This Parmesan Baked Chicken Strips recipe is a guaranteed crowd favorite! They're coated in a garlicky, cheesy crust and baked until they're golden on the outside and tender on the inside! These oven baked chicken tenders are an easy and delicious weeknight dinner the whole family will love!
This post has been updated since its original publication date of October 2016.
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These Parmesan Chicken tenders are a family-friendly, easy weeknight dinner or a crowd-pleasing meal you can serve for company.
This recipe is a spin-off of one of the most popular recipes on the blog: Parmesan Crusted Chicken! It has been one of our favorite recipes so far. If you’ve tasted it, then I know you’re not surprised.
Why You'll Love Oven Baked Chicken Tenders
Packed with flavor: These Parmesan chicken tenders have a golden brown cheesy breading. The breading makes them plenty flavorful all on their own.
Easy to make: Simple and quick, breaded chicken strips come together in no time.
Versatile: These oven-baked chicken strips can be served as a main course. They are also a filling snack. Enjoy them as a crowd-pleasing appetizer with homemade marinara or any of your favorite dips!
Ingredients for Oven Baked Chicken Strips
The combination of ingredients used in this chicken tender recipe makes them golden on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside, every time!
- Chicken: You can use chicken tenders or chicken breasts for this recipe. If you use chicken breasts slice them up to look like chicken tenders.
- Panko Bread Crumbs: Any bread crumbs work fine, but Panko bread crumbs add an extra light and airy crunch.
- Parmesan: Gives your tenders lots of cheesy flavor!
- Seasonings: I add some parsley, salt, pepper, and garlic for a tasty savory flavor.
- Butter: Helps the breading stick to the chicken and adds a buttery flavor.
- Lemon Juice: Balances out the savory flavors with a yummy citrus bite.
How To Make Parmesan Chicken Strips
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
Prep your chicken tenders... remove any unwanted tendon pieces or fat and pat dry.
Mix your breadcrumbs, Parmesan, fresh parsley, salt, and pepper in a shallow pie dish (or plate).
Then, mix the melted butter, fresh lemon juice, and minced garlic in another dish.
Dip both sides of your chicken strips in the dish with butter, lemon, and garlic…
Toss your chicken strips in the breadcrumb mixture. Pressing them firmly so the coating sticks to the chicken.
Place the chicken on a baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
Tips for Breaded Chicken Strips
- To achieve a crisper coating on the outside, bake the garlic Parmesan chicken strips for a few minutes longer. Another option is to broil them for 1-2 minutes. Watch them closely so they don't burn.
- There is sometimes a tendon in the chicken tenders. If the store or manufacturer doesn't remove it, you may want to. It can sometimes be chewy and tough when cooked.
- Serve your Parmesan chicken tenders with homemade marinara sauce, or pair with a classic dipping sauce like ketchup, honey mustard, ranch dressing, chipotle mayo, or whatever else you like!
- These Parmesan baked chicken tenders are great as a finger food, but you can also serve them on top of pasta or rice for a special dinner!
Storing, Reheating, and Freezing
Leftover Parmesan chicken strips can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for 4 to 5 days.
Pop them back in the oven to reheat, or air fry them instead. Microwaving will make the breading soggy!
You can freeze cooked chicken strips... place them on a baking sheet, freeze, then transfer them to a freezer bag or container. When ready to enjoy, let them defrost in the fridge overnight and bake to reheat.
You can also prepare your this baked chicken tenders ahead of time by breading them and freezing them on a baking sheet. Once frozen, transfer to a plastic freezer bag and keep in the freezer until you need to bake! They'll need a couple of extra minutes of cooking time. You can bake them right from frozen. This makes for a super convenient appetizer or meal.
FAQs
Be sure to pat the chicken dry with paper towels before starting the breading process. Extra moisture will make it harder for the breading to adhere to the chicken.
These terms are often used to mean the same thing, but technically, there is a difference! A chicken breast strip is a piece of poultry cut from the breast. A chicken tender comes from a smaller muscle underneath the breast.
Yes! Use a sharp knife and cut against the grain of the chicken. This will give you tender strips. Each chicken breast should yield about four strips.
