Whole30 Chicken Tenders
The Whole30 recipe testing has begun!! Starting a Whole30 in January means the planning must start now! Everything I have read says that planning ahead is the most important thing to be successful. I also need to start slowly eating whole30 approved stuff in between all of the sugary stuff I can’t seem to keep my hands off right now. My sister just had a fabulous birthday party last weekend and we had lots of yummy treats and wine! It’s occasions like that where I love to enjoy myself and not feel guilty about having a brownie. Those sweets just make me eat even better the next day and become what balance is all about. For these tasty tenders I looked to my pantry. I had almond meal and coconut flour on hand and saw breading written all over it! I am thinking this would also be a great breading on a gluten-free chicken Parmesan. There are infinite options really!
I just love how easy and delicious these Whole30 Chicken Tenders are! I also made that whole30 ketchup that is super easy and tasty.
Need some totes of wedges to go with these Tenders, look no further then these links:
Sweet Potato Tater Tots with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
Crispy Garlic Potatoes {Whole30}
Pin the image below to save this Whole30 Chicken Tenders recipe for later!
Whole30 Chicken Tenders
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. chicken tenders
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup almond meal
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1/2 –1 teaspoon salt (depending on how salty you like things)
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
- olive oil
- salt & pepper
Instructions
- In a shallow bowl combine almond meal, coconut flour, garlic powder, salt, pepper & smoked paprika. Liberally sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides of the chicken tenders. In a small bowl scramble up 1 egg. Dip the chicken tenders in the egg, then roll them around in the breading mixture. Press the mixture all over the chicken and then shake off the excess. Place a large skillet over medium high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of oil to the pan. Once oil is hot, add a few tenders and cook for about 3 minutes on each side. Continue with the rest of the tenders and serve with some paleo ketchup!
Great recipe!
Kelsey this looks like a great weeknight dinner! Keep it up!
This was good but too much salt in the breading for my taste. I would cut the salt in half or more.
Oh good to know! I think I like salt a bit too much!! 🙂
Will definitely make again but cut salt in half! Thank you!
These look DELICIOUS!
I know frying them will make then crispier, but do you think baking them could be good, too?
Baking could work! Pan frying with just a little oil helps add crisp without having to fully fry it! Let me know how baking works!
Just made these and added Italian seasoning – YUM! Great GF/Paleo recipe! We’re doing the Happy Song Dance!
Hi Nicole! YAY! That makes me happy, I’m doing my happy dance now! 🙂 Adding Italian seasoning – GENIUS!!
These look so good! I’m definitely going to be trying them out soon. I am curious though, why both coconut flour and almond meal? Will just one suffice or do they need to be together?
I liked the combo of both flours for texture but you can just do one or the other if you only have one! 🙂
Thanks!
I made these and really liked them. My only issue is when I fried them, they turned black. Do I have a cheap skillet? I used a non stick on medium high with a little olive oil. They were still yummy and didn’t taste too burnt. I dipped them in homemade dump ranch – yum!
Hmm maybe it was the pan but I am not sure! I am glad they didn’t taste burnt. I have to try them with dump ranch!! 🙂
Nutrition info.?
I don’t provide that but you can look it up using myfitnesspal! 🙂
I’m a Whole30er and I just made these, but with chicken thighs. Wow! Very tasty! Had a nice sweetness to them. Agree the salt was a bit too much though. Will definitely make again! Also no need for ketchup or ranch, plenty tasty on their own.
Thanks so much!! I am glad you enjoyed them!
Is there something you can use instead of egg to coat? have to avoid due to allergy.
You can use a little dijon mustard mixed with a little water to thin it!
I am allergic to eggs and have found that melting some coconut oil and using it instead of the egg works well.
Hope this helps.
You can also try Aquafaba (the liquid from chickpeas)
Made this last night and my fiancé went nuts about them! I haven’t been able to get him to eat many whole30 recipes with me but he wouldn’t stop talking about how good they were and even requested we make them again tonight. He even did most of the cooking, which is a major win in my book! Thanks for a great recipe!
