Chex Mix Chicken Tenders

First of all, let me just say: these Chex Mix chicken tenders are NOT a gimmick. They are A+ top of the line juicy, tender, crunchy, crisp, super flavorful chicken tenders. They just also happen to taste like Chex Mix.

Basically, what happened is this. During quarantine, Jimmy got really into making Chex Mix. He made probably a dozen or so huge batches of it. He has perfected the art of Chex Mix. Some people got into sourdough. Jimmy got into Chex Mix. I certainly am not complaining. Because in that time, I was inspired to make Chex Mix popcorn.

But then we started wondering what else we could Chex Mix. That's right, "Chex Mix" is a verb now.

Chex Mix seasoning is simple: Worcestershire sauce, seasoned salt, onion powder, garlic powder, and that's it. It's great on pretzels and bagel chips and corn/rice cereal sure, but those flavors are just as easily adapted for use on non-snack foods.

Our first attempt at "Chex Mix chicken" involved zero frying. We seasoned chicken thighs with a Chex Mix seasoning blend and cooked them skin-side down in a hot cast iron for maximum crispiness. Then we made a pan sauce using Worcestershire sauce to glaze them with as they finished cooking in the oven. They were good, but not great. Way too salty.

Knowing that crushed corn flakes are often used to help add crunch to fried chicken, we quickly realized that doing the same with Chex cereal was the way to go. But we didn't just want Chex-crusted chicken tenders. We wanted Chex Mix chicken tenders.

We also didn't want this to be a gimmick. It would be easy to crush or grind up some Chex Mix and use it as breading and call it a day. That's not what we were after. We wanted high quality, well-made, juicy, crispy, tender, flavorful, crunchy A+ top of the line chicken tenders. Chicken tenders that were so good they were worth the effort. So that's what we set out to make.

The best fried chicken we've ever made came from J. Kenji Lopez-Alt's The Food Lab. His recipe has you soak the chicken in a buttermilk brine prior to breading and frying to keep the chicken juicy. So we whipped up a buttermilk brine infused with Worcestershire sauce and a blend of Chex Mix seasonings and let our chicken tenders soak for several hours.

Every single layer of flavor added to these chicken tenders is infused with Chex Mix seasoning, from the brine to the breading, to the dipping sauce.

Once brined, we patted the tenders dry, then double-dredged them in a mixture of crushed Chex cereal, flour, and corn starch mixed with seasoned salt, onion and garlic powders, and paprika.

To make sure the Worcestershire flavor wasn't left behind in the breading process, we reserved the brine from the bag and used it — instead of beaten eggs — as the liquid to get the dry crunchy breading to stick to the chicken tenders.

We tested a few different methods for breading the chicken to make sure the lovely golden brown crispy bits wouldn't slide off when you bite in. We found that letting the breaded chicken tenders rest for 10 minutes before frying them is the key to preventing breading slippage. (Is that a term? It is now.)

Instead of deep frying, we used our 10" Lodge cast iron (frying is one of the best ways to season a cast iron!) and did a shallow fry in an inch or two of canola oil. Because these are boneless, they only take about 3-4 minutes per side.

They came out so gorgeously crispy and crunchy and perfectly golden brown. And the geometric patterns from the crushed Chex cereal in the breading are just really fun, if I do say so myself.

"But Rebeccaaaaa, what do they taste like?" If no one told you these were Chex Mix chicken tenders, I'm not sure you'd bite in and immediately go, "Egads my dear, these chicken tenders taste of Chex Mix!" (You do say "egads," right?) And this makes sense; as previously noted, Chex Mix flavors are ridiculously common in savory cooking.

You're far more likely to bite in and have a niggling feeling that there's some familiar flavor combo happening that you have great affection for, but can't quite place.

The great secret of Chex Mix is that the Worcestershire sauce is what ties it all together. And when you dunk these in the Worcestershire-and-mayo dipping sauce, that familiar combination of flavors is undeniably Chex Mix.

Like I said. These Chex Mix chicken tenders are not a gimmick. They're really good, super crispy, juicy and flavorful chicken tenders. They just happen to get their flavor profile from the same seasonings that make Chex Mix one of the all-time greatest snack foods.

notes on chex mix chicken tenders

• There is still an egg in the binding mixture — instead of adding a third dredging station for dipping the tenders in beaten egg AND the reserved brine, we simply mixed an egg right into the brine.

• When you dredge the chicken in the dry and wet mixtures, use the "wet hand" and "dry hand" method so you don't end up with clumps of breading stuck to your hands. Use one hand to handle the chicken tenders in the wet mixture and the other hand to handle the chicken tenders in the dry mixture.

• Make sure the tenders are fully and thoroughly coated in the dry mixture. Press it firmly into the flour and crushed Chex on all sides. The first time you dredge it, the chicken will likely only pick up the finer dry ingredients. Once it's taken a quick dip in the reserved brine the crushed Chex will cling a lot better during the second dredge.

• Make sure you dispose of the frying oil responsibly (i.e. don't pour it down the drain).

• UPDATE 12/14/20 — For frying chicken you want your oil around 350F. It can be a bit hard to measure this in a shallow pan, but if you have an instant read thermometer, check the oil periodically and adjust your burners as needed. Every time you add new chicken the temperature will drop slightly, so just keep checking and adjusting so the breading doesn't burn.

other recipes you might like

• chex mix popcorn
• mocha-hazelnut milk bar style layer cake
• breakfast fried rice
• chocolate m&m popcorn

📖 Recipe