I Tried 4 Frozen Chicken Tenders and the Winner Surprised Us All

It was the perfect crunchy, bite of our dreams.

I’ve learned that people have strong opinions when it comes to chicken tenders. Some say that the breading is the most important part. Others want a tender that has big chicken flavor. In other words, what’s my favorite, may not be yours. Luckily, after conducting this (very unscientific) taste test, I’ve found that there’s a chicken tender for everyone.

How I Chose the Tenders

I went to four different grocery stores and narrowed it down to four brands. I chose tenders without any special seasonings or spice to keep things neutral.

How I Tested

I cooked all of the tenders as specified on the packaging, giving them ample space on the baking sheets to crisp up and cook evenly. I served all of the tenders plain, without sauce (which made my testers sad, but I repaid them with vats of ketchup, mustard, and ranch dressing after their initial testing). It was a blind taste-test so no one could be influenced by brands. After tasting, I asked my testers to tell me what they liked and didn’t like about each of the options and then rank them—taking the breading, chicken, and overall flavor into consideration. Here are the results.

Frozen Chicken Tenders Taste Test Results

4th Place: Tyson Crispy Chicken Strips

If you love thick, crunchy coating on your chicken tenders, then you’ll love these. Tyson’s version is indeed crunchy, but for many of my testers, it was to the point of distraction. One tester even said the edges were overly hard, making the tenders less enjoyable. There was also so much breading that it was a challenge to find the chicken inside. That being said, they did like the flavor of the breading, with one tester claiming it tasted like biscuits.

Bottom line: If you’re into the fried crunchy coating, you’ll like these, but if you’re a chicken person, you might not.

3rd Place: Perdue Crispy Chicken Strips

Perdue’s chicken tenders barely beat Tyson with my taste testers. Like Tyson, they were crunchy with a heavy focus on breading. This was a win for my self-proclaimed “breaded meat connoisseurs” involved in the testing. The flavor of the breading wasn’t good enough to beat out Tyson’s tenders, instead, it was the chicken in these tenders that helped secure its third-place finish. Unlike Tyson, my testers could taste the chicken and also claimed that it seemed juicier.

Bottom line: I’d buy these again, but definitely serve them with dipping sauces.

2nd Place: Kroger Crispy Chicken Strips

All of my testers noticed these chicken tenders first. Mostly because they were huge compared to the rest of the bunch. The breading here was more reasonable and unlike the others, the chicken was the highlight. Everyone enjoyed having a tender that was more chicken than breading. The flavor was on par with the others, but because the chicken played a bigger role in the tender, this one won out.

Bottom line: I’d surprisingly buy these again, but I think I’d prefer them on a sandwich.

1st Place: Applegate Gluten-Free Chicken Breast Tenders

These were the only gluten-free tenders on the list, and somehow they landed in first place. Unlike the others, these tenders had a primarily cornmeal-based crust, which wasn’t overly thick and crisped up perfectly. One tester commented these were his favorite because of their “ delicious crunch.” Testers liked the texture, but also the flavor of these tenders, saying that they were seasoned and salted well. Like Kroger, these tenders were more chicken than breading.

Bottom line: These are the tenders I’ll splurge on when I’m hankering for a piece of delicious, crunchy chicken.

Enjoy these chicken tenders with your favorite frozen French fries and an easy store-bought shortcut meal is served any day of the week thanks to the grocery freezer aisle.

Read the original article on All Recipes.