If your air fryer requires preheating, preheat to 400°F. In a medium-sized bowl, add 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder and 1/2 teaspoon onion powder.
Whisk together until combined, set aside.
In a medium-sized bowl, add 2 large eggs, 1 Tablespoon water and 1 Tablespoon hot sauce.
Whisk until fully combined, set aside.
One at a time, place each of the 1 pound chicken tenderloins into the flour mixture and coat on all sides, shake off any excess.
Place the tender into the egg mixture until fully coated, let any excess egg drip off.
Place it back into the flour mixture and pack the flour on the tender to form a crust. Shake off any excess.
Spray the air fryer basket with olive oil nonstick spray, place the tenders - not touching - into the basket (you may need to do this in batches.) Spray the tops well with more olive oil spray, you want to make sure there are no dry patches.
Air fry for 10 minutes.
Flip the tenders half way through. After flipping, spray with more olive oil spray.
Chicken tenders are ready when they are golden brown and the internal temperature reaches at least 165°F. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce.
Notes
You can swap out chicken breasts for chicken tenderloins as long as you cut them thinner to create the same size.
If you are not a fan of heat you can absolutely leave out the hot sauce in the egg mixture.
Make sure you spray the chicken crispers well with cooking spray, this helps them crisp up in the air fryer.
Even after spraying the air fryer basket well with olive oil spray, the crispers can still stick a little during the mid-way flip. I suggest using a spatula to turn the tenders over instead of tongs.
This may take longer than 10 minutes depending on your air fryer so always go by the internal temperature.
This recipe was tested in a 5-quart basket air fryer.