★★★★★
Oh such a win!!! So glad you both liked them!! 🙂
Could I just coat the chicken in the egg and almond flour? I don’t have coconut flour currently.
Yes, that works!!
We made these tonight and served them with cauliflower fried rice. I cut the salt to 1/4tsp after reading comments and I thought it was the right amount.
I didn’t have almond meal so made some with the almonds I had in the pantry. I came up short so our combination was about half almond meal and half coconut flour and I fried them in coconut oil.
Thanks for the recipe, we definitely will make these again.
Awesome to hear!! So glad they turned out! 🙂
This recipe is in my regular rotation of meals whether I’m doing Whole 30 or not. Two kids under 5 who also love these. Thanks for sharing!
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That is awesome!!! So glad you love it!! 🙂
These were dynamite. My husband had no idea these were paleo (healthy!). They taste completely indulgent. Crispy on the outside and great flavor. I plan on making these on the regular!
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Awesome!! So glad you liked!!
has anyone tried whole30 spaghetti sauce to dip in.
There are lots of whole30 spaghetti sauces in stores! That would be great!
These are fantastic! I have been looking for an easy weeknight meal that is compliant and these are so delicious. I don’t feel like I am missing out at all with these. I dipped mine in homemade guac and also made my own garlic aioli with some mayo and fresh minced garlic. Then made a side of butternut squash fries from Trader Joes – so tasty!
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That is great!!! Love the guac idea!!
This is one of our new favorites. The kids even request it when i’m not on Whole 30.
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That is awesome!!
Have you tried freezing these?
I have not! But please let me know if you do!
any recommendations for substitutions those with a tree nut allergy? I can eat coconut though – would coconut flour only work? Thanks!
You can use coconut flour but it is much more dense and dry so just lightly bread it maybe??
Um. These changed my life. SO DELICIOUS. THANK YOU!
Also, The salt was perfect for me 🙂
★★★★★
Awesome!! Thanks!
I absolutely LOVE this recipe. I used it on my first round of Whole30 and it was my husbands Favorite. I am doing my second round now and just had a quick question for you.
I am only using coconut flour as I can’t use the almond but I find myself having to add oil to the pan so much to get them to fry because it all gets absorbed or disappears? Am I doing something wrong?
is it because of the coconut flour?
Thanks!
★★★★★
It’s definitely the coconut flour! It is a super dry flour so it sucks up any liquid it can!
I am terrible in the kitchen…mine did not get crispy at all! Any thoughts on what I did wrong?? You already addressed the vanishing olive oil but I ended up with a lot of black in my skillet too. Do you continue to add more olive oil?
You can add more olive but also maybe your pan was too hot if there was a lot of black?
I just started cooking at the age of 36, so I’m extremely intimidated and insecure in the kitchen. I have made these twice now and love them! They are very delicious and EASY for this beginners cook to make! They are now a stable in my small but growing list of recipes I have successfully completed!
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So glad you loved them Jessica!! One of my faves too!
So delicious! I made this last week and loved them so much I just prepped them again! This time I added some chipotle seasoning and I threw them in the air fryer at 380 for 10. This made it even easier and somehow even more delicious
Amazing!!
I want to try these tonight. How do you make the sweet potato fries. Those look amazing too and I have never made them before.
I just roast them at 425 for about 25-30 minutes with oil, salt, pepper and garlic powder!
Hi, these look so good. I need to find chicken strips I can make to send to school. Is there something I can switch for the almond meal? Thanks. Also what is almond meal? Lol
If you don’t need them to be whole30 you can use panko breadcrumbs, or coconut flour if you want it to be cleaner!
For those asking about baking them: 425 degrees for 15-20 min, flipping over halfway through. They turned out great!
Thank you!!
Not sure why this was the first time I tried these. Huge hit! Easy and everyone loved them. I am guessing they will be requested weekly!
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That’s great!!
Loved these! I added a little homemade ranch seasoning and cayenne pepper too. Approved by the whole family!
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So glad!!
Great simple recipe! Question….has anyone cooked these in an air fryer?
I know people have with success but unsure on timing!
Dusted mine with a little Buffalo Seasoning from The New Primal. Delicious!
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Great Idea!