These Keto Chicken Tenders are crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. Drizzled with a luscious sugar free hot honey sauce, they rival anything from a restaurant! And they’re easy to make in your air fryer or your oven.
Hot honey chicken is huge right now and it’s easy to see why. It has a crunchy exterior paired with succulent meat and a spicy sweet glaze. It appeals to your tastebuds on so many levels. But it also contains about 30g of carbs per serving!
Well these Keto Chicken Tenders have all of that crunchy, juicy, tangy appeal without all the added carbs. They are amazing and I am thrilled with how well they turned out. So thrilled, in fact, that I have them on my menu again for this week.
I think it’s safe to say that this keto air fryer chicken will become a staple in our house. Right up there with Spinach Stuffed Chicken and Keto Chicken Marsala.
Check out all of my delicious Keto Chicken Recipes here.
Why you will love this recipe
I don’t know too many people in the world who don’t love crispy, crunchy fried chicken. It’s hard to resist, especially when it’s seasoned well and super flavorful.
Most fried chicken are anything but keto friendly. It’s usually dredged in flour and coated in bread crumbs or other high carb breading. My blood sugar spikes just thinking about it.
Thankfully, making keto fried chicken doesn’t need to be complicated. Low carb breading alternatives like nut meals or crushed pork rinds gives great results that really satisfy. For these Keto Chicken Tenders, I used a combination of both and was delighted with the texture.
I air fried the tenders for a perfectly crispy coating without a lot less mess. But don’t worry if you don’t own an air fryer, as I have included instructions for oven-baking too.
For the hot honey sauce, I used subbed allulose honey substitute. The glaze is so delectable, it’s hard to resist just spooning it into your mouth. And you can adjust the heat level to your liking, or skip the hot sauce altogether!
Ingredients you need
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- Chicken: Chicken tenders come from the breast and are the smaller pieces on the underside of boneless chicken breasts. You can always simply cut up full breasts into smaller strips and use those.
- Pork rinds: Crushed pork rinds (aka pork panko) makes the best breading for keto recipes. However, you can use almond flour instead.
- Almond flour: I like adding some almond flour to my breading to help stretch it out, but you can use all pork rind crumbs if you prefer.
- Egg: You will need an egg wash to help the coating stick to the tenders.
- Allulose honey: A keto honey substitute is key to the delicious spicy sauce. I really like this Allulose Honey, but the ChocZero honey works well too. See the Expert Tips section for more sweetener options.
- Hot sauce: Look for a hot sauce that has 0 carbs per serving, like Tapatio. You can also use Buffalo sauce.
- Butter: Just like Buffalo wings, this sauce uses butter for a rich glaze.
- Seasonings: Garlic powder, smoked paprika, cayenne, salt, and pepper.
Step By Step Directions
1. Prepare the breading: In a shallow bowl, whisk together the pork rinds, almond flour, and spices. Season to taste with salt and pepper. In another shallow bowl, whisk together the egg and water.
2. Bread the tenders: Dip each tender in the egg mixture and shake to remove the excess, then dip in the pork rind mixture, turning to coat completely. Shake off the excess crumbs. Lay on a waxed paper lined tray and repeat with the remaining tenders.
3. Arrange on racks: Preheat an air fryer to 400ºF and grease the air fryer rack(s). Arrange the tenders so that there is a little space between them. Depending on the size of your air fryer, you may need to work in batches.
4. Air fry the tenders: Air fry 8 to 10 minutes, flipping the tenders over halfway through cooking. Remove to wire rack set over a baking sheet when they are cooked through (165ºF).
5. Make the sauce: While the chicken is cooking, combine the keto honey, butter, and hot sauce in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and cook about 1 minute, keeping your eye on it and stirring frequently.
6. Drizzle the tenders: Drizzle the sauce over the chicken tenders and serve hot.
Oven Directions
- Prepare the keto chicken tenders as directed.
- Preheat the oven to 425ºF. If using convection or fan-forced, preheat to 400ºF.
