Baked Chicken Tenderloins
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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!
I cook chicken almost every day, and chicken tenderloins are one of my favorite ways to keep things quick, versatile, and flavorful. They cook fast, stay juicy, and take on just about any seasoning you throw at them.
I first started cooking with them over ten years ago, except I’d pan-sear them as part of a weekly meal prep for my partner and me. Instead of reinventing the wheel, I tested it in the oven to see how it would fare. Spoiler alert: it was sensational. I landed on a simple blend of smoked paprika, brown sugar, and Italian herbs, giving the chicken a slightly sweet, savory crust that pairs with just about anything.
Table of Contents
Recipe highlights
- No breading. Most chicken tender recipes call for some form of breading, but not this one. My simple spice mix keeps it 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!
What readers are saying
★★★★★ – “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
Key Ingredients
Here are the main ingredients in baked chicken tenders. The complete list with measurements is in the recipe card.
- Chicken breast tenderloins. Buy boneless and skinless chicken tenderloins. You can often find these in the poultry section of any grocery store, packaged in 1 to 2 pounds.
- Butter. I prefer butter to oil when baking leaner cuts of chicken, as it crisps up better and has a richer flavor. As we already add salt, opt for unsalted butter.
- Spices. I’m keeping things simple with paprika, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper.
- 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.
- Red pepper flakes. For a bit of heat. If serving to kids, you can skip this ingredient.
Flavor variations
Once you get the hang of the original recipe, you can play around with different seasonings or change up the way you serve it. Here’s what I’ve tried:
- 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!
How to bake chicken tenderloins
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
- Check the doneness. Because tenderloins are super lean, I recommend using an instant-read thermometer to double-check if they’re fully cooked. Chicken should have an internal temperature of 165°F (or if you rest the chicken first, 160°F is fine).
- 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 surface moisture, 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.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, you can. However, I do recommend thawing the tenderloins thoroughly first. I did a test batch of baking them from frozen, and they didn’t turn out nearly as juicy because of the excess ice and water around each one.
Yes! Slice the chicken breast into equal-sized strips and season as you would the tenderloins. In testing, they needed an extra 3-4 minutes because they are a little thicker.
✅ Nutrition reviewed
Nutrition information has been reviewed by registered dietitian Felicia Newell, MScAHN, RD, CPT.
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.
Notes
Nutrition
More ways to bake chicken
- Crispy baked chicken thighs
- Baked chicken legs
- Baked chicken wings
- Peruvian chicken
- Baked chicken breast
- Baked chicken leg quarters
Originally published August 2023
This was an easy recipe and delicious!!!
Thanks, Janelle- we love it as a quick dinner or even meal prep!
Hi. I really enjoyed this recipe. Is there a way to modify this for pork tenderloin, sliced?
If so, how long to cook it & how high to preheat the oven?
Thank you !
Hi Daniel- Do you own an air fryer? I’d suggest this-https://thebigmansworld.com/air-fryer-pork-tenderloin/
I just came across your recipe and made it for dinner. Family loved it and there were no left overs! Definitely added to my meal planning.
Easy to make. Very tasty!
FANTASTIC RECIPE….with a tweak: after dredging through butter, roll across a mixture of breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese. The chicken was amazingly tender and juicy at this temp and time. THANK YOU!
I’m matan! I love your page!
This was great! The chicken was tender and the seasoning combination is a winner! It’s definitely in the rotation!
My family loved this recipe and have asked me to make it again. Served it with brown rice and a salad. Simple, quick and easy – thanks for sharing.
I saw this had so many five star reviews and assumed it hadd to be paid spam. I was so wrong. This recipe was SO good I have been telling everyone about it. I used honey instead of brown sugar. I usually am not a fan of italian seasoning but somehow each individual ingredient in this just made it that much more phenomenal. I will be adding this super easy, out of this worl recipe to my rotation.
Tried this out. Was quick and easy. Tried it with italian herbs and butter. Family approved.
So delicious and yummy. I served it with a cucumber salad and corn
I bought tenderloins and was trying to think of what to do with them since I am watching my weight. Found this recipe and figured I would give it a try. I used regular regular paprika, less brown sugar, and no red pepper flakes. Everything else, I followed the recipe. I was skeptical but to my surprise, it was delicious! The chicken was tender, the seasoning blend was just right, and it was so simple to put together. I will be making this again and again.
Delicious! Thank you!
so good and so easy. i topped with a little honey roasted BBQ sauce from chic-fil-la and OMG its so amazing!!
I try this recipe and it was a hit. My husband loved it and asked am I going to bake these tender loins again. I had baked cream cheese macaroni and fresh stem garlic butter broccoli 🥦
This was so straight forward and such a yummy way to cook chicken!
I am completely amazed how simple and how delicious this recipe is! it has become a regular in our home!!!
We love this recipe 😋
These were FAB!!!!
Love this recipe!! Made it with chicken breasts that we had on hand and turned out great. Also shared with my bachelor brother who probably makes this 2x/month now! This recipe has made me realize the wonders of smoked paprika!
Very tasty and eas.
So many good reviews, and now i see why! so yummy, thanks for sharing.
Trying my first receipe now. All of them look delicious. Only hope I can get back to this site when I want to try another.
I was out of smoked paprika and subbed in guajillo chile powder, didn’t have Italian seasoning so I did half basil half parsley, I also used melted honey in place of brown sugar.
Turned out incredible, I used the air fryer at 350 F for 15 minutes. Tons of flavor, I am saving this recipe and have passed it on to family members
I like the that you make the recipe for 1 / 2x’s / 3x’s options👍
1 for me & 3x’s for my family
Thank You👏👏👏👏
My wife verbatim: “Holy cow that chicken was insane!”
Wow, we LOVED it!!! 10/10 recommend! Tripled* amount for family, will quadruple or more next time as they couldn’t get enough of this excellent chicken!!! Thank you!!!
*Required additional cook time and raised temp simply due to volume.
Oh My Word! I just made this. It is absolutely delicious! Very flavorful. I will definitely be keeping this recipe. Yummy!
Thank you for this easy to fix and very delicious 5-star chicken recipe! I served these baked tenders on Spanish Rice and it was a real hit! It’s so “fancy” that it could be served at a dinner party!
Awesome recipe. This was do tasty and a breeze to make
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!
This is my first time ever commenting on a recipe in my life. I just have to say, this chicken recipe was so incredibly delicious!!!! I left out the red pepper flakes, because I didn’t have any. I also used 1.25 the amount for each seasoning, because my family loves extra seasoning. But it came out so delicious, I can’t believe how good this was. We all loved it! This recipe is definitely going into the regular dinner rotation, I’ll probably be making this at least a few times a month.
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!