Honey Mustard Chicken Fingers
Heart-healthy chicken tenders completely baked in an AMAZING mustard sauce and coated with a nutty crunchy pecan crust!
Chicken fingers. Chicken tenders. Chicken strips. What do you prefer to call them?
I’m keen on “chicken fingers” – because I’m 12 apparently. And it just sounds more fun to eat.
Especially when you coat them in an epic homemade honey mustard sauce (and slightly lightened-up with Greek yogurt, of course) along with a crisp pecan-Panko crust, using preservative-free Fisher Nuts.
Except guys, this is completely 100% baked. But that’s just between you and me, right?
You can also save some of the honey mustard sauce for later – you know, in case you need more for dipping purposes.
Honey Mustard Chicken Fingers
Ingredients
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
For the honey mustard
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup Greek yogurt
- ¼ cup honey
- 2 tablespoons mustard
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
For the pecan crust
- 1 cup Fisher Nuts Pecan Halves
- 1 cup Panko*
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat; set aside.
- To make the honey mustard, whisk together mayonnaise, Greek yogurt, honey and mustards.
- To make the pecan crust, combine pecans, Panko, Italian seasoning, garlic powder and onion powder in the bowl of a food processor until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- Season chicken with salt and pepper, to taste. Working one at a time, dip chicken into honey mustard, then dredge in pecan mixture, pressing to coat.
- Place chicken onto the prepared baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the chicken is completely cooked through.
- Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Fisher Nuts. All opinions expressed are my own.
My girlfriend loves to cook interesting meals. So, I dug out this recipe and sent it to her. Next thing we’re having it in a romantic setup on a Saturday evening. She followed the instructions closely, I saw it myself. And it turned out to be absolutely delicious. Can’t wait to have it again.
Made this last night followed recipe as is and absolutely loved it. I doubled the honey mustard sauce to use for dipping. It was a big hit with the family and was indeed damn delicious. Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
I always love the pictures that you post Chungah and these pics are no different as these look absolutely delicious. Will try out this recipe soon. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Wow. What a great idea to incorporate pecans into the crust. I will be giving these a try very soon.
That honey mustard recipe looks amazing as well. I’ve never tried adding mayonnaise before. Thanks for these recipes.
Oh my god!!! I just tried these today and never thought chicken fingers could ever be semi healthy and the mustard sauce is to die for. The only issue I had was making them crunchy. Maybe I didn’t add nuts. Did you come up with this all on your own or you have another resource?
Scott, you didn’t add any pecans for the pecan crust?
Hi Chungah,
I’ve tried many of your recipes and they are all delicious! However this one has some major flaws, based on the recipe. I followed it exactly, as I always do with your recipes, and like other comments, it was an epic fail. After rethinking things, I believe the grinding of the Panko and pecans has to be lightly blended, as to avoid a moist breading…that’s my hypothesis, but I could be wrong. Also, maybe the temperature was too low? Anyway, great flavor, but horrible finished project. Thanks for all you other great recipes that I constantly use for my weeknight meals!
Made this tonight, and although tasty, it didn’t turn out crunchy like your photo. I think the honey mustard coating made the breaking soft when it baked. What am I doing wrong?
Unfortunately, it is very difficult to say with certainty as I was not in the kitchen with you. Did you follow the recipe exactly as written without any substitutions?
What’s Italian seasoning when it’s at home?
Also I assume when you say just mustard you mean American mustard, like French’s?
Thanks
Italian seasoning consists of basil, oregano, rosemary, marjoram, cilantro and thyme.
And yes, French’s mustard is great!
Hi there, tasty stuff but came out a bit soggy in places, any tips ?
Caroline, try putting them on a cooking rack (coated with nonstick spray first) while in the oven. Hope that helps!
I don’t have a food processor, but I think this could still be super tasty without the pecans, which seem to be the only ingredient that would really require the processor.
Taste aside, do you think the breading will work with just Panko, Italian seasoning, garlic powder and onion powder?
Mahalo,
Tatiana
Yes, absolutely.
You can always put the pecans and put them in a zip lock bag and use a rolling pin. To break things up. Just a tip.
Thanks for the recipe, these were good- but not damndelicious! Next recipe….
I’m having trouble getting the breading to stay on. Is there something I missed or did i just need to bake it for longer? The chicken is cooked, but the breading just kind of falls off. I used aluminum foil instead of parchment paper, but I don’t think that would make a huge difference, would it?
Thanks for the recipe, though. It’s delicious!
Kevin, when dipping the chicken into the honey mustard mixture, I recommend making sure the chicken is fully coated to ensure that the breading stays on.
This was absolutely delicious and so easy!!!
I had two chicken breasts out last night for this, but I like to do nuggets over strips and I know that one chicken breast is enough for my husband and I. So I cut up the second one and breaded it like the first, except I put it in the freezer and just cooked it for lunch today!
The honey mustard is super tasty too, and that’s saying a lot cause I’m usually a ranch girl, not honey mustard!
Turned out great! I messed up the breading process so the texture was subpar but that was entirely my fault. Even with a few errors on my behalf, it was really good and easy to make. I am in the middle of midterms and made it which says a lot about how quickly it can be thrown together. I never would have thought of the pecans so that was a really smart addition. Also, I did not use any mayo- I couldn’t justify buying something I literally never use so I stuck to the yogurt and it turned out healthier and still fantastic.
Wow, looks amazing. I can’t wait to try this.
I never thought about such a recipe! Chicken with honey unimaginable! But this one sounds better & also looking so fresh & tasty. I’ll try it. Great job by sharing!
Hi, this looks so delicious although I never try on this recipe before. But I prefer to cook with chicken breast as it will be more healthier
I believe chicken breast is what the recipe is using.
can you use any other nut??
Unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment.
Walnuts work great 🙂
Can’t wait to try it. Looks yum yum!
I haven’t tried this recipe however, it looks delicious! I am wondering if there could be a potential health hazard making the honey mustard sauce.? Looking at your beautiful photos throughout the recipe you show dipping a chicken finger into the sauce. #2 direction tells how to make the honey mustard sauce but, does say anything about reserving some sauce for dipping the baked chicken, If the raw chicken is dipped into the sauce and then dredged in the coating and placed on a baking sheet, wouldn’t the honey mustard sauce be contaminated by the raw chicken? I have read to always throw away sauces and marinades, etc. after raw chicken has been soaking in it. Does the recipe want us to make two honey mustard sauces?? One for dipping the raw chicken and one for dipping the baked chicken? Thank you
E. Fischer, you can choose to set some aside or make more if you think you would like to use it as a dipping sauce, which is a completely optional step. It’s up to you! 🙂
Use common sense. 🙂