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These juicy baked chicken tenderloins are fabulous for easy weeknight dinners. They are perfectly seasoned, easy to make, healthy, and always a hit!
Love cooking with chicken tenders? Try my air fryer chicken tenderloins, pan-fried chicken tenderloins, grilled chicken tenders, or keto chicken tenders next.
As someone who eats chicken almost daily, I love chicken tenderloins. They are quick to cook and work as a blank canvas for pretty much any marinade or seasoning! My easy chicken recipe uses a seasoning blend featuring smoked paprika, a touch of brown sugar, and Italian seasonings, and it is perfect for any meal!
Table of Contents
Why this recipe works
- No breading. Most chicken tender recipes call for some form of breading, but not this one. A simple spice mix is all you need for extra juicy, crisp, and tender chicken.
- It’s healthy. Chicken tenderloins have a similar nutritional profile to a standard chicken breast, meaning they are packed with protein, low in calories, and naturally low in fat! Oh, and we also oven-bake them instead of frying them, which cuts out all the excess oil.
- No dry chicken! Everyone complains about overcooking chicken tenderloins, but my oven-baked chicken tenders guarantee juicy and moist chicken every time.
- Ready in under 30 minutes. This is the kind of recipe you can make on busy weeknights and have dinner on the table in no time!
★★★★★ REVIEW
“Delicious. Definitely going to be in our family dinner rotation. Used slightly less sugar and paprika and no chili flakes because of the kids. Still turned out great. Thank you!” – Emily
Ingredients Needed
- Chicken breast tenderloins. Buy boneless and skinless chicken tenderloins. You can often find these in the poultry section of any grocery store.
- Butter. I prefer using butter instead of oil when baking leaner cuts of chicken as it crisps up better and has a much better flavor. As we already add salt, opt for unsalted butter.
- Paprika. Paprika has a lovely, sweet heat that complements the Italian seasoning.
- Italian seasoning mix. This dried herb mix is just what the recipe needs.
- Brown sugar. With just a dash of brown sugar, you’ll get a beautiful caramelization and subtle smoky sweetness. Liquid sweeteners work too, so feel free to use agave, maple syrup, or honey instead.
- Salt and black pepper. To taste.
- Garlic and onion powder. It helps build an aromatic profile and sticks perfectly to the chicken tenderloins.
- Red pepper flakes. For a bit of heat. If serving to kids, you can skip this ingredient.
How to bake chicken tenderloins
I’ve included step-by-step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full printable recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 1- Make the spice mix. Melt the butter, add spices, and whisk to combine.
Step 2- Season the chicken. Dredge the chicken tenderloins in the butter and place them on a baking sheet in a single layer.
Step 3- Bake in a preheated oven for 25-30 minutes at 180C/350F.
Arman’s recipe tips
- You’ll know the chicken is fully cooked once it reaches an internal temperature of 165F. Use a meat thermometer to double-check.
- Choose uniformly sized chicken tenderloins. Evenly cut chicken strips will have similar cooking times, resulting in a consistent result.
- Always dry your chicken. Drying it with clean paper towels will remove any moisture on its surface, helping you get perfectly crispy chicken tenders!
- Start with room-temperature chicken. I highly recommend taking it out of the refrigerator 20-30 minutes before cooking. This ensures uniform internal and external cooking.
Variations
- Bread your chicken, in a breadcrumb mixture made up of 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, and 1/4 cup all-purpose flour. Dip them in a simple egg wash to ensure everything sticks.
- Customize the spice mix. Switch gears and make an Asian spice coating with ginger, garlic, soy, and gochujang. Or make an Indian-style spice mix with garlic, curry, coriander, and red chili powder.
- Marinate with buttermilk. Instead of butter, use buttermilk to marinate the chicken tenderloins for a few hours. The acid from buttermilk will tenderize the chicken and make it extra juicy!
- Make tenderloin chicken parm. After cooking the chicken, slather them with marinara sauce and add pieces of fresh mozzarella. Broil until the cheese bubbles, and serve fresh!
- Serve with dipping sauces, like ranch, honey mustard sauce, BBQ sauce, or ketchup.
Storage instructions
To store. Refrigerate leftover chicken tenders in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
To freeze. Place cooled leftovers in a ziplock bag and store in the freezer for up to 2 months.
To reheat. I toss the thawed or refrigerated chicken on a baking tray and heat it for a few minutes in a preheated oven. You could also heat in a skillet, air-fryer, or microwave (although the microwave could dry out the chicken!).
Frequently asked questions
Sure! Ensure you thaw and dry the chicken entirely before using it.
More ways to bake chicken
- Crispy baked chicken thighs
- Baked chicken legs
- Baked chicken wings
- Peruvian chicken
- Baked chicken breast
- Baked chicken leg quarters
- Or try one of these chicken recipes
Baked Chicken Tenderloins
Video
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken tenderloins room temperature
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F.
- Melt the butter in the microwave until it is liquid. In a small bowl, combine the smoked paprika, Italian seasoning, brown sugar, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and red pepper flakes, and butter.
- Dredge the chicken tenderloins in the melted butter mixture.
- Lay the chicken in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. You can add a spritz of cooking spray to prevent any sticking.
- Bake the chicken for 25-30 minutes or until it reaches an internal temperature of 165F.
- Serve warm.
These were FAB!!!!
Very tasty and eas.
This was a hit at my house, even my picky granddaughter went back for seconds. Thank you
🙂 Love that, Teri!
Delicious!! I don’t add chili flakes because of my kiddo but it’s now in our dinner rotation and I look forward to making it every time. 10/10 recommend!
Thanks, Abbie!
Delicious. Definitely going to be in our family dinner rotation. Used slightly less sugar and paprika and no chili flakes because of the kids. Still turned out great. Thank you!
I needed a new recipe for tenderloins and this was a huge win with my family. My son is so picky about sweet flavors in foods and I took a risk with this one due to the brown sugar. The chicken had the perfect balance of sweet and spicy. He loved it so much he ate 5 tenderloins! I did change out the red pepper flakes with cayenne pepper and I didn’t use black pepper at all. Everything else I followed to a T. Thanks for a great recipe that is quick and easy, super fast and easy clean up, that we will enjoy many more times in the future!
Thank you, Tina!
Made this tonight and it was delicious- I used honey instead of brown sugar. We topped our salad with the chicken tenders. We will definitely make this again! Thank you!
I tried your recipe tonight for dinner and will be making it again. The flavor’s we’re very good.
Thanks, Wendy!
Wonderful, the butter does make a big difference, options are also discussed very helpful, thank you
You are so welcome, Katie!