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Kelly Djalali

Baked Cheez-It® Chicken Tenders

Crispy, cheesy baked chicken tenders coated in crushed Cheez-It crackers—fun to make, easy to love.
Makes: 4 Servings
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes

Ingredients:  

  • 2 lbs. Chicken Tenders or 4-6 chicken breasts sliced lengthwise into 2-inch strips
  • Buttermilk enough to cover chicken tenders in a bowl
  • A Few Dashes of Hot Sauce like Frank's Red Hot or Tabasco
  • 1 box Cheez-It® Crackers
  • Olive Oil
  • Minced Parsley for garnish
  • Dipping Sauces

Instructions: 

  • Place Chicken Tenders in a bowl and pour on enough buttermilk to cover. Add a few splashes of Frank's Red Hot Sauce, Crystal, or Tabasco. Stir to coat all the tenders with the buttermilk, cover, and refrigerate overnight or for a few hours.
  • Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Spray a large sheet pan with cooking spray. If you're worried about the tenders sticking to your sheet pan, lay a sheet of parchment on the sheet tray and spray the parchment with cooking spray. Set the tray aside.
  • Add Cheez-It® Crackers to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the crackers are a coarse sandy texture.
  • Transfer the Cheez-It® breading to a rectangular baking dish and set up your breading station with the buttermilk chicken tenders, the Cheez-It® breading in the center, and the tray to catch the breaded tenders on the right.
  • Work with a few chicken tenders at a time; lay the buttermilk-coated tenders in the Cheez-It® breading, turn a few times to evenly coat the tender and place the breaded tenders on the sheet tray. Repeat with the rest of the tenders.
  • Then drizzle olive oil over the tenders. Now bake the tenders for 15-25 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through (temped at 165 degrees F) and the Cheez-It® coating is golden.
  • Let the tenders sit for several minutes to let them cool, and the Cheez-It® coating will crisp up a bit more. While you're waiting for that, you can chop up some parsley to sprinkle over the top. Once they've cooled and crisped up a bit, transfer the Baked Cheez-It® Chicken Tenders to a serving dish. Serve with your favorite dipping sauces.

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