Surprised it worked in the foodi grill
Lol no one cares what your kids like, just make with the recipe, hack.
This was not enough time for the Hy-Vee store brand chicken tenders we have; my guess is that theyโre larger than the brand you used. It would be nice to see a guide based on approximate weight per piece. Thanks though, this was a great start for me!
Every brand will be slightly different. Even in the same bag there are smaller and larger pieces. Just use the temp and general timing and check, add more time for larger pieces and remove ones that are smaller a bit earlier.
They all tasted very good but I overdid mine. Again. I did them for a little longer instead of letting them sit with the cover down because I was in a hurry. I will try your method next time. Iโm sure it would have worked out great.
Just received an air fryer as a gift. Anxious to try it with the frozen chicken strips I have on hand. Glad to have found your recipe!!
I used Blue and Gold Chicken Tenders and some of the pieces are a little oversized. I cooked at 400 with a 5 minute pre-heat. I cooked for 10 minutes!! PERFECT!!! Thanks for the air cooker advice!!
Tricia C
Oklahoma City
Yay!
This was very helpful! Thank you.
Found this by Googling and it was JUST RIGHT! Tasted like they were right out of a fryer from a restaurant.
Totally!! GAme changer