{Oven-Baked} Ranch Chicken Tenders
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of RawSpiceBar. All opinions are entirely my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that help make A Latte Food possible!
These Oven Baked Ranch Chicken Tenders are baked in the oven instead of fried. These chicken tenders are marinated with ranch dressing, giving this homemade chicken tender recipe incredible flavor! They’re a total crowd pleaser.
Chicken tenders were my meal of choice back in the day. Dipped in barbecue sauce, honey mustard, or the glorious ranch dressing (somewhere my dad is gagging), they were the perfect meal.
Plus, they always came with fries, and I’m a French fry junkie (cue these ‘lil babies: Black Pepper Parmesan Potato Wedges).
I’m totally using past tense in the latter paragraph as if my tastes have matured and expanded even though I still order the chicken tender basket practically every time I’m at a restaurant. I mean, sure, my tastes certainly are more cultured than they once were. I like feta cheese, fruit in my salad, and the occasional apple on my grilled cheese. But, when push comes to shove, if I had to choose, I’d probably pick all the classic, All-American, kid-friendly fare.
So, if you’re like me and have the tastes of a child (or actually have a child), this is the recipe. I’m telling you, these Ranch Chicken Tenders are absolutely incredible.
Making this chicken could not be any easier.
Seriously.
While many breaded chicken recipes call for coating in a flour/egg/breadcrumb or some combination of similar ingredients, this recipe uses Bisquick, which is what gives this chicken its crunchy coating, aka the “fried” quality.
The chicken is marinated in ranch dressing, dredged in a combination of Bisquick, paprika, salt, and pepper, and baked with olive oil.
The chicken is crunchy on the outside and tender on the inside.
Basically, it’s perfect.
The paprika in this recipe gives the chicken tenders an added burst of flavor, yielding a slight peppery flavor to the chicken. RawSpiceBar’s smoked paprika (or sweet paprika) adds a smoky depth to these chicken tenders.
Or, if you are a bit of a flavor master (or just love adding your own twist to recipes), maybe mix it up a bit and try some of RawSpiceBar’s freshly ground & toasted spices & blends?? The mixing and matching possibilities are endless! You can check out their whole spice collection here!
Oven Baked Ranch Chicken Tenders Tips & Tricks:
- I like to use large ziplock bags for this recipe, because it makes the clean-up portion of this meal a breeze (you’ll see what I mean down in the recipe instructions). However, you could use a shallow baking dish instead to coat the chicken in the breading mixture.
- The crispy skin on the chicken comes from the high oven temperature and the olive oil, so it is really important you let the oven preheat to 475 degrees before you put the chicken in the oven.
- When it comes time to flip the chicken over, you do want to do this as carefully and gently as possible. The coating on the chicken can slip off easily (especially since only one side has crisped up at this point).
I could eat these every single day.
{Oven-Baked} Ranch Chicken Tenders
Ingredients
- 12 chicken tenders
- 1 cup ranch dressing
- 1 Tbsp milk
- 1 cup Bisquick, or some other complete baking mix
- 1/2 tsp RawSpiceBar’s Smoked Paprika
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 4 Tbsp olive oil
Instructions
- In a large zippered bag, pour in ranch dressing and milk. Add in all 12 chicken tenders, zip up the bag (squeezing out all excess air), and shake or massage the bag until all tenders are coated with ranch dressing. Allow to marinate for 15 minutes to 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 475 degrees and line a large baking dish with foil (9x13 or 9x11 dish). Drizzle 2 Tbsp of oil over the bottom of the pan.
- In a large zippered bag, add Bisquick, RawSpiceBar paprika, salt, and black pepper. Add marinated chicken tenders into the bag, zip up, and shake until all tenders are coated.
- Place chicken flat in the baking dish, making sure none of the tenders are touching each other. Drizzle 2 Tbsp of oil over the tops of the chicken.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes (or until the underside of the chicken is golden brown), then carefully flip the chicken over, and bake for another 9-10 minutes.
- Serve with extra ranch, barbecue sauce, or any other sauce if desired.
- Enjoy!
The nutrition facts provided are calculated using a third-party tool and are estimates only. Actual nutritional content may vary based on the ingredients and brands you use, as well as portion sizes. For accurate results, please consult a registered dietitian or nutritionist.