What to Serve with Oven Baked Chicken Tenders
- Roasted Parmesan Broccoli
- Balsamic Glazed Brussels Sprouts
- Creamy Parmesan Risotto
- Broccoli Salad with Grapes and Bacon
- Easy Garlic Green Beans
- Sour Cream And Onion Smashed Potatoes
And don't forget to try the original Parmesan Crusted Chicken recipe, too!
I would love to connect with you! Leave a comment and follow me on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, & Pinterest!
Parmesan Baked Chicken Strips Recipe
Parmesan Baked Chicken Strips Recipe - golden, tender & juicy. Coated in a cheesy crust w/ a marinara dipping sauce, the whole family will love these!
Ingredients
- 3 boneless chicken breasts, fat and skin removed and cut into 12 strips (or 12 chicken tenders)
- 1 ¼ cup panko bread crumbs
- ⅔ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 3 tablespoons minced parsley
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon melted butter
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Mix the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, parsley, salt, and pepper together in a shallow pie dish or a deep plate.
- Mix the butter, lemon juice and garlic together in a second shallow pie dish or deep plate.
- Dip both sides of the chicken in the butter mixture, coating it well.
- Quickly place the chicken on the bread crumb mixture and toss the crumbs up over the edges and top of chicken breast, using either your hands or a spoon. Gently press the chicken so the crumbs on the bottom side stick to the chicken. Now turn the chicken over and again press that side into the crumbs.
- Arrange breaded chicken strips on the baking sheet and repeat steps 3 and 4 with the rest of the chicken.
- When all chicken is prepped, bake uncovered (on the middle rack of the oven) for 20 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees when inserted in the thickest part of the chicken breast.
- If strips aren't as golden as desired, reduce the bake time by one minute and broil on the middle rack of the oven for one minute. Be sure to watch them closely to make sure they don't burn.
Notes
- If the butter and lemon juice mixture starts to congeal, microwave for 20 seconds.
- Be sure to use grated parmesan cheese, shredded cheese won't stick to the chicken as nicely.
- Bake longer or broil them for 1-2 minutes for a crispier coating on the outside.
Nutrition Information
Yield
4Serving Size
3 Chicken StripsAmount Per Serving Calories 353Total Fat 20gSaturated Fat 10gUnsaturated Fat 0gCholesterol 99mgSodium 1029mgCarbohydrates 14gFiber 1gSugar 1gProtein 27g
Tina
Can you use egg instead of butter? Will it change anything, cooking time, etc?
holly
Hi Tina, I have a Baked Chicken Parmesan recipe and I use egg for that. I slice the chicken breasts in half lengthwise to make them thinner. Then cook them at 425 degrees, on the 2nd from the top rack on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. They take about 15-20 minutes to cook and should be 165 degrees in the center when temped with a digital meat thermometer. I hope that helps!
Judi
Love this recipe and the "not to be confused with Bend & Snap" Some people won't get it but I loved it.
holly
Thank you so much, Judi! I'm so glad you got my silly humor in this post!😁
Aurora
Hi. Just wondering if you can make ahead of time? I like to prep dinner a few days ahead lol.
holly
Hi Aurora, You can make it ahead of time but the coating on the chicken will get a little more moist when stored in the fridge. It just depends how much texture matters to you.
Emily Edwards
Yumm. Made this for dinner and want to eat all of it. It needed a little salt when cooked but otherwise great! I didn't see the recommendation to use shredded cheese instead of preshredded but it reshredded worked fine. What was the extra butter for?
holly
Thanks so much, Emily! I'm so glad you enjoy the recipe! I normally use grated not shredded Parmesan cheese for the recipe but if shredded worked for you that's great. All of the butter was for melting and dredging the chicken in. When I made the recipe I felt like I need a little more than 1/4 cup butter so I added the extra tablespoon. Thanks again!
Rebecca C
My family loves these! Thanks for sharing such a great recipe!
holly
Yayyy! You're so welcome1 I love hearing that, Rebecca! Thanks so much for sharing your feedback!
Gretchen
Had these in our rotation last week....nothing like homemade dinner in less than 30 to make me feel like a super star!!!
Barbara
We really loved this recipe, will make it again. Thank you
holly
Yayyyy! SO glad to hear that, Barbara!