Hot Honey Chicken Tenders

These Hot Honey Chicken Tenders are baked in the oven with a crunchy cornflake coating and finished with a sticky-sweet, lightly spicy hot honey glaze.

Course Chicken Dinner, Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword chicken tenders recipes

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 20

Total Time 40

Servings -6 servings

Calories 829kcal

Author Kathleen

Ingredients

For the Chicken Tenders

2 large eggs
2 tablespoons hot sauce Frank’s-style
5 cups cornflakes lightly crushed (see Notes)
3 pounds chicken tenders
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper optional (see Notes – can be too spicy for some)

For the Hot Honey Sauce

3 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup honey
2/3 cup hot sauce

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Prep the oven and pan. Preheat your oven to 425°F (218ºC). Line a large rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper for easy cleanup. Set a wire rack on top of the lined sheet pan and lightly grease the rack with cooking spray or a thin film of oil to help the tenders crisp on all sides.
Set up the coating station. In a shallow bowl, whisk together the eggs and 2 tablespoons hot sauce until smooth.
Place the cornflakes in a large zip-top bag and crush them with a rolling pin or meat mallet until you have mostly small flakes with a few slightly larger pieces (you don’t want fine crumbs). Transfer the crushed cornflakes to a shallow bowl.
Season the chicken. Pat the chicken tenders dry with paper towels. In a small bowl, stir together the smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, black pepper, and cayenne (if using). Sprinkle the seasoning mixture evenly over the chicken and toss or rub so all sides are well coated.
Dredge and coat. Working one piece at a time, dip each tender into the egg mixture, letting the excess drip off, then press it into the crushed cornflakes to coat.
For an extra-crispy crust, repeat: dip the coated tender back into the egg, then again into the cornflakes, pressing gently so the crumbs adhere. Place the coated tenders on the prepared wire rack, leaving a little space between each one so they can crisp instead of steam. If you like, lightly spray the tops with cooking spray for even better browning.
Bake the chicken (almost to done). Bake the tenders for 8–10 minutes, then carefully flip them over on the rack. Continue baking for another 4–6 minutes, or until the coating is crisp and the thickest tenders are just shy of done, around 155–160°F. You don’t want them fully cooked yet, because they’ll finish in the oven with the glaze.
Make the hot honey sauce. While the chicken bakes, add the butter, honey, and ⅔ cup hot sauce to a small saucepan. Set over medium heat and cook, stirring, just until the butter melts and the mixture comes to a gentle simmer and looks glossy and slightly thickened, 1–2 minutes. Remove from heat.
Glaze and finish baking. Remove the pan of almost-done tenders from the oven. Using a silicone brush, generously brush the tops of each tender with hot honey sauce, flip them carefully with tongs, and brush the other side. Return the pan to the oven and bake for another 3–4 minutes, until the glaze is bubbling and set and the thickest tender registers 165°F. Serve any extra hot honey sauce on the side for dipping.

Notes

Go easy when crushing the cornflakes. Instead of pulsing them to dust in a food processor, put them in a zip-top bag and lightly crush them with your hands or a rolling pin. You want texture—tiny “flakes” that cling to the chicken and give you that shattery crunch in every bite.
Season in layers, not just on top. The flavor starts in the dredge, not on the finished chicken. Salting and seasoning the flour means every little nook and cranny of the coating has flavor. With the hot honey on top, you get sweet heat plus savory depth instead of just sugary glaze over bland chicken.
Bake, then glaze—not the other way around. If you toss the raw chicken in the hot honey before baking, you’ll steam the coating and lose the crunch. Baking the tenders until almost done, brushing on the sauce, and then finishing them in the oven keeps that crust crisp while letting the honey bake into a sticky, flavorful layer.
Adjust the heat to your audience. For families with little ones, you can leave out the cayenne and use a milder hot sauce or even a blend of hot sauce and regular ketchup to soften the heat. For spice lovers, keep the cayenne and choose a bolder hot sauce—you can even add a pinch of red pepper flakes to the glaze.
Don’t overbake. Chicken tenders cook quickly, especially on a wire rack with hot air circulating all around. Pull them as soon as they’re cooked through and the glaze looks shiny and set. Overbaking is the fastest way to take them from juicy to dry.

Nutrition