Air fryer bacon wrapped chicken tenders

Air fryer bacon wrapped chicken tenders Recipe

Who says that you can’t have two tasty proteins in one easy meal? This Air Fryer Bacon Wrapped Chicken recipe proves that simple ingredients can create a tasty dish! Once you wrap the bacon around the chicken, the air fryer does its magic and cooks each chicken strip to perfection every single time.

Once the air fryer chicken tenders are done, you can eat them as is, pair them with your favorite dipping sauce, or grab and gobble as you please!

Why you’ll love this recipe

• Easy to whip up for a quick snack or fast weeknight meal
• No mess cooking by using the air fryer
• These fried bacon-wrapped chicken tenders are great for a grab-and-go meal or a simple dinner with tons of flavor.
• Ready in less time than in the oven or grill.
• Perfect Low carb and Keto friendly dish.

How to cut chicken breasts into tenders

If you are wondering how to cut chicken tenders or hot to cut chicken breasts into tenders, I’ll show exactly how to do it in a bit.

All you need is a piece of boneless skinless chicken breasts, a cutting board and a sharp knife.

Place boneless, skinless chicken breast on cutting board and cut it lengthwise into 1 inch thick pieces. That’s all. One medium sized chicken breast can yield 4 to 5 chicken tenders.

Now that you know how to cut a chicken breast into tenders, when next you’re shopping for chicken tenders in the grocery store, consider picking up chicken breasts instead of precut chicken tenders and save some moolah!

Ingredients

• Bacon
• Chicken tenders
• Paprika
• black pepper
• Garlic powder

How long to cook bacon wrapped chicken tenders in air fryer

These air fryer bacon wrapped chicken tenders gets ready in 15 mins at 400°F / 200°C. Seriously cool I know! And that’s in a non preheated air fryer. If you do preheat, you’ll find that these may cook a couple of minutes faster.

If you’re worried about whether or not the chicken is cooked all the way, use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature. The reading should be 165°F / 74°C for the tenders to be considered cooked and safe to eat.

How to make bacon wrapped chicken tenders in air fryer

This is an overview of the recipe with step by step photos. Scroll down to end of post for a printable recipe card with the amount of ingredients and full recipe instructions.

Pat chicken dry with paper towels, season chicken and let it rest for about 10 mins before wrapping with bacon.

Wrap in bacon, place in air fryer basket seam side down and air fry at 400°F / 200°C for 15 mins or until internal temp is 165°F / 74°C

Recipe variations

Switch up the seasoning with your favorite seasoning blend, add some cayenne to add a kick.

Brown sugar: sprinkle some brown sugar on the bacon to add a sweet caramelized crunch to every bite.

Bbq sauce: Brush the chicken with barbecue sauce in the last 2 mins of cooking to find it the extra grilled taste.

What to serve with

There are a variety of options when it comes to the best sides for these air fried bacon wrapped tenders.

In a nutshell, serving up fried chicken tenders wrapped in bacon isn’t hard to do at all! You can serve fresh from the air fryer with some dipping sauce or explore other delicious foods like;

• Salads
• Potatoes: pick from fries, baby potatoes, air fryer red potatoes and onions, potato wedges, air fryer potato slices, steak fries and cottage fries
• Air fryer vegetables
• Rice: Panda Express copy cat fried rice in the air fryer, air fryer ham fried rice.
• Air fryer green beans and bacon or air fried Brussels sprouts and bacon

How to store and reheat

If you’re lucky enough to have leftovers, let the chicken tenders cool completely and then store them in an airtight container. They should stay fresh in the fridge for up to 2 days.

Reheating chicken tenders in the air fryer is easy, when you’re ready to reheat and enjoy, just pop them back into the air fryer or reheat in the microwave. If you want them to be crisp, you do need to reheat them in the air fryer at 350°F / 180°C for up to 6 mins or until warmed through.

Air frying Tips

• No need to preheat the air fryer, if you do, these are likely to cook faster than stated in the recipe.
• Pat chicken dry with paper towel to ensure the oil and seasoning sticks.
• No need for oil. The oil from the bacon is enough to coat the chicken tenders while they cook.
• I added salt to the seasoning so that the chicken can have enough flavor on its own. Feel free to switch up the seasoning with your favorite chicken seasoning blend.
• I usually don’t use toothpicks to secure the bacon for chicken tenders. I just place it seam side down. However feel free to use toothpicks to secure the bacon to the chicken if you find it easier. Just be sure to remove the toothpicks as you’re taking them out of the air fryer.

FAQs

Here you’ll find answers to common questions about this recipe. If your question isn’t answered, please leave us a comment below and we’ll gladly answer them.

What type of bacon works best when wrapping chicken with bacon?

For all my bacon wrapped recipes, I prefer to use thin cut aka regular cut bacon because it will cook faster and get crispy quicker.

Can you use turkey bacon in place of pig bacon?

If you want to cut down on some of the fat and grease, turkey bacon is a good option to use. However it won’t get as crispy as regular bacon does and also you’ll need to secure it with some toothpicks since it’s not as pliable as pig bacon. It also doesn’t have much far you will need to add a tablespoon of oil to the chicken as well.

What is a good dipping sauce for fried chicken tenders

This is up to you and your cravings, but some good choices are ketchup, BBQ sauce, hot sauce, or a combination of all of the above.

Can you use breaded or naked chicken tenders?

You can actually use both! The main thing is to make sure that whatever type of chicken you’re using gets cooked all the way through. That being said I would say using breaded chicken tenders is a waste of the breading since it would be hidden beneath the bacon and adds in