If you like the taste of sesame seeds as much as I do, you’ll love these Sesame Encrusted Chicken Tenders coated with sesame seeds, panko and a hint of soy sauce. Bake them or make them in the air fryer!
Sesame Encrusted Chicken Tenders
Sesame Encrusted Chicken TendersChicken tenderloins are so convenient for weeknight cooking! The kids love these pickle brined chicken tenders, or these tortilla encrusted chicken tenders for a Mexican twist, but for an Asian twist these sesame ones are just perfect!
I like to serve them over some hot, steamed rice with a drizzle of soy sauce, and broccoli on the side but this would be great with cauliflower fried rice or quinoa fried rice with some stir fried vegetables.
How To Make Encrusted Chicken Tenders
- Start with a mix of sesame seeds and panko as your breading and put that in a shallow dish.
- Rather than dipping the chicken in egg, I mix sesame oil with soy sauce in a shallow bowl and use it to coat the chicken before pressing my crumbs on. This adds wonderful Asian flavor to the chicken.
- Then spritz the chicken evenly on both sides with oil before baking or cooking in the air fryer.
How To Meal Prep
Place 3/4 cup rice in each meal prep container, top with 2 pieces chicken and steamed veggies on the side. Refrigerate up to 4 days. I really love this glass Meal Prep Set from Pyrex, (affil link) the set comes with different size glass containers with lids that are easy to close and wash.
More Chicken Recipes You Might Like:
- Asian Glazed DrumsticksÂ
- Turmeric Roasted Chicken and Sweet Potatoes
- Baked Chicken Thighs with Brussels Sprouts
- Air Fryer Chicken Breast
- Broccoli and Cheese Stuffed Chicken
Sesame Encrusted Baked Chicken Tenders
Ingredients
- 8 chicken tenderloins, 18 oz total
- 3/4 tsp kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp low sodium soy sauce
- 6 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 cup panko
- olive oil spray
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick oil spray.
- Combine the sesame oil and soy sauce in a bowl, and the sesame seeds, salt and panko in another.
- Place chicken in the bowl with the oil and soy sauce, then into the sesame seed mixture to coat well.
- Place on the baking sheet; lightly spray the top of the chicken with oil spray and bake 8 to 10 minutes, until slightly browned on the bottom.
- Turn over and cook another 4 - 5 minutes or until cooked through and the edges are crisp. Serve over rice with more soy sauce, if desired.
Air Fryer Cook Time
- Preheat the air fryer 400F. Cook 10 to 12 minutes, flipping halfway until cooked through, crispy and golden.
Sadly these were a miss for me. I baked them in oven and found that they didn’t end up very crispy. Also the flavor was lacking in the chicken. I would definitely marinate in soy sauce mixture next time before coating with seasame mixture.
That was delicious! Definitely make this again!Â
I made this in the air fryer and it was a big hit. I served with sautéed baby bok choy and Trader Joe’s cauliflower fried rice.Â
Delicious and a definite family favorite, but I agree with one of the other comments that I would omit the salt. Â Â I used low sodium soy sauce and some pieces were extremely salty. Â Chicken came crisp and juicy. I made them in the oven.Â
This chicken recipe was so good , easy to make !Â
Delicious and quick. Perfect for a weeknight meal. Everyone in our family, including small kids, loved it.Â
I made this tonight and it was fantastic!! My family devoured it. It will definitely be on our monthly meal rotation.
Hello! Why is this recipe showing that for the blue plan on WW, it’s 4 points but when I put the sesame seeds in my WW app it’s showing that alone, the sesame seeds are 8 points based off of what I’d use for this recipe??Â
Hi Lauren. Are you using the recipe builder? The only accurate way to determine any recipe’s SmartPoints® value is to plug the ingredients into the recipe builder on the Weight Watchers website (Click on “My Foods,” select “Recipe,” and click “Create a recipe.”) which does not count fruits and vegetables in recipes in the calculations as they are now 0 points.
The SmartPoints® calculator isn’t meant for recipes and will often give you the wrong points (usually higher) because it’s counting the fruits and vegetables. So if you see a recipe with a SmartPoints® value that’s different from what the calculator tells you, now you know why.
Just made this tonight….it was delicious…made it with pork grinds I didn’t have any Panko…roasted the broccoliÂ
I made this last night and it turned out great! The sesame seeds and asian flavor were awesome…and a nice change from some of my “regular” chicken recipes. My family ate every bite. 🙂
Is there something lower in carbs i could use instead of the panko?
Maybe pork rinds?
We loved this, so happy when a recipe turns out like the picture!
One of my favourites ! My I refuse to eat meat little boy asked for seconds and I was blown away by that fact alone.Â
Have made this 4 times and not one person complains when I make this (family of 5 so that’s rare)Â
Absolutely fantastic! The chicken was crispy and juicy with wonderful flavor – so quick and easy to make. I highly recommend this!
I added scallions and celery for a little crunch and sweet. so good!
Simply delish! Easy to make. Definitely a good meal prep recipe or weeknight dinner recipe. I made these in the air fryer- they were so good.  As other people said in other reviews- I would omit the salt in the dry mixture because it was very salty and I don’t think the salt is necessary!
Made last evening and baked in oven. Delicious. Great taste and easy.
Do I still spray them with oil if I am using the skinnytaste airfryer?
yes
I know you say 2 tenders per serving. How many ounces is that so you think?
Fantastic flavor. I used 10 large chicken tenders and needed to almost triple the liquid and double the dry mix (+ a little extra panko) to coat everything. I cooked in the Airfryer for ~10 mins each and they came out perfectly. I served with broccoli and leftover potato pancakes. Husband loved, and he dipped in a little honey.
If you’re sensitive to salt, I would definitely consider either reducing or eliminating the salt in the dry mixture. I thought it tasted yummy, but I think it would put someone off that doesn’t like salt.
Great recipe. Definitely making again.