- Lightly grease a baking rack and set it above a baking sheet. Arrange the tenders on the rack so that they have a little space around them for air to circulate.
- Bake 18 to 22 minutes, flipping once halfway through baking. The center of the tenders should reach 165ºF on an instant read thermometer.
- Remove let cool a few minutes, then drizzle with hot honey sauce and serve.
Expert Tips:
I used a combination of almond flour and pork rinds for the breading, but you can easily do just one or the other. Pork rinds definitely end up a bit crispier. If you want the almond flour coating to be more crisp, try using ½ cup grated Parmesan with 1 cup almond flour.
I recommend not adding salt to your breading without tasting it first. Most pork rind crumbs have quite a bit of seasoning and salt already. So test it before you add any more.
Not a fan of spicy food? That’s okay! Leave out the cayenne in the coating and make the glaze with just butter and allulose honey. Yum!
Sweetener Options: If you don’t have honey substitutes, try using 2 tablespoons of water and 2 to 3 tablespoons of granular sweetener. Bring to a simmer and cook long enough to dissolve the sweetener.
It may be a bit thinner than my glaze, depending on what sweetener you use. Allulose sweeteners will thicken up more as you cook, whereas erythritol will not.
Frequently Asked Questions
An air fryer is an excellent investment for keto dieters. It prepares crispy, delicious keto recipes quickly with far less mess than deep frying. And the food isn’t actually fried, so you save on fat and calories as well. A few of my popular air fried recipes include Keto Crab Cakes, Air Fryer Pork Chops, and Crispy Keto Fish Sticks.
You can enjoy chicken tenders on a keto diet, and there are many ways to prepare them. If you want crispy breaded keto chicken tenders, use breading ingredients like crushed pork rinds, almond flour, and grated Parmesan.
Store any leftover tenders in a covered container in the fridge for up to 4 days. They may not be as crispy anymore, but you can gently re-heat them in a warm oven. The hot honey sauce can be stored in a glass jar in the fridge for up to a week. Rewarm gently in a saucepan.
Air fryer recommendations
I recently purchased the Instant Vortex Plus air fryer, made by the Instant Pot brand. And I am absolutely thrilled with it. It’s large enough to fit this whole batch of keto chicken tenders easily in one go. It also has a rotisserie function and can be used for baking, broiling, or dehydrating.
There is a smaller 6 quart version with less functionality that may work for smaller kitchens. I also have the Air Fryer Lid for my Instant Pot. It works well but there is definitely less space. But it’s a great choice for people who already have an Instant Pot and don’t want to purchase another countertop appliance.
I know that there are many brands of air fryers out there, but these are the ones I’ve owned personally.
Keto Hot Honey Chicken Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
Keto Chicken Tenders
- 1 cup crushed pork rinds
- ½ cup almond flour (or more pork rinds)
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 ½ lb chicken tenders
Hot Honey Sauce
- ¼ cup allulose honey
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 1 to 2 tablespoon hot sauce such as Tapatio
Instructions
Keto Chicken Tenders
- In a shallow bowl, whisk together the pork rinds, almond flour, and spices. Season to taste with salt and pepper (some pork rinds crumbs have a lot of salt so go lightly and then taste it).
- In another shallow bowl, whisk together the egg and water.
- Dip each tender in the egg mixture and shake to remove the excess, then dip in the pork rind mixture, turning to coat completely. Shake off the excess crumbs. Lay on a waxed paper lined tray and repeat with the remaining tenders.
- Preheat an air fryer to 400ºF and grease the air fryer rack(s). Arrange the tenders so that there is a little space between them. Depending on the size of your air fryer, you may need to work in batches.
- Air fry 8 to 10 minutes, flipping the tenders over halfway through cooking. Remove to wire rack set over a baking sheet when they are cooked through (165ºF).
Hot Honey Sauce
- While the chicken is cooking, combine the keto honey, butter, and hot sauce in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and cook about 1 minute, keeping your eye on it and stirring frequently.
