Chicken tenders are seasoned and wrapped in bacon. Air fried to a perfect crisp, they are then finished in a sweet and savory glaze.
If you’re looking for an easy and fun weeknight meal, look no further than Bacon-Wrapped Chicken Tenders. This dish is simple to make and is always a crowd-pleaser. Plus, the air fryer does all the work for you – no need to preheat the oven! Just toss the chicken in some oil and spices, then wrap it in bacon before cooking. Your family will love this delicious chicken dinner.
Ingredients
Chicken – We used raw, un-breaded chicken tenders from our ButcherBox. If you do not have chicken tenders on-hand you can cut white meat chicken into 1″ thick strips.
Bacon – For this recipe, we used Godshall’s Turkey Bacon. It cooked up wonderfully and helped us to save a few calories with this dish. You can use any bacon you prefer.
Oil – The chicken tenders are tossed with extra virgin olive oil before seasoning them with spices.
Spices – Chili seasoning, onion, garlic powder, and cumin are the main stars of this recipe. These spices provide a smoky, delicious flavor.
Sauce – If you love sweet and savory sauces, BBQ sauce, and sweet Asian Chili sauce are mixed to provide a lovely glaze finish for the tenders.
How Long to Cook Bacon-Wrapped Chicken in Air Fryer?
Air fryer cook time for bacon-wrapped chicken depends on a number of factors:
- The thickness of your chicken tenders. Obviously, thicker pieces take longer to cook than slender, thinner pieces of meat.
- Whether you’re cooking thawed or frozen chicken. If you are starting with frozen chicken they will take a bit longer to cook than if they were thawed first.
- Finally, the size of your air fryer basket will also affect how long it takes to cook the chicken. A smaller basket may require less time than a larger one.
Taking all of these factors into account, how long should you cook bacon-wrapped chicken in an air fryer?
In general, cook time is between 8 to 12 minutes per side.
However, always use a meat thermometer to check for doneness; chicken breasts are fully cooked when they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit. When in doubt, err on the side of cooking for a minute or two longer, as under-cooked chicken can carry food-borne illness.
Our tenders took 8 minutes per side to fully cook and also crisped the bacon nicely.
Best Air Fryer Model (In My Opinion)
In case you haven’t heard of Cuisinart before, they are one of the most well-known companies in home appliances. They make a lot of different things: blenders, toasters, and yes even Air Fryers. We love their Cuisinart® Air Fryer Toaster Oven (Amazon affiliate link) because it can air fry and so much more! The ample-sized basket makes air frying for our large family a breeze!
Check out some other things you can do with it!
1. Roast a chicken. No need to heat your conventional oven just to roast a chicken. Your Cuisinart® Air Fryer Toaster Oven can do it for you, and faster than other appliances. All it takes is about 30 minutes to roast an entire chicken – or even a duck or turkey breast in convection mode!
2. Bake a cake. It’s not just for leftovers! It can also bake cakes, cookies, tarts, and more. Just set the appliance’s temperature to 350 degrees with no timer required; the cake will take about 30 minutes to cook.
3. Steam vegetables. Like roasting a chicken, steaming vegetables is a great way to use your air fryer toaster oven without having to heat up your whole kitchen. Place a cup of water in the bottom of the appliance, then add your favorite veggies on the wire rack. Set the temperature to 375 degrees and cook for 10-12 minutes.
4. Quickly reheat leftovers. No need to nuke your food in the microwave when you can reheat leftovers quickly and evenly in the air fryer toaster oven. Just set the appliance to 375 degrees and heat for 3-5 minutes, depending on the size and type of food.
5. Toast bread or bagels. This one is a no-brainer! Just pop in some bread or bagels and set the dial to toast.
Storing
These bacon-wrapped chicken tenders taste best on day one but will stay fresh in an airtight container for up to 3 days when stored properly. I suggest reheating them in a skillet, air fryer, or oven to crisp the bacon up. You might also want to add additional sauce glaze.
More Air Fryer Recipes to Try
- Air Fryer Crab Rangoons
- Air Fryer Bagel Pizzas
- Air Fryer Salisbury Steaks
- Air Fryer Pineapple
- Air Fried Chickpeas
Air Fryer Bacon Wrapped Chicken Tenders
Equipment
- Air Fryer
- cutting board
- knife
- Measuring Cups & spoons
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds chicken tenders
- 12 ounces Turkey bacon (12 slices) *can use any bacon you prefer
- 1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon chili seasoning
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ cup BBQ sauce
- ¼ cup Sweet chili sauce
Instructions
- Toss the chicken tenders with olive oil. After they're evenly coated, toss them in the dry spices making sure all surfaces are seasoned.1½ pounds chicken tenders, 1 teaspoon cumin, ½ teaspoon chili seasoning, ½ teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Mix the sweet chili sauce and the BBQ sauce together.¼ cup BBQ sauce, ¼ cup Sweet chili sauce
- Spray the air fryer tray/basket with nonstick spray and then preheat air fryer to 375°F.
- Tightly wrap the bacon around the seasoned chicken tenders. Place wrapped tenders on the air fryer tray or basket.12 ounces Turkey bacon
- Air fry for 8 minutes and then flip the chicken to air fryer the opposite side. Once internal temperature of the chicken in 165°F. and the bacon is crisp, remove the tenders from the air fryer.
- Baste tenders with sauce and return to air fryer for 1 minute.
- Serve warm with an additional side of sauce.
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