Low carb and gluten free baked chicken tenders are easy to make and are so flavorful, especially with the tasty dipping sauce.
These baked keto chicken tenders are healthy, gluten free and low carb. Most importantly, they are delicious!
Baking chicken tenders is easier than frying!
This is an easy recipe – for sure easier than deep frying (though perhaps not as easy as these grilled chicken tenders). Coat the chicken tenders, bake 15 minutes in a 450F oven, then briefly broil to brown them.
The tasty coating: almond meal and parmesan
I don’t use breadcrumbs to coat these baked keto chicken tenders. Instead, I use a mixture of almond meal and grated Parmesan cheese.
MY LATEST VIDEOSIt’s best to use coarse almond meal in this recipe, and not blanched, finely ground almond flour. Although if all you have is almond flour, it will be okay, just less crispy.
Avocado oil mayonnaise is healthier
I use avocado oil mayonnaise in both the chicken and the dipping sauce. Avocado oil is healthier than vegetable oils (soybean, corn, canola etc.). If your main concern is keeping these baked chicken tenders low carb, any mayonnaise will do as long as it’s not low fat.
As for the ketchup, I use unsweetened ketchup in the dipping sauce. But since I use just one tablespoon, it won’t make much of a difference in terms of carbs if you use regular ketchup.
The dipping sauce is great, by the way. It’s purely optional, but it does greatly enhance the flavor of these baked chicken tenders.
What about leftovers?
You can keep leftovers of these keto chicken tenders for up to 3 days in an airtight container in the fridge. The almond flour coating will lose its crispness. But you can get some of it back by reheating the chicken tenders in a 250F oven for about 15 minutes.
If you don’t object to frying, another low carb and gluten free chicken tenders recipe that I really like is this recipe for Parmesan crusted chicken tenders. These chicken tenders are coated with Parmesan only – no breading. They are wonderfully flavorful.
Baked Chicken Tenders
Ingredients
- Avocado oil spray
Dipping Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened ketchup
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Chicken tenders:
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 lb. raw chicken tenders 8 tenders
- 1/2 cup almond meal
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
- Optional: sprinkle of paprika for color
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil and fit it with a roasting rack. Spray the roasting rack with oil.
- If using, mix the dipping sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, use a spatula to mix the mayonnaise, mustard, kosher salt, garlic powder, thyme and cayenne. Add the chicken tenders and toss to coat.
- In a 9 X 13 baking dish, whisk together the almond meal and Parmesan. Place the chicken pieces in the mixture, one by one, and press on both sides until well-coated.
- Place the coated chicken tenders on the prepared roasting rack. Lightly spray them with avocado oil spray and sprinkle with paprika.
- Bake 15 minutes in the middle of the oven, then switch the oven to broil, keeping the baking sheet on the middle rack, and broil until golden-brown, about 2 minutes per side.
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Notes
