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Before talking about hand breading, let’s talk tender. To be real tender chicken – not chicken nuggets, chicken strips, or something like Burger King chicken fries – the item must be made from real chicken breast tenderness. According to Koch Foods, it’s the part of the muscle that sits below the breast proper and its technical name is the pectoralis minor. Because these muscles are used less rigorously during a chicken’s life, the meat is literally more tender than other cuts.
So that’s one thing to love about chicken fillets. Now let’s move on to hand breading, which means, quite obviously, these tenders are hand breaded right there at the restaurant. But make no mistake, this is a critical taste detail – you can really appreciate the hand-breaded difference, which is why so many chains go to great lengths to advertise that their offerings are prepared in this way. Part of the reason is simply that the chicken had to be fresh (or at least completely thawed) when it was breaded.
Another reason that fast food chains’ hand-breaded offerings taste so good is that these restaurants have put a lot of effort into developing unique flavor profiles for their breading – the chicken alone is quite flavorless, after all.
Finally, fried chicken is always delicious, especially with a salty, savory breading added. And especially when added by a skillful set of hands. If you’re craving the best fast food chicken tenderloins, here are the places to get them.
When the bread and butter of a popular restaurant chain, so to speak, is chicken, it’s no surprise that it kicks things up a notch. So the employees of Chick-fil-A conscientiously prepare chicken fillets by hand every day. And they also hand bread the chicken nuggets and the chicken for the sandwiches.
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Hardee’s has been making a big deal out of its hand-breaded chicken tenders for over a decade now. They even have meals with the qualification right there in the name. The three-piece and five-piece hand-breaded chicken combo meals consist of “premium white-meat chicken, hand-dipped in buttermilk, lightly breaded and fried until golden brown.” You can also order “boxes” of 10, 15 and 20 pieces which are stand-alone offers, without side dishes or drinks.
Sure, Popeye was a sailor, but it’s the chicken, not the seafood, that keeps people coming back. Like, say, “hand-marinated chicken tenders,” as the chain describes one of its main dishes. Served with mashed potatoes, gravy and a biscuit, this is a meal that’s hard to beat.
KFC’s freshly made tenderloins are extra crispy (and it’s actually Extra Crispy™) and they come with multiple dipping sauces.
Raising Cane’s has one type of protein on the menu, and it’s chicken. No beef, no fish, no Impossible this or that, no pork, just chicken. So you better believe they work hard to make it great, which includes hand beating their offerings and frying them batch after batch, day after day.
Church’s Chicken’s beloved chicken tenders are handcrafted all day, according to the Texas-based chain’s website. And the Honey-Butter Cookies too. And the Jalapeño Cheese Bombers. And fried okra. And it goes on, but you get the picture.
OK, you got the hint: Technically, Long John Silver’s doesn’t offer hand-breaded chicken tenderloins, but rather hand-breaded chicken tenderloins. Take a bite, and you won’t care a bit about the semantic debate of it all, though; indeed, the rich flaky batter is a welcome departure from the thicker, crispier breading you find on most chicken tenderloins from other fast food chains. Mix puppies and coleslaw together and your meal is a win.
Steven John
Steven John is a freelance writer for Eat this, not that! based just outside New York. Learn more about Steve
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