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Keeping things fun and easy with these baked Spicy Honey Mustard Pretzel Chicken Fingers. They’re seasoned with homemade honey mustard, breaded in salty pretzel crumbs, oven baked, then dipped in a spicy-hot honey sauce, followed up with a cooling ranch. These are the “grown up” version of chicken fingers…that kids love too. And yes, they’re even healthier (these tenders are baked, not fried), and so much tastier. Serve with oven baked french fries and veggies for an easy dinner that’s different, sweet and spicy, and full of flavor.
So what do you do when life tells you to stay and home and work with what’s in your pantry? You make chicken fingers…breaded in pretzel crumbs…and you serve them with your favorite spicy honey sauce. At least that’s what I do. When you don’t have a lot to work with, you gotta try and make the best of what you got. And these chicken fingers are some of the best I’ve made.
Tangy from the honey mustard glaze, salty from the pretzel coating, and sweet from the spicy honey sauce, these flavors are hard to beat. Not only are these chicken fingers fun to eat, but they’re pretty easy too! Perfect for a quarantined Wild Wednesday night.
The story.
If you look back through past HBH recipes, you’ll see a handful of chicken finger and popcorn chicken recipes. There’s also my beloved (and popular) southern hot honey chicken as well. Yes, breaded chicken recipes are big favorites in my family. Personally, I love to bake the chicken fingers…and then add plenty of sauces for dipping. They’re so good, fun, and a nice switch up from the average weeknight dinner. You know?
But these chicken fingers are extra special, they’re a mash-up of a few oldie recipes I’ve shared in year’s past. For those of you who’ve been following along all the way back since the start of HBH (in 2012). You might remember that I once shared a pretzel crusted chicken salad with honey mustard. For whatever reason, as I was staring at the back of a pretzel bag I had in the pantry, I thought back to that chicken. And then, I knew I was making pretzel coated chicken fingers. I mean why not? I had frozen chicken tenders in the freezer. What else would I make with those two ingredients? It was a no brainer.
From there, I added the seasonings, plus the spicy honey sauce. In less than a few hours, I had these pretzel chicken fingers perfected. From there, I sent photos to my older brother Creighton, who loves chicken fingers more than anyone I know. Wishing he could have been here to enjoy them. Very much missing the rest of the family these days.
Creighton loved the photos and said to freeze some for his next trip out to Colorado.
The steps.
To start, mix up the honey mustard and toss it with trimmed chicken tenders. The honey mustard is our flavor and our “glue” that helps adhere the pretzel crumbs onto the chicken tenders.
Next, finely crush the pretzels into crumbs to bread the chicken. The finely crushed pretzels are key. They flavor the chicken with the perfect amount of salt, which pairs wonderfully with the sweet and tangy honey mustard.
Tip? Pulse the pretzels in the food processor to really break them down into a fine crumb. If you don’t have a food processor, just add the pretzels to a ziplock bag, then step on the bag with your feet to finely crush them. Trust me, this works. You can even just use the actual pretzel bag and step on that. It’s what dad used to do when he’d make potato chip chicken when I was a kid. This trick is an oldie but a goodie.
Next, bake the chicken in the oven until it crisps all over. My secret is to gently dab/brush the chicken with olive oil before it bakes. This helps the coating to really crisp up nicely in the oven. You can’t skip this step, it’s crucial.
On to the sauce.
No chicken finger is complete without a dipping sauce…our two. In this family, you can never have enough sauce.
So first…the Spicy Honey Sauce. It’s inspired by the famous Nashville Hot Chicken and it’s the same sauce I use on my southern oven fried chicken. It’s spicy, but balanced with a touch of sweetness. The classic way to add sweetness to this spicy sauce is with brown sugar, but I prefer using honey for better flavor and texture.
In addition to the spicy honey sauce, I wanted to pair the fingers with something cooling…
Enter the cool ranch. I like to simply mix up a quick homemade ranch, but you can easily use your favorite store-bought ranch too. I like to use both sauces. Then you get a little buttery sweet and spicy sauce mixed in with a little creamy cooling ranch.
It is SO GOOD!
Once the chicken is done cooking, serve it up along with the sauces. I like to add these Tuscan style fries. If you’re going to do a chicken finger night, you might as well add the fries. Hey, this is quarantine life, we have to try to make some fun. Plus, just like the chicken, these fries are baked, not fried.
To sum things up, the chicken is a touch tangy and perfectly salted. The sauce is spicy, yet buttery. Put everything together and you’ll have tangy, salty, sweet, and spicy chicken fingers. So much (really) good flavor.
The best part about this recipe is that you’ll hopefully be able to find all of the ingredients in your pantry and your freezer. With such a large family, I always try to keep chicken tenders in the freezer at all times. They thaw much quicker than chicken breasts, and they make for a great last-minute protein source. The rest of the ingredients are all taken from the pantry shelves… honey, mustard, spices, and dried herbs.
Simple and easy!
Lastly, if you make these spicy honey mustard pretzel chicken fingers, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Baked Hot Honey Mustard Pretzel Chicken Fingers.
