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Crispy Chicken Tenders dipped in a creamy sauce might be my absolute favorite food. Served with the best sides – coleslaw, potato salad, and cornbread – chicken tenders are one of my favorite meals.
There isn’t much better than some juicy chicken tenders soaked for hours in buttermilk and fried until crispy. My buttermilk fried chicken tender recipe is one of our favorite chicken tenders recipes, and it pleases even the pickiest of eaters. It’s quickly becoming one of the most popular recipes on my site!
Traditional fried chicken tenders are the perfect main course, but they are even better when served with a great side dish.
I love to serve my favorite crispy chicken tenders with a variety of different sauces. Here are some of our favorite sauces:
Cane’s Sauce
Cane’s Sauce is a creamy sauce that is peppery and tangy and is the perfect dipping sauce for chicken fingers.
Copycat Raising Cane’s Sauce Recipe
4.90 from 322 votes
This Copycat Raising Cane’s Sauce Recipe tastes JUST LIKE the original and is perfect for chicken tenders. It is tangy, creamy, peppery, and addicting.
Boom Boom Sauce is a great option to serve with chicken tenders, as it has so much sweet chili sauce flavor!
Boom Boom Sauce
4.96 from 25 votes
Boom Boom Sauce is a slightly sweet, slightly spicy, and all-around delicious dipping sauce. It takes less than five minutes to prepare and will be an excellent addition to any meal.
Chick-fil-A Sauce is the perfect blend of honey mustard and barbecue sauce – it is the perfect sauce for dipping tenders!
Copycat Chick-fil-A Sauce
5 from 21 votes
Chick-fil-A Sauce is a perfect blend of sweet honey mustard and smoky barbecue sauce. It is sweet, tangy, and is a perfect dipping sauce for french fries and crispy chicken tenders. Now you can make it in your own kitchen!
BBQ Sauce goes so well with chicken tenders. I know so many kids who eat chicken nuggets and barbecue sauce exclusively – and I probably could, too!
Sweet and Smoky Whole30 Barbecue Sauce
5 from 8 votes
Sweet and Smoky Barbecue Sauce: Ever wonder how to make barbecue sauce from scratch? My homemade barbecue sauce is the perfect blend of sweet and smoky flavor with a little bit of heat. Once you make your own barbecue sauce, you won't buy another bottle.
Ketchup is an easy way to please the picky eaters in your crowd. Cook up a bag of frozen regular french fries, and you can’t go wrong.
Tartar Sauce
Ok, I know it sounds weird, but the last time I had some leftover tartar sauce in the fridge, we tried it with our chicken tenders, and it was so good! I mean… it’s pickles and fried chicken, so you really can’t go wrong!
Easy Homemade Tartar Sauce
5 from 17 votes
This Easy Homemade Tartar Sauce recipe is the perfect sauce to dip your crunchy fried fish fillets or crispy fried shrimp in. The tangy flavor pairs perfectly with so many dishes, and it is so easy to make.
There are so many classic side dishes that go well with delicious chicken tenders. Here are some of my favorites:
Cornbread
Cornbread is a delicious side dish to serve with nearly any meal. You can make sweet or Southern cornbread depending on your crowd – both will be enjoyed!
Southern Cornbread
4.88 from 31 votes
Made with cornmeal and buttermilk, this Classic Southern Cornbread Recipe brings out the naturally sweet flavor of corn without adding sugar. Cooked in a cast iron skillet with bacon drippings – it will please even the toughest critics.
Sweet Cornbread made in a cast iron skillet is the perfect accompaniment to any meal. This cornbread is sweet, crumbly, buttery, and has a perfect crisp to the edges.
My collard greens recipe is such a popular dish, and for good reason. It is the perfect side dish for so many occasions! I love to serve chicken tenders with collard greens, cornbread, and some Cane’s Sauce. (You can also make collard greens in an Instant Pot if you’re in a rush!)
Southern Collard Greens
4.91 from 33 votes
This Southern Collard Greens Recipe is the best side dish recipe. A perfect soul food recipe cooked low and slow with bacon, onions, a ham hock, and garlic.
Creamy coleslaw goes so well with homemade chicken tenders, and it is such an easy side dish to make. This coleslaw recipe is really easy to make and has a secret ingredient that makes it a little tangy!
Classic Southern Coleslaw
4.94 from 15 votes
This Creamy Southern Coleslaw recipe is one of my favorite side dishes. The sweet, tangy dressing combined with the fresh, crunchy cabbage is so simple, yet so flavorful.
You can also make a Copycat Raising Cane’s Meal and make my Cane’s Sauce, Copycat Cane’s Coleslaw, Texas Toast, and some frozen Crinkle Fries. Don’t forget the sweet tea!
Pasta Salad
Easy Pasta Salad Recipe
4.67 from 3 votes
This Pasta Salad is a bite from my childhood. It's loaded with veggies and cherry tomatoes and topped with Italian dressing. Pasta salad is the perfect side dish and is a family favorite.
Potato Salad and fried chicken just belong together. This potato salad is such an easy recipe to make, and it is loaded with eggs and pickles. It is so delicious!
Easy Southern Potato Salad
5 from 11 votes
Creamy potato salad is always a tasty side dish, and it goes so well with fried chicken tenders. It has a creamy, flavorful mayonnaise dressing and is topped with Creole Seasoning for a perfect finishing touch.
