Naked Air-Fryer Chicken Tenders

The case against breading: sometimes you want the chicken. Not the panko, not the buttermilk crust, not the careful dredging that takes longer than the cooking itself. Just chicken, with some herbs on it, dinner-shaped.

These are that. A tablespoon of olive oil per pound, a heavy hand with Italian seasoning (or whatever dried herbs are open and unopened in the cabinet), a teaspoon each of garlic and onion powder, salt, pepper. Toss, single layer in the basket, ten minutes at 400°F flipping once. The photo shows what you get: deep-golden where they touched metal, herb flecks holding tight, juices still pooling on the plate when you carry them over.

They're better than the breaded version in one specific scenario: meal-prep. The breading goes soggy in a container by Wednesday; the naked ones reheat at 350°F for three minutes and come back to life. Eat them on a salad, in a wrap, sliced over rice, cold from the fridge while standing at the open door. They're not interesting on their own — they need a sauce or a green thing — but as a building block, they're as reliable as eggs.