Chicken Bites – Pieces of chicken breast tenderloins (or your favorite cut of chicken), cooked in browned butter and seasoned with salt and pepper, and cooked on the stove-top in just 8 minutes. It sounds simple, and it is, but full of so much flavor.
This chicken recipe is so versatile and we love rotating this for an easy dinner recipe, with these baked chicken drumsticks in the oven and these air fryer buffalo chicken tenders!
Why Make These Easy Chicken Bites?
I know, it looks like plain, cooked chicken, doesn’t it? But it’s not. It’s HOW it’s cooked that makes it the best.
When I first experimented with cooking meat in browned butter for the BEST steak recipe on the planet… the way I cooked meat on the stovetop, changed forever.
- Flavor – The browned butter creates a flavor that adds so much to the dish.
- Ready in under 10 minutes – This chicken recipe is ready in under 10 minutes. Now that’s a dinner recipe that makes the “favorites” list.
- Juicy chicken – Cooked on high, it sears the chicken and traps in the juices.
Ingredients
Chicken, salt, pepper, and butter. That’s it! Let me explain…
- Butter – Feel free to use salted or unsalted butter for this recipe. But the key is to cook the butter in the skillet over high heat until it has turned brown. The butter develops a flavor that can’t be achieved from spices.
- Salt and Pepper – Classics, yet a must. I prefer kosher salt and cracked peppercorns but regular ground black pepper works as well.
- Chicken – Here I used chicken tenderloins but you can use chicken breast or chicken thighs. Chicken thighs tend to be juicer and they’re a dark meat. Chicken breasts are white meat, so they’ll have a slightly different flavor. We love both so it’s your preference but I recommend using boneless, skinless of either to keep things easy when cutting in to smaller, 1-inch pieces.
How to Make Chicken Bites
You can find the entire recipe and printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
TIP: Constantly turning and flipping the chicken pieces will keep the chicken from searing so it’s best to let it sit once you’ve spread the chicken out. Try to make sure it’s an even layer of chicken and each piece is able to sear on the sillet. Constantly moving will cause the chicken to “steam” cook instead and it will lack flavor.
5. When the chicken is fully cooked, usually around 3-4 minutes (when the internal temperature reaches 165°F) quickly remove the chicken to a serving plate. If desired, sprinkle with a little salt and let the chicken rest for a minute before serving.
Recipe Tips
- Cast Iron Skillet: I prefer using a cast iron skillet when making this recipe. It sears the chicken so much better than my nonstick skillets, although a nonstick skillet can be used just fine.
- Meal Planning: Doubling or tripling this recipe is a great idea to use it to make meals later in the week, such as these easy chicken street tacos or this pasta salad with chicken.
- Chicken Cook-Time: The time it takes to cook could vary, and be different than what it takes for mine. Due to the size of the chicken pieces, the type of skillet, and the level of heat your stovetop is putting out.
Optional Step
When cooking with salt and pepper, a lot of times the salt and pepper can fall off of the food during the cooking process.
So although I add salt and pepper to the chicken before cooking, I also love to sprinkle on a little more kosher salt while it’s resting. This makes a BIG difference.
Just be careful not to put too much salt in and on your chicken. You can always add more, but it’s hard to take it away.
What to Serve with These Chicken Bites
You can serve the chicken bites alone with toothpicks, or guests can dip them in their favorite dipping sauce like a homemade copycat Chick-fil-A sauce recipe, or this delicious teriyaki sauce recipe, kind of like I do with this teriyaki chicken and rice recipe.
Side Dishes for Chicken Bites
Serving easy-to-make sides is key, to keep dinner easy all around. Here are some of my favorite side dishes to go with this chicken, whether it’s to serve on the side, or to add the chicken to:
If you love easy chicken recipes, then you’re also going to love this Sticky Chicken on a Stick!
More Chicken Recipes You’ll LOVE:
Recipe
Chicken Bites
Ingredients
- 1-1 ½ pounds chicken tendloins, breasts, or thighs (boneless, skinless and trimmed of any fat/skin)
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt or to taste, divided
- ½ teaspoon black pepper or to taste
Instructions
- Cut chicken into small, bite-size pieces.
- Season chicken with ½ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper, and toss to make sure it's evenly seasoned.
- Melt butter in a pan over medium-high heat (I prefer cooking in a cast iron skillet) until it begins to turn a slight brown.
- Place chicken pieces in hot butter/skillet and let cook for about one minute, until the undersides turn a beautiful golden brown.
- Flip the pieces over and continue cooking for another minute or two, until the inside is cooked. (Don't feel like you have to flip one at a time.)
- Once chicken has cooked through, remove from skillet and place chicken in serving bowl/plate and sprinkle with remaining kosher salt.
- Let the chicken rest for a minute or two to allow the juices to really soak in!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
Jessica says
This is my kiddo’s favorite dinner! So easy to make too, so it’s one of my favorites!