Go Back
Print

Spicy Thai Chicken Tenders

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!

Course Main Course
Cuisine asian
Keyword spicy thai chicken tenders
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients

For chicken tenders:

  • 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

For Sauce:

  • 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

Instructions

For the chicken tenders:

  1. Add oil to a frying skillet (should be about 1.5 inches of oil), and heat over medium heat.

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

For the sauce:

  1. Add garlic, brown sugar, soy sauce, sriracha, peanut butter, and ginger to a small sauce pot. Whisk to combine completely. Heat over medium high heat and bring to a boil, whisking occasionally. In a small bowl, whisk the cornstarch and water, then add to the sauce. Bring to a quick boil and then reduce heat and simmer until thickened, stirring occasionally. If sauce seems too thick, add a bit of water to thin it.

  2. Carefully take each tender and dip into the sauce, coating completely. Repeat for all tenders. Serve immediately garnished with chopped cilantro.

Recipe Notes

Published March 2017. Updated February 2022. 

*Peanut butter can be left out of this recipe to omit the peanut butter flavor.