Roasted Jalapeño, Pineapple & Chicken Tenders are juicy pieces of chicken breast wrapped up with a slice of jalapeño and pineapple in a flavorful piece of bacon served with a spicy szechuan Greek yogurt sauce. These make a great appetizer recipe or a fun and healthy dinner idea!
I am completely obsessed with these little guys. I got a pineapple in my last Bountiful Basket and was dreaming up ways to use it. I rummaged through my fridge and found a jalapeño, some chicken and bacon. The combination sounded great, so I assembled these little beauties with what I had on hand, popped them in the oven and couldn’t wait to try one.
The juicy pineapple paired so wonderfully with the roasted jalapeño and bacon. It seemed impossible that I was eating something baked with fruit which was pretty healthy. The half piece of bacon goes a long way in adding a ton of flavor to the other lighter ingredients.
They were good all on their own but I love dipping sauces, and these chicken tenders were calling for one. I mixed up some szechuan sauce and non-fat plain Greek yogurt and it was the perfect balance of bold spice and creamy coolness from the yogurt.
Whether you are planning a party to watch one of the big basketball games and looking for a great finger food, or want to change up your boring chicken dinners, these tenders are a must try! Feel free to leave out the jalapeño on some for those with milder taste buds.
Roasted Jalapeño, Pineapple & Chicken Tenders
Ingredients
- 1 lb breasts
- 5 slices of thin bacon cut in half
- 2 jalapeños thinly sliced lengthwise
- 1/2 small pineapple cut into long chunks
- 1/4 c. Szechuan sauce
- Dipping Sauce
- 1/2 c. plain non-fat Greek yogurt
- 2 Tbsp. Szechuan sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°.
- Cut the chicken breasts into 9 even strips. Top each piece with a wedge of fresh pineapple and a thin slice of jalapeño. Wrap with a half slice on bacon and place on a lined baking sheet.
- Repeat until all chicken is wrapped. Brush each piece of chicken with szechuan sauce.
- Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. (Cooking time will depend on the size of your chicken tenders.)
- Meanwhile, mix the yogurt and 2 Tbsp. szechuan sauce in small container and store refrigerated.
- Serve chicken tenders hot from the oven with dipping sauce.
Nutrition
More Bold Chicken Recipes!
Pizza Stuffed Chicken Quinoa Bake
Light Wonton & Thai Peanut Chicken Sautee
Cheesy Buffalo Chicken French Bread
What delicious little jalapeno and chicken bites. If I was to make these – they definitely would not last for very long!
I am going to make these soon! In the 30-35 minutes of baking, does the bacon get crispy? I recently tried another recipe where bacon is wrapped around a hamburger patty, and after 30 minutes of baking, the bacon was not crispy at all. The burger was cooked perfectly, but with limp bacon it’s just not that great. I want to make sure the bacon isn’t limp after baking. Also, do you bake these straight on a baking sheet or on a rack on a baking sheet so the juices can drain off? If the bacon does not crisp, what would you recommend? Thanks!
Hi Ali, the bacon is not mushy, but also not crispy. It is difficult to achieve crispy bacon when wrapping it around something with moisture. The presence of moisture doesn’t allow it to get super crispy. You could try partially cooking the bacon before wrapping the chicken, which may achieve a bit crisper result. Either way, these are completely worth making, I’m certain you won’t be disappointed!
I made these tonight and Oh My Goodness, they were so good! I used Bone Suckin’ BBQ sauce instead of the Szechuan sauce for coating the chicken pre-baking, and for the dipping sauce afterwards. So good! Thanks for the recipe!
So glad to hear you loved them! The BBQ sauce sounds like a fantastic substitution for szechuan sace. Thanks for sharing!