Air Fryer Crispy Chicken Strips
A household favorite, Air Fryer Crispy Chicken Strips are super easy and guaranteed to be a dinnertime hit!
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I’m not sure about you, but my kids LOVE all things crispy chicken! They love chicken fingers, chicken strips, chicken nuggets, chicken sandwiches, you name it! However, as delicious as those fast food chicken nuggets might be, they aren’t the most nutritious. We definitely enjoy frozen chicken nuggets from time to time, but when I can, I like to make air fried chicken strips.
If your kids are obsessed with chicken tenders too, they will love air fried chicken strips! Even my picky eater can’t get enough!
Air fried chicken strips are quick, easy, super crispy and juicy! So Let’s make them!
What you’ll need
- Air Fryer– 5-7 quart basket
- Chicken– Chicken breast cut into strips, or chicken tenderloins
- Eggs– helps the breadcrumbs stick
- Milk– to mix with the eggs
- All purpose flour– helps the breading to stick better
- Italian seasoned panko breadcrumbs– Panko make these extra crispy!
- Seasonings– salt, pepper, paprika
- Oil or nonstick spray– to spray on the chicken strips, again for maximum crispiness!
- If you’re looking for an oil sprayer, I have this one and I really like it!
How to make Air Fryer Crispy Chicken Strips
- Slice the chicken into strips
- Set up your dredging station:
- The first bowl will get the flour and seasonings
- The middle bowl will get the eggs and milk whisked together
- The third bowl will get the panko breadcrumbs
- Then its just an assembly line from here. You’ll coat each chicken strip in the flour, then egg mixture, then panko breadcrumbs.
- Add the breaded chicken strips to the air fryer. Don’t over-crowd the basket. Lightly spray nonstick spray or oil directly on the chicken strips, then cook for about 16 minutes, flipping half way.
- Continue until all of the chicken is cooked. So easy!
What to serve with Crispy Chicken Strips
This is meant to be a simple and quick weeknight dinner, so make it easy on yourself! Here’s some serving ideas:
- Fries and broccoli– could be frozen, air fried, or baked in the oven
- Mac and Cheese-Keep it simple and grab the refrigerated kind! If you have more time, try No Boil Crock Pot Mac and Cheese
- Pasta salad– This could be macaroni salad or even coleslaw. Or try Caprese Pasta Salad alongside the tenders. Yum!
- Serve chicken strips over a big green salad with some ranch, or your favorite dressing
- Try them dipped in Peach Ketchup! I know if sounds nuts, but I’m telling you! It’s delicious! And if you happen to have some peach or apricot preserves on hand, you could whip this up in no time!
Peach Ketchup
This makes a small cup’s worth; double or triple for a larger serving
- 2 tablespoons peach preserves (or apricot)
- 1 tablespoon hot water
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- Dash of worchestershire sauce
Whisk all the ingredients together in a small bowl and dunk your chicken.
Storage Tips
If you have leftovers– Refrigerate in an air tight container for up to 3 days, or freeze cooked chicken strips up to 3 months.
How to reheat– Reheat chicken strips in the oven at 350ºF or in the air fryer at 400º for about 5 until warmed. You can microwave them of course, but they will taste the best in the oven or air fryer.
Reheat from frozen– Take the chicken strips directly from the freezer and heat in the oven or air fryer 10-12 minutes, or until heated through.
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Air Fryer Crispy Chicken Strips
Equipment
- 1 Air Fryer 5-6 quart basket
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken tenderloins or chicken breast cut into strips
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 3 eggs
- 1/4 cup milk
- 2 cups Italian Panko bread crumbs
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- Cooking spray or oil
Instructions
- In the first shallow bowl, mix together the flour and seasonings
- In the middle shallow bowl, whisk the eggs and milk together
- In the third shallow bowl, add the panko breadcrumbs
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper as desired. Coat each chicken strip in the flour, then dip in the egg mixture then coat well in the panko and add to the air fryer basket.
- Continue until you have enough to fill the basket- but don’t over crowd, you’ll need to work in batches.
- Spray the cooking spray or oil on the chicken strips in the air fryer.
- Cook at 400° F for 6-8 minutes. Flip the chicken, spray the other side with cooking spray or oil and cook another 6-8 minutes until cooked through (mine took 16 minutes total, 8 minutes each side)
- If you want to keep the chicken strips warm between batches, you could put the finished strips onto a sheet pan and put them in a 250ºF oven until all the chicken strips are cooked.
