Air Fryer Chicken Tenders cook up so crispy without deep frying or oil. Made with a pecan, Parmesan cheese and gluten free breadcrumb crust, these chicken tenders are EASY and QUICK to make. Kids LOVE these tenders!
One of my friends got me Reese Witherspoon’s new book for Christmas. It’s called Whisky In A Teacup and I absolutely love that darn book. Just like me, Reese is from Tennessee and her book just SCREAMS southern heritage. When I read it, I feel like I’m back at home in Tennessee on my front porch swing enjoying the summer nights.
I’ve actually met Reese. She was still attending high school at Harpeth Hall and she and her family came to eat dinner at the restaurant I used to work at, The Franklin Chop House. I think Reese had only been in a handful of movies by this time but the second she came in, I immediately knew who she was. And she was the cutest and sweetest little thing! So polite and smiles from ear to ear. I wasn’t her server that night, but I remember exactly what table she and her family were seated at, tables 57 and 58.
In her book, Reese shares a lot of her family recipes and I’ve tried a lot of them. One recipe she shares is for her Pecan-Crusted Chicken Skewers. These are literally baked chicken tenders on a stick. You may remember me talking about being on the fence about buying an Air Fryer back in this post, 13 Recipes That Will Convince You To Buy An Air Fryer. Well, I convinced myself and I bought an Air Fryer. Oh my goodness – I love my Air Fryer! So I decided to take Reese’s recipe chicken skewer recipe and turn it into an Air Fryer recipe. I switched some things up a bit to make these Air Fryer Pecan-Crusted Chicken Tenders gluten free.
Ingredients
Let’s talk about the ingredients in this Air Fryer recipe.
- Chicken Breast Tenders
- Salt
- Pepper
- Mayonnaise
- Grainy Dijon Mustard
- Finely Chopped Pecans
- Gluten Free Panko Breadcrumbs
- Parmesan Cheese
- Parsley
How To Make Air Fryer Pecan-Crusted Chicken Tenders
Step 1
Rinse the chicken and pat it dry. Season the chicken tender breasts with a generous amount of salt and pepper. I typically take a big pinch of salt and sprinkle it on the chicken. I then repeat with a big pinch of pepper.
Step 2
Stir together the mayonnaise and grainy Dijon mustard in a bowl.
Step 3
Grab a separate shallow bowl and combine the pecan chips, breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley. Take a big spoon and combine all these dry ingredients together.
Step 4
You’re now going to coat each chicken tender in the mayo and mustard mixture until each chicken tender is well coated. 
Step 5
Take a pair on tongs and coat each chicken tender in the pecan breadcrumb mixture until the entire chicken tender is thoroughly coated.
Step 6
When all the tenders are breaded, place them in the Air Fryer pan. Place the pan in the Air Fryer and make sure the pan is inserted all the way to securely close.
Step 7
Power on the Air Fryer and set it to the chicken setting. You’ll see the chicken setting defaults to 360 degrees Fahrenheit.
Once the Air Fryer is on the chicken setting, the menu is going to switch from 360 degrees Farenheit to 20 minutes. This is how long the chicken tenders are going to cook in the Air Fryer.
Step 8
Once the chicken tenders are done cooking, the timer on the Air Fryer will go off. Pull the handle and pull out the pan. You’re going to find the most delicious chicken tenders waiting for you. Look at that crispy crust. All of this with NO OIL AND NO FRYING!
Tips for Making Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Tenders:
- I know a lot of people spray their Air Fryer with cooking spray, but I’ve never had an issue with these chicken tenders sticking to the bottom of the Air Fryer pan. So no need to spray with cooking spray for this recipe.
- There’s no need to preheat your Air Fryer. Just turn it on and let it do it’s thing!
- You can make a gluten free version of these tenders by using a gluten free breadcrumb. My favorite brand is Ian’s Gluten Free Breadcrumbs. If you’re not gluten free, use your favorite breadcrumb.
- To reheat these tenders, you can warm them in the microwave for 30 seconds or reheat them in the oven. If you want to reheat these in the Air Fryer, set the temperature to 360 degrees for 7 minutes to reheat, until heated through and crispy.
- My favorite brand of grainy Dijon Mustard is Maille Old Style Grain Dijon Mustard. My friend brought me a jar back from France and I’ve been a loyal fan ever since.
Dipping Sauces
Bring on the dipping sauces!! If you’re anything like me, I love to dip chicken tenders, chicken wings and chicken nuggets into different dipping sauces. Here’s some of my favorite dipping sauces:
- BBQ Sauce – you can get my homemade recipe here.
- Pesto Sauce – you can get my homemade recipe here.
- Ranch
- Honey Mustard
- Ketchup
- Blue Cheese
You’re going to love this super easy Air Fryer recipe. The Air Fryer really does make cooking and clean up so much easier! And we all need a little bit of easy in our lives! Happy Eats!
If you loved these Air Fryer Pecan-Crusted Chicken Tenders, give this recipe a star review! Also, snap a picture of your finished dish and share it with me on Instagram using the hashtag #recipesworthrepeating and tagging me @recipesworthrepeating.
Air Fryer Chicken Tenders cook up so crispy without deep frying. Made with a pecan, parmesan cheese crust and gluten free breadcrumb crust, these chicken tenders are great for lunch, dinner or an appetizer!
- 8 chicken tender breasts
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 2 Tablsepoons grainy Dijon mustard
- 1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs, Gluten Free or Regular
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, finely grated
- 2. Tablespoons parsley, finely chopped
- pinch salt
- pinch pepper
Rinse the chicken and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
In a bowl, stir together the mayonnaise and mustard.
In a separate shallow bowl, combine the pecans, breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese and parsley.
Take a pair of tongs and coat each chicken tender breast in the mayonnaise mixture and then roll the tender in the crumb mixture to thoroughly coat.
When all the tenders are breaded, power on the Air Fryer and set it to the chicken setting. You'll see the chicken setting defaults to 360 degrees Fahrenheit.
Once the Air Fryer is on the chicken setting, the menu is going to switch from 360 degrees Farenheit to 20 minutes. This is how long the chicken tenders are going to cook in the Air Fryer.
Once the chicken tenders are done cooking, the timer on the Air Fryer will go off. Pull the handle and pull out the pan.
Serve immediately with your favorite dipping sauces.
Looking for more chicken recipes? Be sure to try these too:
BBQ Grilled Chicken Wings
Gluten Free Chicken Tenders
Lemon Butter Chicken
Greek Marinated Chicken
Roasted Apple Cider Spatchcock Chicken
- Recipe inspired by Whiskey In A Teacup
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This is such an easy, delicious meal and adding the pecans is BRILLIANT! Great crunch and super flavorful .. very creative way to kick up chicken and a great meal for any busy weeknight 🙂
yes – it’s an amazing dish!
Would have never thought of nuts on chicken tenders but this looks very yummy especially served with a dipping sauce!
It’s beyond delish!!! Let me know how you like it!!
My kids and hubby are bothered by mustards, do you think egg would work in place of the mayo and mustard step? They sound so delicious!
Hi Morgan!
Yes -you could totally skip the mustard and use egg. I used a mustard because I love that dijon mustard taste, but if you substitute egg, it should 100% still work and taste delish! Let me know how it turns out!