Dredged in beer batter and double-dipped in a seasoned flour coating, these exceptionally crispy beer battered chicken tenders will leave you craving more. Serve with a variety of sauces to fit any taste and you'll be in deep fried heaven.
My beer battered chicken strips recipe combines the exceptional flavor of a beer batter, with a classic fried chicken styled breading, creating the most incredibly crispy and flavorful fried chicken you've ever sunk your teeth into.
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Chicken tenderloins - Chicken breasts can be substituted for the chicken tenders. They just need to be sliced into strips.
- Frying oil - High temp oils such as canola or peanut oil are both good choices.
- All purpose flour - This is used in both dredging mixtures
- Seasonings - Salt, black pepper, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, and cayenne.
- Beer - Any cheap lighter beer will work.
- Egg - Egg makes the breading thicker and crispier, giving the fried chicken its classic craggy appearance.
How to make it
Set up a dredging station by combining the flour and seasonings in one large bowl, and create the beer batter in the second dish by mixing together beer, flour, egg, salt, and pepper.
Dredge each piece of chicken through the first flour mixture, then the beer batter, and then again through the first mixture. Make sure to let the excess shake off after each dredge.
Heat your frying oil to 375 degrees in a cast iron chicken fryer or other tall sided pan, then fry the chicken until golden brown. This will take approximately ten minutes. Be sure to flip the chicken as needed to ensure it cooks evenly.
Let the chicken cool slightly on a wire rack, or over paper towels, which will soak up any excess frying oil. Then serve with your favorite dipping sauce.
Best Dipping Sauces to Serve
Serving these chicken fingers with a variety of sauces will ensure everyone enjoys these crispy strips their way. I recommend the following sauces.
- Barbecue Sauce
- Comeback Sauce
- Ranch Dressing
- Hot Sauce
- Honey Mustard
FAQs
A cheap American lager works well in a beer batter. Examples include Miller, Bud, Busch, and Pabst.
This fried chicken is best reheated in the oven. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and bake until the chicken is hot and crispy, approximately ten minutes.
Beer Battered Chicken Tenders
Equipment
- chicken fryer
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken tenders (see note*)
- oil for frying
Dredging Bowl #1
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon table salt
- 1 tablespoon fresh ground pepper
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ¾ teaspoons garlic powder
- ¾ teaspoons onion powder
- ½ teaspoon cayenne
Dredging bowl #2
- ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cups beer (see note***)
- 1 teaspoon table salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 egg (beaten)
Instructions
Dredging
- Add all ingredients for the first dredging bowl together in a large dish. Do the same with the second dredging bowl, ensuring the mixture is like a thin pancake batter. Add more beer as needed to thin it out.
- Dredge your chicken tenders in the flour mixture, shaking off any excess, then into the beer batter. Let the excess batter drip off and then dredge in the flour mixture one more time.**
Frying
- Add two inches of frying oil to a tall-sided pan and heat to 375 degrees.
- Working in batches if needed, add breaded chicken strips to the hot oil and cook until golden brown. Flip the chicken as needed to ensure it cooks evenly.
- Remove chicken from the oil and let drain on a wire rack, or over paper towel.
Notes
Nutritional Information
This recipe was originally published on January 27, 2021.
Jene
Just made, absolutely 💯 delicious, thank you!
John
Crispy delicious chicken! I deboned some thighs and cut each into 3 strips. Put the cast iron on the grill and fried up 5 in each batch. Came out so good! Will make again as soon as my wife let’s me have some more fried food.