It's hard to beat that cooked all day with smoky meat flavor of Southern Style green beans. They are melt-in-your-mouth delicious and are ready in less than an hour.
A fresh green salad on the side can help balance out fried chicken. Some people like to serve green salads with their fried food. Sometimes we are those people. Sometimes we like to fry everything. Life is all about balance.
Blue Cheese Salad (Royal Street Salad)
5 from 3 votes
Crispy romaine lettuce, crunchy bacon, and blue cheese in a flavorful, zesty homemade dressing, this Royal Street Salad is perfect as an appetizer, side, or quick lunch idea.
I also really like to serve chicken tenders ina salad sometimes for an easy dinner recipe. Tossed in a delicious salad dressing with your favorite salad greens, a little shredded cheese, and some fresh vegetables, it’s a great way to make a meal that the whole family will love.
In my experience, fried chicken tenders make salads a little more exciting than a grilled chicken breast does, and it is a perfect way to eat some vegetables.
Cowboy Caviar
Also known as Redneck Caviar, Texas Caviar, or Blackbean Salad. It is a delicious side dish that goes great with fried chicken tenders! (And fried catfish!)
Cowboy Caviar
5 from 3 votes
Cowboy Caviar is a Southern Dip and Side Dish that is made with fresh vegetables & a delicious vinegar dressing. Black-Eyed Peas & Black Beans are tossed with fresh summer tomatoes, peppers, and corn to make a simple dip, and you won’t be able to resist scooping a chip in this dip!
Deviled Eggs are the perfect side dish for crispy fried chicken tenders. They are smooth and creamy and have a little bit of diced pickles in them – pickles and fried chicken pair perfectly together!
Easy Deviled Eggs
5 from 13 votes
With fluffy, tangy, and creamy filling in perfectly-cooked hard-boiled eggs, these Easy Deviled Eggs will be your new favorite side or appetizer. Perfect for a family or a party, these deviled eggs are quick and easy to make and are a crowd-pleaser.
I like to make sweet potato fries by roasting sliced sweet potatoes in olive oil on a baking sheet. It’s a delicious and healthy side dish to serve alongside our favorite crispy chicken strips.
Biscuits
Fluffy Biscuits and Fried Chicken are a match made in heaven. I like to serve biscuits and gravy with chicken tenders with a poached egg or serve chicken tenders with waffles!
Best Sausage Gravy Recipe
5 from 6 votes
Hot, buttery biscuits piled high with the best sausage gravy – my favorite Homemade Sausage Gravy Recipe is southern comfort food that won’t disappoint.
These Homemade Sour Cream Biscuits are perfectly soft and flaky with a delicious buttery flavor everyone will love. They will quickly become your new favorite biscuit recipe.
Drop biscuits are the easiest way to get a buttery biscuit on the table in minutes. Drop biscuits are made with only five ingredients and there is no kneading involved. You can have biscuits for breakfast without all the hassle.
If you want to use your chicken tenders to make a main dish, you can serve your chicken tenders with mashed potatoes and gravy with a side of fresh veggies or Roasted Broccoli – the ultimate comfort food meal.
Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes
5 from 7 votes
Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes are my absolute favorite way to make mashed potatoes. The potatoes are smooth and creamy, and the tangy buttermilk adds so much flavor to the potatoes.
Mashed Potatoes will be the most popular dish on your table with this perfectly garlicky and buttery Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes Recipe. Mashed potatoes are the ultimate comfort food, and pressure cooking cuts the cooking time needed to make this easy side dish in half.
Another recipe that we love to make with leftover chicken tenders is Chicken Tender bowls – they are a Copycat KFC Bowl. Mashed Potatoes, Brown Gravy, Chicken Tenders, Corn Kernels, and Cheddar Cheese. So GOOD!
If you have hot oil out anyway, you might as well make some fried sides, right?
Fried Okra
Crispy Fried Okra
4.97 from 26 votes
This Fried Okra is dredged in buttermilk and breaded in a flour & cornmeal coating that's loaded with flavor. Fried until crispy in peanut oil, it’s an addictive Southern appetizer, snack, or side dish.
I love to fry up some squash in the summertime when our garden is overloaded with squash. If the deep fryer is already going to make chicken tenders, you might as well make squash, too! (You can also bake your squash if you want to keep it a little healthier!)
Southern Fried Squash
4.89 from 9 votes
Southern Fried Squash is a summer delicacy. Fresh yellow squash and zucchini are dredged in buttermilk, breaded with flour and cornmeal, and fried until they are golden brown and crispy. It is such a delicious way to cook summer squash and is the perfect summer side dish.
Instant Pot Creamed Corn is so creamy, delicious, and comforting. This easy to make creamed corn is just a little sweet, with a touch of spice to round it out.
Creamed corn, corn niblets, and sour cream baked into sweet, moist cornbread, this Jiffy Corn Pudding is delicious enough for any holiday gathering or dinner meal. Not only does it bring you back to your southern roots, but it’s so quick and easy to whip up!
I hope this gives you some tasty ideas to help get a delicious meal on your dinner table! The best part about chicken tenderloins is that they are so juicy and really versatile, so you can serve them with so many different things. What are your favorites?
I am a newlywed, food blogger, health coach, and mama to a hot mess of a border collie. I love to put a new spin on old family recipes and I try to make as many meals as possible with an Instant Pot.
