Chicken Tenders: delicious dredge-ery

I remember the first time I made honey-mustard.  I was at my grandmother's, and we were cooking a ham.  My uncle wanted honey mustard for a glaze, and let me help him make it.  We kept adding more and more mustard (a condiment I didn't care for at the time), and he kept tasting it and saying it wasn't tangy enough, that he really wanted a kick of mustard.  It's a really cool memory, and one of sadly few.

I totally get it now; I love that mustard tang, and how it pops out of the sweetness of the honey.  In a complete change of roles, my husband isn't a fan of mustard, so I now find no sympathy toward my desire for that flavor.  Every once in a while, though, I can get him to eat it.

Honey Mustard Chicken Tenders
9 chicken tenders (or breasts cut into strips)

Flour Dredge:
1/2 C Flour
1 Tbsp Salt
1 Tbsp Pepper

Egg Dredge:
2 eggs
2 Tbsp mustard
1 1/2 tsp honey
a few dashes of your preferred Hot Sauce (we like Frank's)
pinch salt 
pinch pepper

Crumb Dredge:
1/2 C Plain Breadcrumbs
2 tsp Onion Powder
pinch Paprika
pinch Salt
pinch Pepper

Don't be like me.  Begin by preheating your oven to 375˚F, rather than forgetting and then standing there wishing it would get hotter faster.

In shallow dishes (such as pie pans or plates), combine the ingredients for each dredge, mixing them thoroughly with a fork.  If the egg mixture is too thick, it can be thinned with water; I found the mustard thinned it a lot more than I would have expected.  Pour a thin layer of oil onto a baking pan, and pop it into the oven to pre-heat, and grab a tray or plate.  Organize your workspace into a sequential flow: chicken tenders, flour, egg, crumbs, holding tray.  This will make things easier.

Use a paper towel to pat excess moisture off the chicken; it doesn't need to be dripping chicken juice.  Place a tender in the flour mixture and turn it a few times to coat it with flour.  Transfer it to the egg mixture and turn it a couple times so the egg mix sticks.  Finally, place it in the crumbs and give it a few turns to completely coat it with crumbs, then transfer it to the tray.  Repeat with each tender.

When you've got all the tenders ready, pull out the baking pan from the oven and place the tenders on it.  Bake about 5 minutes, then turn them over and bake an additional 5 minutes or so until they are cooked through.  (Test with a thermometer, or pick the thickest looking one and cut into it.)  Transfer onto a plate lined with paper towels to drain off excess oil.

Serve with--what else?--honey-mustard!