If you like this savory recipe, I think you’ll like these too:
The Ultimate Turkey Club Skewers
{Crockpot} Salsa Verde Honey Lime Chicken Tacos
Meet Michelle
I’m a self-taught baker who truly believes it’s impossible to be upset when eating dessert. It’s my life’s goal to bake everyone happy!
If I’m not baking, I’m probably reading a good book with a cup a coffee in hand.
Welcome! I’m glad you’re here!
Love that these are baked and not fried! So much flavor in this meal 🙂
You had me at ranch! 🙂 These look amazing, Michelle! I swear they came out of a restaurant, they just look SO good! What a perfect meal, love the flavor!
Oh, man. I am the HUGEST sucker for good chicken tenders and these are definitely speaking my name right now! Plus, um the fact that I don’t need to go EXTRA crazy with the ranch for dipping because it’s already IN the tenders? WINNING. 😉
These look delicious, love the ranch flavor and that they are bakes, I would gladly share this with my chicken tenders obsessed toddler.
I think chicken tenders is secretly everyone’s favorite food — so crispy and juicy and flavorful! Love this variation!
Perfect food for 7 year old everywhere and 33 years olds as well 🙂
Chicken tenders are a favorite around our house! These look perfect! Love that these are baked and the ranch sounds amazing!
Love that these chicken tenders are baked, and not fried like a classic chicken tender recipe. Looks delicious!
Thanks, Phoebe! 🙂
These tenders are so tempting Michelle! We’re headed on vacation this week, renting a cape at the Cape.(!) These will be a perfect easy dinner one night!
Thanks, Allie!
what kind of chicken do u get chicken breasts and cut them up or actual frozen chicken tenders but them is already breaded sorry I don’t mess with chicken much
Hi, Scarlett! I use pre-cut chicken, usually called chicken tenders or chicken strips, which you can find in your fresh chicken section. If your store does not have those, I would suggest using chicken breasts and cutting them length-wise into strips. Hope that helps! 🙂
I made these for dinner tonight (using Caesar dressing instead of Ranch because that was all I had on hand) and both my husband and I agree it was one of the best things I’ve made!! Thanks for the great recipe!
Thanks, Lacey! So happy to hear both you and your husband were fans! 🙂
Has anyone tried using bacon ranch dressing?
Hi, Melissa! I bet they would taste fantastic with bacon ranch!
Do you actually us salad dressing or just the power mix?
Hi Bridget! I use ranch salad dressing. The liquid of the dressing helps the Bisquick and seasonings to stick to the chicken better! 🙂
Thanks! Just making sure!
Made these with Bleu Cheese because we prefer it over Ranch. Out of this world delicious, so moist and flavorful thanks so much!
These came out perfectly! They were so crispy and flavorful! A family favorite for sure ?
These were seriously AWESOME!
Being a beginner cook, I failed miserably at trying to bread these in a Ziploc bag. Some of the chicken didn’t get coated, and those that did, the breading fell off during baking. Could I put the breading mix in a bowl or pan and coat them that way? And just a heads up, cheesy ranch dressing was delicious with this!
Hi Stephanie! I can’t wait to try it with cheesy ranch dressing! I’ve only done this recipe in a ziplock bag (I just like how easy clean-up is with the bag), but I imagine it would work breading it in a pan! 🙂
I did it the way Stephanie suggested, and it turned out awesome! These are a total family favorite for sure!
I’ve made these 3 times and every time they’ve turned out amazing! I did have to be super gentle with the coating (thanks for mentioning that in the recipe!) when flipping, but wow, my family loves these!
I made this tonight and it was so good!!! All of my picky eaters loved it…yay!!! Thank you so much!!
I though these were very moist but coating didn’t
stay on very well. Next time I will double the bisquick mixture and coat them in a bowl.
Don’t know if this will help, but after I shake up the chicken in the bag, I let it sit in the fridge about 20-30 minutes, then place it in the oven. I think it must give the it time to settle or something because it works well.
This was the best recipe for baked chicken recipes I’ve found so far. I am a ranch dressing lover, so this was perfect! I like that you suggest using the zip lock bags for marinating and coating the chicken because that is always my ‘go to’ method (saves washing bowls, etc.).
So happy that I found your web page…I will certainly be back for more yummy recipes.
Best.
Made this last night for my family. BIG HIT!!! Thank you. 🙂
My kids looove this recipe! Super crispy skin and flavorful.
Thank you for the recipes. These looks delicious! Chicken tenders are my favorite.