Chicken Finger Strips in Batter Recipe

Delicious restaurant style chicken tenders you can make at home. The batter is light and fluffy while the chicken strips are wonderfully moist and tender.

This is a meal that is quite simple to make and it is one that your family is almost certain to enjoy. The batter contains ingredients that generally can be found in most kitchens and the coating can be used on either chicken or fish dishes so be sure to bookmark this page for future use. It is a frugal family recipe that nicely stretches out your grocery dollars. The recipe cooks up into quite a large amount of food considering the number of chicken breasts that are used. Expect 2 chicken breasts to feed about four people and 4 chicken breasts to easily feed a group of eight.

Choose the Size of Batch Required for Your Meal. A small batch requires about 2 large boneless chicken breasts. The large batch requires about 4 large boneless chicken breasts.

Small Batter Mix:

3/4 cups flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
3 tablespoon baking powder 
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup water
Oil for frying

Large Batter Mix:

1 1/2 cups flour
4 tablespoons cornstarch
6 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups water
Oil for frying

Step 1: Mix Your Batter. If necessary you can adjust the batter texture by adding a little more flour or water as needed. 
Step 2: Slice Chicken into Strips
Step 3. Heat Your Oil in a deep fryer or deep dish cast iron pan.
Step 4: Cook Fingers about 3 to 5 minutes each side or until chicken is a golden brown (Cooking time may vary with the temperature of your oil). Now let's get that chicken on to cook so you can give it a taste.

You can use any oil for frying your chicken fingers. Most people prefer a vegetable oil of some sort and my preference is to use omega 3 rich olive oil.Yes, despite some previous claims to the contrary you can use olive oil to cook or fry foods. It is a much healthier alternative to other oils.

Most fats have a cooking point at which their chemical composition will change. This is called the smoke point and it is the indicator of when a fat is no longer a safe food to consume. For virgin olive oils this point is quite high at about 410F or 210C degrees depending on the type of olive oil used. The perfect frying temperature for foods is around 365F to 375F or 180C so olive oil falls safely within this guideline. You can read more about cooking with olive oil at the International Olive Oil Council Website.


After I slice my chicken I toss all the strips into the batter and then pull each out as I am ready to cook it. If you are using frozen chicken breasts keep in mind that it is easiest to slice the meat when it is still slightly frozen. 

I found that the first side takes a little longer to cook (about 4 to 7 minutes) while the second side takes about 3 to 4 minutes. When the chicken is golden brown it is done. The temperature of the oil and the size of the chicken strip will also affect the cooking time so you be the judge as to what amount of time seems appropriate for your pieces. When the chicken strip is a golden brown it is generally ready to be flipped.


They are deliciously tender on the inside and crispy on the outside. The fun part of this food is that it can be served as either an appetizer or a meal. These chicken tenders are finger food which is always ideal for any occasion whether it is a family dinner or served up as party food.

Of course a great dipping sauce compliments this foodie meal perfectly too so keep scrolling to see a couple of my homemade dipping sauce recipes. The sweet and sour is my personal favourite with the chicken fingers.

Quick and Easy Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce Recipe. 
It's so easy even a kid could make it

Blend together:

2 tablespoons Mayonnaise
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon mustard
Adjust the ingredients to your taste preference.

Sweet and Sour Dipping Sauce Recipe

1 can Campbell's tomato soup 
1 tablespoon corn starch. In a small sauce pot blend these two ingredients together. Add in 1/2 cup water, 1/4 cup vinegar, 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1 to 2 teaspoon lemon juice. Stir constantly as you cook sauce over medium-high heat till it comes to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about another 10 minutes. 

You can adjust ingredients to add more sweet or sour to suit your taste preference. Always a very nice aspect of a homemade meal is that by cooking dinner at home you have the added benefit of insuring you use healthy ingredients in your food preparation. Getting restaurant style flavour in a home cooked meal is simple with this chicken finger recipe. I hope you give it a try.

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