These healthy air fryer chicken strips are tender, juicy and utterly delicious. Made from scratch using only 5 ingredients, it comes together so quickly. These chicken strips are versatile and can be served as a weeknight dinner, appetizer or as a healthy snack.
You are only ten minutes away from having a delicious weeknight dinner, let me show you how to make it.
Why you will love this recipe
- It is a 5 ingredient recipe: apart from salt and black pepper which you’ll use in making the food, you will only need 4 other ingredients for this air fryer recipe including the chicken.
- Healthy: this chicken strips doesn’t come out of a packet, it is homemade and no breading is needed to make this amazing dish. It is like having naked chicken tender at a lesser price.
- Quick and easy: Not only will you be needing 5 ingredients, but you can also be guaranteed dinner in 10 minutes. It requires minimal prep and pantry staple ingredients.
- Delicious and flavorful: you will be pleasantly surprised at how the cajun seasoning and mustard marry the chicken so well. The combination of this seasoning and mustard takes the whole dish to a whole new level of deliciousness. If care is not taken, you will end up eating this up before you serve it.
- Using the air fryer means you will be using little to no oil at all. No breading is required making the recipe super healthy.
Chicken strips vs chicken tenders
You are probably wondering what the difference is between chicken strips and tenderloins. While these two are often used interchangeably, there is a slight difference between them.
For starters, they are both cuts of boneless, skinless chicken breast.
Chicken tenders/tenderloins are a part of the chicken breast that is located underneath the breast meat. It is shaped in long and thin triangular strips that run parallel to the breast bone. Sometimes, it can be sold separately and depending on where you are located it can be referred to as chicken goujons, fingers or mini fillet.
On the other hand, the chicken strips are basically chicken breasts cut into long and thin strips. They are mostly breaded and fried (often sold frozen) but you can easily make it at home. All you need is to get a piece of large chicken breast(s) and cut it into thin strips. Simples!
Tools
Air fryer: This recipe was tested in COSORI 5.5L (1700W) but you can use any air fryer of choice
Chopping board
Sharp Knife
Mixing bowl
What you will need
To make this air fryer chicken strips recipe, you will need the following handful of ingredients
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Mustard: I used wholegrain mustard, but you can Dijon mustard if that is what you have on hand
- Cajun seasoning: I used homemade cajun seasoning, feel free to use store-bought
- Avocado oil: substitute with olive oil or any other flavorless oil of choice
- Garlic granules: substitute with garlic powder
- Salt and black pepper
How to make air fryer chicken strips
Preheat the air fryer to 400F /200C for 5 minutes
Pat the chicken breast dry with a kitchen paper towel.
Place the chicken breast on a sturdy chopping board, using a sharp knife cut the chicken breast into about 3mm thickness long strips and transfer them to a bowl
Drizzle avocado oil on the chicken strips, season with salt and black pepper, add cajun seasoning, garlic granules, and wholegrain mustard and mix until the strips are well coated.
Lightly spray the air fryer basket with oil (you can also brush the oil in the basket instead)
Transfer the seasoned strips to the preheated air fryer (listen out for the sizzle, so good) and spread it out in a single layer.
Air fry for 8-10 minutes flipping it halfway through the cooking time so that it can cook evenly.
Remove the chicken strips from the air fryer and serve as desired. Enjoy!
What to serve it with
Chicken strips can be served with any dipping sauce of choice (I love to serve mine with dijonnaise) or other sides like coleslaw or potato wedges. It can also be used as a filling for wraps and sandwiches.
How to store
Chicken strips can be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Make sure it is completely cooled and stored in an airtight container.
FAQs
How long to cook chicken strips in air fryer
This is dependent on the temperature it is cooked and the thickness of the chicken fingers. If cooked at 400F /200C then unbreaded chicken strips will cook between 8 -10 minutes
Can you put aluminum foil in an fryer
Yes, you can put aluminum foil in an air fryer basket, that said, it is worth mentioning that it may hinder the airflow in the air fryer but you shouldn’t have any problem is it is used correctly. Also, it is important to make sure that the foil is not blocking the air vent when in use.
PrintAir Fryer Chicken Strips (No Breading)
These healthy air fryer chicken strips are tender, juicy and utterly delicious. Made from scratch using only 5 ingredients, it comes together so quickly. These chicken strips are versatile and can be served as a weeknight dinner, appetizer or as a healthy snack. Let me show you how to make it.
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 8
- Total Time: 13 minutes
- Cuisine: American, British
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
- ½ Tablespoon wholegrain mustard
- 1 Tablespoon Cajun seasoning
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil substitute with olive oil or any other flavorless oil of choice
- 1 teaspoon garlic granules
- Salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
-
Preheat the air fryer to 400F /200C for 5 minutes
-
Pat the chicken breast dry with a kitchen paper towel.
-
Place the chicken breast on a sturdy chopping board, using a sharp knife cut the chicken breast into about 3mm thickness long strips and transfer them to a bowl
-
Drizzle avocado oil on the chicken strips, season with salt and black pepper, add cajun seasoning, garlic granules, and wholegrain mustard and mix until the strips are well coated.
-
Lightly spray the air fryer basket with oil (you can also brush the oil in the basket instead)
-
Transfer the seasoned strips to the preheated air fryer (listen out for the sizzle, so good) and spread it out in a single layer.
-
Air fry for 8-10 minutes flipping it halfway through the cooking time so that it can cook evenly.
-
Remove the chicken strips from the air fryer and serve as desired. Enjoy!
Notes
- Cut the strips into similar sizes so that they cook evenly
- If you don’t like spicy food then feel free to adjust the cajun seasoning to taste
Nutrition