- Drizzle the sauce over the chicken tenders and serve hot.
Notes
- Prepare the keto chicken tenders as directed.
- Preheat the oven to 425ºF. If using convection or fan-forced, preheat to 400ºF.
- Lightly grease a baking rack and set it above a baking sheet. Arrange the tenders on the rack so that they have a little space around them for air to circulate.
- Bake 18 to 22 minutes, flipping once halfway through baking. The center of the tenders should reach 165ºF on an instant read thermometer.
- Remove let cool a few minutes, then drizzle with hot honey sauce and serve.
Paula says
This are delicious. I wanted to try the pork rinds as breading even though I am not a pork rind fan, it works great! I’m really surprised at how good keto honey is. The sauce was delicious. I used a convection oven. These are easy and a great recipe.
Jennifer L Lindsay says
I had thawed chicken tenders and needed to make a quick easy meal. So glad I thought to scan Carolyn’s website. I made these in both the air fryer and the oven last night. Both methods turned out a wonderful product. My spouse is having them for breakfast 😁
Kathryn Newport says
Yum! I ordered the allulose honey from amazon and used harissa paste in place of how sauce. Thank you for another great recipe. I will put this on repeat!
Carolyn says
So glad you liked it!
Melani says
Holy heck-a-mole guys this is amazing! I was a bit intimidated by the process but so glad I took the chance! Just wow also kinda gives me Asian food vibes.
Deb says
I’m a sucker for a sweet and savory main dish and this really delivered. I have never tried ‘real’ Nashville Hot Chicken and I am kind of glad…no expectations, but in any case, this was sooo good. A bit leery of spicy hot food, I only used 1 tbsp of hot sauce in the honey and I will use 2 tbsps when I make it again. Followed your recipe for air fryer exactly (even weighed the chicken tenders instead of eyeballing it) and mine were done at 18 minutes. Thanks!
Carolyn says
Excellent!!!
Sherry Branch says
Looking forward to trying this! Love your recipes!
Deborah Norcross says
Oops! Didn’t read frying time properly.
You were right on at 18-22 minutes.
I’m a little number dyslexic… sorry. So, perfect recipe, again.
Deborah Norcross says
Wow! Seriously yummy! I made with exact recipe, pounded chicken fingers slightly and added a mere 1 tbsp hot sauce but will go to your suggested two next time. I’m using an insta pot air fryer lid. And I think it’s a bit weaker than yours so I had to punch total cooking time (with flipping) to 18 minutes to get the actual crunch. So great! Looking forward to more air fryer recipes.
Tracey M says
The instructions say to cook on both the wax paper lined tray and then also cook on the air fryer racks themselves. Which way is it, cook on the wax paper lined tray or cook directly on the wire racks themselves? Thank you!
Carolyn says
No, it does not. It says to “LAY the tenders on a waxed paper lined baking sheet”. This just means where you put them after you cast them… THEN you prepare the air fryer racks.
Alice says
I just took some chicken breast out of the freezer, now I know what to do with them.
Thanks Carolyn
Deborah Norcross says
I’ve been using your first cookbook since it was published. You signed it for me at shoppers world in framingham, ma. I’m a fan. I ordered the allulose honey, pork panko and an insta pot air fryer lid from Amazon based on your promise to write more air fryer recipes.
I’m ready. But what is the dip in the hot honey chicken fingers photo? Or is it just styling?
Carolyn says
It’s just some bleu cheese dressing! I am excited for you to make these. And I remember that Shopper’s World signing!
Jennifer says
Hi! I just wanted to thank you for including oven instructions! I really want an air fryer, but don’t want to commit to one just yet ($$ and shelf space). Thanks for taking the time to add those. We love your recipes! Your book was the very first keto book I bought back in 2017. All great recipes!!
Carolyn says
You’re welcome!
Griselda Ramirez says
love this chicken tenders , I love the sweetness and spicy together is delicious