Monday, November 28, 2011

Pretzel Ranch Chicken Tenders


What if I told you that you were only two ingredients away from the most delicious chicken tenders you’ve ever had? Because you are. The recipe I’m sharing today is only two ingredients (plus the tenders themselves), and the result is the most moist, flavorful, delicious chicken tenders you’ll ever eat. There’s not even really any measuring required. You are going to love these, and if you have kids, you’re going to be a rock star if you make these for them. I’ve been enjoying rock star status since I made these for my boys, and they’ve requested them frequently ever since.

I shallow fried the tenders in batches in a little bit of canola oil, then kept the batches warm in the oven -- but I bet you’d get a similarly delicious result if you just baked them instead. The quick dunk in ranch dressing adds so much flavor to the tenders themselves (and makes them really, well, tender), and the pretzel coating is salty and crispy. These chicken tenders are absolutely perfect for a night you just don’t feel like cooking, because they’re ready in no time.

Rather than using store-bought tenders, I used two large chicken breasts sliced into strips. Two breasts yielded about 15 chicken tenders, which was more than enough to feed us, and the boys had leftovers to take for lunch the next day, much to their delight.

Pretzel Ranch Chicken Tenders

1-2 pounds chicken tenders (or breasts, sliced into strips)
Ranch dressing
Crushed pretzels

1. Place chicken tenders in a bowl and cover with ranch dressing; stir to combine. Let sit for 5 or 10 minutes (while you crush the pretzels).

2. Coat chicken tenders in pretzel crumbs. Cook over medium heat in a skillet with a small amount of oil, or bake in a 350-degree oven, until cooked through.

3. Serve with additional ranch dressing for dipping, if desired.

5 comments:

Stephanie said...

I just changed my meal plan to make these tonight. They look so good, I couldn't wait until next week.

Katie said...

I'm looking forward to trying these at our house. Thanks once again for sharing!

Allison said...

Baking these worked really well, too! They were really juicy and yummy :)

Sarah - The Home Cook said...

Love it! I will definitely be giving these a try.

Mrs. Ca said...

These will most likely be on our meal plan next week. I'm sure they will be a big hit with Gabbie! I wanted to make them this week, but our grocery store didn't have any chicken breasts stocked when we went shopping. How weird is that?