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 888 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup plain yogurt, sour cream, or olive oil mayo
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 pounds boneless chicken tenders
- 2 cups finely crushed salted pretzel twists
- 1 teaspoon each garlic and onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- extra virgin olive oil for brushing
- ranch dressing for serving (optional)
Spicy Honey Sauce
- 1/4 cup honey
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper using more or less to your taste
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- kosher salt
Instructions
- 1. In a bowl, whisk together the mustard, yogurt, and honey. Add the chicken and toss well to coat. 2. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment.3. Add the pretzel crumbs, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika and a pinch of pepper to a medium sized bowl. Stir to combine.4. Remove each piece of chicken from the honey mustard, and dredge through the crumbs, pressing gently to adhere. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat until all the chicken has been used. Make sure not to crowd your pan, if necessary use two baking sheets. Lightly brush/drizzle the chicken with olive oil. Transfer to the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.5. Meanwhile, make the spicy honey sauce. Melt together the honey, butter, cayenne, chili powder, paprika, and a pinch of salt. 6. Serve the chicken topped with flaky salt and spicy honey sauce for dipping. I'd add a side of ranch too. Enjoy!
I want to try this for a family party. How far in advance can I make these before serving?
Hey Regina,
I like to serve these directly from the oven, but you could assemble them the morning of, keep in the fridge, and then bake when you are ready to serve. I hope this helps! xTieghan
Thank you!
I FORGOT TO GIVE IT 5 STARS
Thanks again Caroline!!
Hey Tieghan – this is one of my all time FAVORITE recipes. Everyone loves it and the sauce is magic. So good and thanks for sharing!
Hey Caroline,
Happy Sunday! I am thrilled that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for giving it a try! xTieghan
It was a little bit too “mustardy” and dry… I was a little bit disappointed because it burnt a little at 425 degrees.
Hey Emilie,
So sorry you did not enjoy the recipe, please let me know if I can help in anyway! xTieghan
This is third time I’ve made this recipe – delicious.
Wondering if you can marinade the chicken for 2-3 hours in the honey sauce prior to cooking ?
Also has anyone tried this recipe in an airfryer?
Hey Sue,
Awesome!! I am so glad this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for making it. Sure, you could definitely marinate the chicken for a few hours. I haven’t tested the air fryer, but I bet it would work well. Have the best weekend:) xTieghan
Halved the recipe to try out for just 2 of us and we loved it. I didn’t have chicken tenders so just cut up 2 boneless skinless breasts into strips. We used sour cream this time and may try the olive oil mayo next which we also have. The only thing I’d change is making double of the honey sauce! I drizzled it onto our finished chicken rather than using it for a dip. Would also consider adding some cayenne to the dredging mix because we like spicy. We didn’t make as a salad, just had the chicken with a side of rice. We never used a side ranch dressing (or I might try with blue cheese dressing). Good recipe and easy!
Hey Deb,
Happy Monday! I am so glad this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for making it! xTieghan
My guess LOVED this dish! The chicken was tender and flavorful and for a newbie chef I felt like it was just the right amount of work.
Hey Bailey,
Awesome! I am so glad this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! xTieghan
Good recipe. Chicken was tasty and everyone loved the sauce. I found spraying each tender with olive oil spray, was easiest. I flipped the tenders mid cycle and they were perfectly cooked. Thanks!
Hey Pam,
Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad it was enjoyed! Happy Monday! xTieghan
These were outstanding! My husband and I loved them! Can’t wait to make as an appetizer when we can finally entertain family!
Hey Carrie,
Wonderful!! I am so so glad that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for giving it a try! Happy Sunday! xTieghan
So good! I thought that sauce would tear me to shreds. A teaspoon of cayenne?! But it was fabulous! My husband loved the chicken. He kept asking where I got the recipe. Will make this again for sure!
Hey Kristi,
Fantastic!! I am thrilled that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! Happy Friday:) xTieghan
My family really enjoyed these. I combined these with the salad you also posted but wanted to make the spicy honey sauce. My husband isn’t a big honey fan usually but enjoyed the spice in this honey.
Keep the recipes coming!
Hey Heather,
Fantastic!! I am thrilled that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! Happy Friday:) xTieghan
Once again I am deceased. I have been following you since the beginning of time and make your recipes 1-3 times a week. This was fantastic. So much flavor and came out super crunchy!
Hey Alexis,
I am so glad that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for making it! xxTieghan
This was outstanding. My only regret is that I Did not double it. I cut the chicken tenders into smaller pieces so they would be more like chicken nuggets. Because of this, I ran out of the pretzel mixture and had to make some more at the last minute. Next time I will double the recipe and even add a little more pretzel and spices. It was excellent on the salad as well as the next day just dipped in the honey mustard dressing.
Hey Shelley,
Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am so glad that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
These turned out GREAT. Really easy, great color, crunch and flavor. Turned out exactly as shown in your pictures. I popped them in the broiler for 30 seconds at the end to get a little extra color, but it really wasn’t even needed. Thanks for another great one! 🙂
Hey Liz,
I am so excited that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for giving it a try! ?Tieghan
Hi! Made this tonight and the chicken was perfectly juicy and cooked but the pretzel crust was soggy on the bottom – any tips for how we can avoid that next time? Will definitely make again and loved the hot honey sauce. Thx for great recipes!
Hey Jillian,
So sorry to hear this, next time try flipping your chicken half way through baking. I hope this helps! xTieghan