Oven Fried Chicken Fingers

These oven-fried chicken fingers have a crunchy, cheesy coating that makes them irresistibly delicious without any of the guilt of frying them!  Marinating the chicken in seasoned buttermilk makes them very tender and juicy.  Your kids will love them!

Oven fried chicken fingers on brown butcher paper with a side cup of ketchup.

This recipe is a staple at our home, especially when we have our little nieces and nephews visiting!  I like to serve chicken fingers with Grandma’s Pickled Vegetable Salad, Classic Macaroni And Cheese, and Homemade Avocado Ranch Dressing to dip the chicken into.

Ingredients Needed To Make This Recipe

  • Buttermilk – this helps to tenderize the chicken, keep it moist, and add flavor.
  • Dijon mustard
  • Salt, seasoned salt, white pepper, cayenne pepper
  • Onion powder and garlic powder
  • Parmesan cheese – use finely ground Parmesan cheese. Better yet, grate it yourself for the best flavor.
  • Boneless, skinless chicken breasts or chicken tenders
  • Cooking spray

Baking sheet of raw, breaded chicken strips ready for baking.

Steps To Make Oven Fried Chicken Fingers

  1. Mix together the buttermilk, mustard, salt, white pepper, and cayenne.  Soak the chicken strips and allow them to marinate in the refrigerator for at least one hour or up to overnight.
  2. Make the breading by tossing the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, seasoned salt, and pepper in a zip-top bag. 
  3. Remove the chicken strips from the marinade and toss to coat in the seasoned bread crumbs.
  4. Bake on a wire rack over a baking sheet until golden brown and the chicken is no longer pink in the middle.

Oven fried chicken fingers on brown butcher paper with a side cup of ketchup.

More Delicious Chicken Recipes To Try

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Oven Fried Chicken Fingers

These oven-fried chicken fingers have a crunchy, cheesy coating that makes them irresistibly delicious without any of the guilt of frying them! Marinating the chicken in seasoned buttermilk makes them very tender and juicy.

  • Author: Millie Brinkley
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Marinating time: 1 hour
  • Cook Time: 15 minutes
  • Total Time: 35 minutes
  • Yield: Serves 4
  • Category: Main Dish - Chicken
  • Method: Bake
  • Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale

For the marinade:

  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground white pepper
    ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
  • 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut lengthwise into ½-inch strips

For the chicken breading:

  • 1 ½ cups Italian style Panko bread crumbs
  • ½ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
  • 2 teaspoons garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon seasoned salt
  • 1 teaspoon white pepper

Instructions

Make the marinade.

In a large zip-top bag, combine the buttermilk, mustard, salt, white pepper, and cayenne, if using.

Add the chicken tenders and massage to ensure each strip is coated with the marinade.  Place in the refrigerator and chill for at least one hour up to overnight.

Bread the chicken.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with foil, place a wire baking rack on top  and spray with cooking spray.  Set aside.

Dump the panko, cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, seasoned salt, and pepper into a large zip-top bag and shake to combine.

Remove a chicken strip from the marinade, add it to the bag of panko and shake to coat.  Press the crumbs onto the chicken strip.

Place the breaded chicken onto the prepared wire rack over the baking sheet.  Repeat with the remaining chicken.

Bake the chicken.

Liberally spray each chicken strip with cooking spray.

Bake the chicken in the preheated oven for 7-8 minutes.  Turn each strip and bake for an additional 7 minutes until lightly browned on the outside, the inside of the chicken is no longer pink, and the juices run clear.

Serve hot with dipping sauces.

If not serving immediately, cool the chicken on the wire rack to prevent the coating from getting soggy.

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