These low carb and keto air fryer chicken tenders use crushed pork rinds (you could also use panko) to make a super flavorful and crispy crust.
The air fryer has become my new favorite appliance, just edging out the Instant Pot. It makes the most delicious meats...Including these Air Fryer Chicken Tenders.
Into air fryer recipes? Be sure to check out my Air Fryer Pork Chops, Air Fryer whole chicken, Air Fryer Bacon, and Air Fryer Chicken Wings.
How to make air fryer chicken tenders with pork rinds
So this recipe uses the same crispy coating as my air fryer pork chops and my keto chicken nuggets. That involves crushed pork rinds and seasonings. You can use pork rinds that you crush yourself in the food processor, or you can use a product called Pork King Good Pork Rind Breadcrumbs (Affiliate Link). I personally have never used them before but I have heard they are great!
You could also use panko breadcrumbs, but I must tell you, the pork rinds have less Weight Watchers points than the breadcrumbs! So for ¼ cup of the crushed pork rinds it is 2 Weight Watchers points and for ¼ cup of panko breadcrumbs, it is 3 Weight Watcher points.
Our breading station consists of beaten eggs in a shallow bowl and the crushed pork rinds in a shallow bowl. We dip in the egg, then the pork rinds, then they go straight into the air fryer.
Cook the chicken tenders in the air fryer at 400F for 10 minutes, flipping halfway through. Check the internal temperature with a meat thermometer. The temperature of the air fryer chicken tenders should be 165F.
Air Fryer Chicken Tenders
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Ingredients
- 6 Chicken tenders
- 1 Cup Crushed pork rinds or panko breadcrumbs
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon Smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon Garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon Onion powder
- 2 Eggs, beaten
Equipment
Instructions
- In a shallow bowl, mix the crushed pork rinds with the seasonings. In a separate shallow bowl, add in the beaten eggs. One at a time, coat the chicken tenders in the egg, then in the pork rind mixture. Place the breaded chicken tenders in the air fryer.
- Set the air fryer at 400F for 10 minutes and flip half way through. Chicken Tenders are done when an internal temperature thermometer reads 165F. (bake in a 400F oven for 15-20 minutes if you do not have an air fryer)
- Serve with crispy broccoli cooked in the air fryer or in the oven at 400F until your desired doneness
Nutrition per serving
Nutrition is provided as a courtesy only. Please re-calculate on your own with the ingredients and amounts you used for the most accurate data.
Barbara Gavigan says
This was delicious! My daughter is allergic to eggs so I used a little olive oil to moisten the tenders and added some Parmesan cheese. I Put them in the air fryer for 15 minutes, turning halfway through.
Dee says
Preseasoned my chicken with the garlic and onion powders and Bacon salt. Used BBQ pork rinds and added a tablespoon of SF BBQ sauce to the egg mixture. Turned out great. Thanks for the inspiration.
Shawntai C. says
Hi there! I was wondering if you have a suggestion for an egg replacement for these? Can’t wait to try them!
jenniferbanz says
I would try heavy cream
Kristi says
These are delicious. I don't even like pork rinds but it just tastes like yummy breaded chicken. We will make these all the time!!
Ashley says
Made these for my husband and I today so good! Great recipe!
Cyndi says
I made these with crushed Mac's jalapeno pork rinds, the onion and garlic powders. Left out the paprika. Dipped in ranch dressing made it a total win!
Robin says
Made these for non-keto friends and family for dinner. My first attempt at using my air fryer, too! No chicken tenders at my store, so got boneless, skinless chicken thighs instead. These turned out SOOOO good! Moist, spices were great, and so easy!!! This recipe is a keeper!! Also served with cauliflower salad (faux-tato salad). Yum.
Cathy B says
Just made these tonight. DEELISH!! I did preseason my chicken strips, though. Very tender and moist. Added a salad. Good for the night. Will take some for lunch tomorrow 😋.
Peggy says
Definitely a must save go-to for a fast easy healthy dinner!
Andrew T says
I just made these today, and WOW, best chicken fingers ever! I spiced it up by using hot Hungarian paprika, and took the suggestion of one of the other commenters, adding some parmesan cheese. I made it with an entire Costco pack of chicken breasts, cut up into strips, so I needed to 4x the pork rind mix, but three eggs were enough for the whole pack. An air fryer would have taken all day, so I did both air fryer and oven. They came out crispy, juicy and delicious both ways. Thanks for the great recipe, this I'll use for chicken finger cravings from now on!
Charlotte says
we use these for our chicken and waffles, well chicken and chaffles for me... perfect every time....
Mildred says
Omg thank you for saying that! I never even thought about chicken and waffles since i started keto a year ago! I WILL be doing this tonight!!!
Lori says
Made these tonight for my ten-year-old son, who loved it! I took a bite and these were the best chicken tenders (we used chicken breast) ever! The chicken was so juicy and the flavor of the pork rind coating was flavorful.
Cherie says
I really like these chicken tenders! I followed the recipe exactly the first time, they were great but I have a need to modify things for some unknown reason so the second time I added a 1/4 cup parmesan cheese which also came out great. Next time I'm going to swap out the regular salt for celery salt. Then who knows... maybe some chili powder or cayenne pepper (since my hubby likes things a bit more spicy). Great recipe, thanks for sharing!
Marty says
Trying these tonight. I may add a bit of parmesan to the breading. Looks very easy and fast.
Ashley says
Easy to follow! We love making these chicken tenders in our air fryer. Thanks for the great recipe!
Julie Evink says
I have a new love for all things AF and these are AMAZING! Never going back to frozen chicken tenders again!
Karly says
So crispy!! Thanks for sharing!
Jeff says
I made this yesterday with chicken wings (flappers). Bought natural, unseasoned rinds and ground them in my mini food processor. I added a couple of dashes of chili powder to the seasonings to give it a bit of a kick. I couldn't believe how well this turned out. Will never make air fried chicken with panko or bread crumbs again. If you didn't know the 'breading' was pork rinds, you would think you were eating crispy fried chicken. Great recipe!
jenniferbanz says
I will have to try this with wings as well. Thank you!