Tender chicken breast pieces are baked with a tasty breadcrumb coating flavored with lemon and Parmesan cheese.

Diabetic Living Magazine; updated January 2023

Gallery

Credit: Christine Ma

Recipe Summary

active:
20 mins
total:
35 mins
Servings:
4
Advertisement

Are Baked Chicken Tenders Healthy?

Chicken breast is a lean source of high-quality protein. Protein is one of the main building blocks of bones, muscles, cartilage and skin, and it helps to supply our bodies with vital nutrients. Eating foods that contain protein can support weight-management goals and bone health, among many other potential benefits.

Baking chicken tenders significantly decreases the amount of oil required compared to deep frying. Using less oil generally leads to fewer calories consumed. Lightly coating the chicken tenders with nonstick spray before baking helps to crisp things up while also minimizing the amount of oil used.

What Goes Well with Baked Chicken Tenders?

We recommend serving these baked chicken tenders with low-calorie barbecue sauce, but feel free to serve them with other sauces like Creamy Honey-Mustard Dipping Sauce, Vidalia Onion BBQ Sauce or ranch dressing. Round out your meal with Crispy Oven-Baked Fries, Baked Sweet Potato Curly Fries with Parmesan or check out our handy guide to roasting vegetables.

Additional reporting by Jan Valdez

Ingredients

Ingredient Checklist

Directions

Instructions Checklist
  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Lightly coat with cooking spray; set aside. Cut each chicken breast half lengthwise into three strips.

    Advertisement
  • In a small bowl, beat together egg whites, water and lemon peel. In another small bowl, stir together bread crumbs and cheese. Dip chicken strips in egg white mixture, then in bread crumb mixture, turning to coat. Arrange strips on prepared baking sheet. Lightly coat chicken strips with additional cooking spray.

  • Bake about 15 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink (165 degrees F), turning once halfway through baking. If desired, serve with barbecue sauce.

Equipment

Large rimmed baking sheet

Nutrition Facts

3 pieces
207 calories; protein 32g; carbohydrates 11g; fat 3g; saturated fat 1g; cholesterol 70mg; sodium 534mg.

4 lean protein, 1/2 starch

Advertisement