A 30-minute, kid-friendly recipe for crispy, baked, Lemon Pepper Chicken Tenders that are crunchy and flavorful on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside.
My family loves garlic parmesan chicken tenders, and since I don’t always feel like frying food, I had to come up with a more hands-off way to make crispy chicken tenders.
With these Lemon Pepper Chicken Tenders, all you have to do is coat the chicken and let the oven do the rest of the work.
A few months ago, I shared a recipe for Key Lime Chicken Tenders, and that recipe, along with this one for Lemon Pepper Chicken Tenders, are two of the recipes from my blog that I make the most.
How To Make Lemon Pepper Chicken Tenders
Step One: Butter
Melt the butter and stir in the lemon juice.
Step Two: Breading
In a separate bowl, combine panko, breadcrumbs, grated parmesan, garlic powder, salt, ground pepper, parsley, oregano, onion powder, and grated lemon peel.
Step Three: Chicken
Cut four boneless, skinless chicken breasts into three or four strips, depending on how thin you want your chicken tenders to be.
Another option would be to cut the chicken into smaller pieces to make chicken nuggets.
Step Four: Dip In Butter
Dip the chicken pieces in the melted butter and lemon juice mixture.
Step Five: Dip In Breadcrumbs
Coat the chicken tenders in the breadcrumb mixture.
Step Six: Bake
Place them on a greased baking sheet and sprinkle with additional pepper, if desired.
Bake at 400˚F for 20-25 minutes, until cooked through.
Optional: use a thin, metal spatula/turner to flip the chicken tenders (making sure to scrape up the coating along with the chicken) halfway through cooking to help brown both sides.
To brown the chicken tenders a bit more, put them under the broiler for a couple of minutes.
These Lemon Pepper Chicken Tenders are crunchy and flavorful on the outside while remaining tender and juicy on the inside. When I made baked these chicken tenders, my kids and my husband were gone.
So, I brought the chicken tenders over to my sister’s house and shared with her family. Everyone seemed to love them as much as we do!
Recipe Tips
1. How to make chicken nuggets? Cut the chicken breasts into nugget size instead of tenders and then follow the rest of the recipe.
2. Can I leave the lemon juice and lemon peel out? Yes, you can make the recipe as written but skip the lemon juice and lemon peel.
3. Want to skip adding the seasonings? Use seasoned panko and seasoned breadcrumbs.
4. How do you make fried chicken tenders? Follow steps 1-5 to cut and coat the chicken. Then, heat two tablespoons of oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Cook about 6 chicken tenders for 3-4 minutes per side until the fully cooked. Repeat the process with more oil and chicken tenders. Do not overcrowd the chicken in the pan or it won’t be able to get crispy.
5. How to prevent soggy chicken tenders? Try cooking the chicken tenders on a wire baking rack on top of the baking sheet if you are having issues with getting crispy tenders.
6. How can I make my lemon pepper chicken tenders even crispier? After cooking them, brown them under the broiler for a couple of minutes.
7. How to keep chicken tenders from sticking to the pan? Allow them to cool a bit and then use a thin, metal spatula/turner to scrape the chicken tenders along with the breading off the pan.
More Chicken Recipes
Lemon Pepper Chicken Tenders
Ingredients
- 2.25 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- ½ cup butter
- 3 tablespoon lemon juice
- ¾ cup panko Japanese-style bread crumbs
- ½ cup plain breadcrumbs
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon parsley
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon grated lemon peel
- ¼ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400˚F. In a small, wide bowl melt the butter and stir in the lemon juice.
- In a separate small, wide bowl, mix together panko, breadcrumbs, grated parmesan, garlic powder, salt, pepper, parsley, oregano, onion powder and grated lemon peel.
- Cut the boneless, skinless chicken breasts in thirds or fourths.
- Dip the chicken tenders into the butter mixture.
- Coat the chicken tenders with the breadcrumb mixture.
- Place them on a greased baking sheet and sprinkle with additional ground pepper, if desired.
- Bake at 400˚F for 20-25 minutes, until cooked through.
- Optional: use a thin, metal spatula/turner to flip the chicken tenders (making sure to scrape up the coating along with the chicken) halfway through cooking to help brown both sides.
- To brown the chicken tenders a bit more, put them under the broiler for a couple of minutes.
John M says
So delicious and perfectly cooked tenders l. Everyone in the family loves them, I always cook extra because even the leftovers don’t last long Thanks for the great recipe!
christina says
I just want you to know I make this recipe once and month and so often it’s the only food I want. I can’t thank you enough for an egg free breaded chicken recipe. I have a terrible allergy and this is my favorite. Thank you for making this!
Tonia Larson says
That’s awesome, Christina! Thank you so much for stopping back to tell me!
Jennifer says
New cook here. And fairly new mom. I have this recipe saved and always resort to it. My daughter loves loves crispness and I love the lemmon/parmesian. Very simple and delicious. Thank you!
Jennifer says
I have this recipe starred and saved in my Gmail. I am a fairly new mom and my daughter and I absolutely love this recipe. Simple and delicious! Thank you!
Cicely Everson says
A little time consuming but delicious. I think I’ll make up the breading ahead of time (in batches) and keep on hand because the whole family loved them! Should cut down on time considerably next time. I also subbed vegan parm for the parmesean cheese. Thank you!
Paige says
My breading sticks to the pan and the skin that is remaining is soggy…what am I doing wrong? Any tips appreciated!
Tonia says
Hi Paige,
If mine don’t get crispy enough, after baking them, I put them under the broiler for a couple minutes. You could also try baking them on a wire baking rack on the baking sheet instead of baking them directly on the baking sheet.
Also, once they finish baking, allow them to cool for several minutes, then use a thin, metal spatula/scraper to scrape the chicken tender and breading off of the pan.
If all else fails, you can pan fry the chicken tenders instead.
Good luck!
~Tonia
Georgia says
Thank you so much for this recipe! I love it and so does my husband. Will be making again for sure. I made it with 1.5 lbs so added a little extra of each ingredient. Yum!
Sharon says
I’ve made these several times. They’re delicious! Even my picky kids like them! I sprinkle with lemon pepper before I bake them.
Marc says
Tried these twice. Baking just leaves the coating soft. Second tI’m I pan fried in a bit of olive oil. Huge improvement in texture.
Ali says
I tried this recipe with 1.75 pounds of chicken tenderloins and there was more than enough breeding for all of it! Very yummy!
Adrie says
Is the Parmesan cheese just for added flavor?
Tonia says
Hi Adrie! I add it for flavor and crispiness. The cheese gets “toasted” when it is baking. But you can skip it and just add more breadcrumbs instead if you want. Happy Cooking! ~Tonia
Destiny says
What is thr benefit of frying then baking? Can i just fry instead?
Tonia says
Hi Destiny,
These chicken tenders are only baked…not fried but you can fry them instead if you prefer.
Enjoy,
Tonia
Liz says
Yum – thank you – nice and easy!