These Spicy Thai Chicken Tenders are coated in panko, fried to perfection, then tossed in a delicious spicy sauce. They are delicious and take less than 20 minutes from start to finish!
These Spicy Thai Chicken Tenders came to existence because I was thinking about how to use my popular Thai sauce with chicken. If y'all follow Domestic Superhero, then you probably know that these One Pot Spicy Thai Noodles are one of my most popular recipes. With over one million pins on pinterest, thousands of shares on Facebook, they are popular and so delicious. These tenders are a perfect main course!
How to make Spicy Thai Chicken Tenders:
**scroll down for full ingredients list and printable directions**
This recipe is so simple, and only has a few steps..
- Get all the ingredients together and prep the chicken.
- Coat the chicken in egg wash then shake in the panko. Heat up the oil and then fry the chicken tenders.
- Then mix and cook the sauce: Dump all the ingredients together in a sauce pot, whisk together, and simmer until thickened...about 3 minutes.
- Toss the sauce all over the chicken tenders and serve immediately.
The sauce is so majorly delicious and not TOO spicy. If you can't stand spice, then tone down the sriracha, but I am telling you it's not THAT spicy. If you like a lot of spice, add more sriracha to the sauce. You can test the sauce as you are making it and add more or less as you go...just make it however you like!
Actually, you know what might be amazing? Putting these Spicy Thai Chicken Tenders over the top of the Spicy Thai Noodles...ohhhhh yeah!
Tools you need to make Spicy Thai Chicken Tenders:
- A frying pan is going to be essential when frying these tenders. I don't have a deep fryer, and it's just as simple to use a skillet to cook these up!
- Using Panko to crust your tenders will be key in order to get the crispy coating on the outside.
- Having a sauce pot to whip up the sauce and a whisk to continuously mix the sauce while cooking will be two needed items.
Side dishes to serve with these chicken tenders:
- Garlic Ginger Spinach
- Asian Spaghetti Squash
- Air Fryer Crab Rangoon
- Asian Glazed Brussels Sprouts
- Air Fryer Roasted Asparagus (2 ingredients)
- Air Fryer Roasted Carrots (easy side dish)
- Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries (homemade)
Like Asian inspired recipes as much as I do? Check out these other recipes:
- Spicy Thai Noodles
- Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps (One Pot)
- Instant Pot Asian Meatballs
- Instant Pot Asian Pork
- Asian Sweet Chili Chicken
- Instant Pot Mongolian Chicken
- Spicy Asian Eggplant & Tofu Bowls
These Spicy Thai Chicken Tenders are coated in panko, fried to perfection, then tossed in a delicious spicy sauce. They are delicious and take less than 20 minutes from start to finish!
- 1 pound chicken breast tenderloins
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 cups canola oil or more depending on size of skillet
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 TBS brown sugar
- ⅓ cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1.5 TBS Sriracha hot sauce this is a medium amount of spice, tone it down if you don't like spicy
- 1 teaspoon creamy peanut butter
- 1 inch fresh ginger grated
- 2 TBS water
- 1 TBS cornstarch
- 2 TBS cilantro chopped
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Add oil to a frying skillet (should be about 1.5 inches of oil), and heat over medium heat.
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Place egg into a shallow bowl, set aside. Set panko and red pepper flakes into a different shallow bowl, mix to combine, set aside. Dip each tender into egg, then coat with panko breadcrumbs. Set aside.
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Place tenders into heated oil in the frying skillet. Don't overcrowd the skillet, cook in batches (I did 4-5 each batch). Fry for 3-4 minutes on the first side, when browned flip to other side, cook 2-3 minutes or until browned. Remove from skillet and set on a paper towel lined plate. Repeat for all tenders.
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Add garlic, brown sugar, soy sauce, sriracha, peanut butter, ginger, water, and cornstarch to a small sauce pot. Whisk to combine completely. Heat over medium high heat and bring to a boil, whisking occasionally. Reduce heat to a simmer and let sauce thicken (should only take a minute or 2). If sauce seems too thick, add a bit of water to thin it.
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Carefully take each tender and dip into the sauce, coating completely. Repeat for all tenders. Serve immediately garnished with chopped cilantro.
Publishes March 2017. Updated February 2022.
Delia Henry
Can I omit the peanut butter
Allyson
Yes!