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Easy Chicken Nuggets

March 29, 2012

How often do you pull a box of frozen chicken nuggets from the freezer for lunch or dinner? Once a week? Twice? If your kid really loves them, I'd wager it might be even more than that. I get it. Chicken nuggets are convenient and kids will eat them. But what ingredients make up your favorite brand? Are they made from things you want your little ones eating?

These chicken nuggets are unbelievably easy to make, absolutely delicious and made from ingredients you can pronounce. The best part is that you can make a huge batch and keep them in the freezer for future meals, so not only do they save on the expense of boxed nuggets but also the time it takes to go to the grocery to buy them. What could be more simple, economical, nutritious and yummy than that?

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Easy Chicken Nuggets  (24 Nuggets)

  • Prep Time:15 minutes,
  • Cook Time: 15 minutes,
  • Total Time: 30 minutes,

Ingredients

  • 1 pound chicken breasts, boneless & skinless cut into chunks
  • 1/4 cup old fashioned oats (also known as 5 minute oats)
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3/4 cup panko bread crumbs
  • 1 tablespoon parmesan cheese, grated

Preparation

  1. 1. Preheat oven to 375° F.
  2. 2. Place the first 6 ingredients in a food processor until chicken is finely chopped and ingredients are combined.
  3. 3. Place the bread crumbs and parmesan cheese in a shallow bowl or on a plate and stir to combine.
  4. 4. With moistened hands, roll 1 tablespoon of chicken mixture between your palms and flatten it into a “nugget” shape.
  5. 5. Gently press nuggets into bread crumbs to evenly coat them.*
  6. 6. Place nuggets on a cooling rack. Place cooling rack over a foil-lined baking sheet.
  7. 7. Lightly spray nuggets with cooking spray.
  8. 8. Bake for 15 minutes and serve.**
  10. * To freeze, place nuggets on a sheet tray after this step and freeze for one hour. Place nuggets in labeled freezer bags for up to 3 months. When ready to cook, follow the directions starting with step #6.
  11. ** If you want your nuggets to be golden brown, place under the broiler for 2 minutes after cooking.
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Comments






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  1. Jillian I

    April 23, 2013 at 12:19 pm

    Reply

    Made these last night to have for lunches this week, but couldn’t resist taste-testing a few! Delicious! I can see what other people mean about them being on the drier side, especially for little ones, but where it’s just my husband and I that doesn’t concern me much. These are super flavorful and easy ~ planning to make a big batch to freeze so I have them on hand for last-minute dinners.

    Side note — yes, it’s just my husband and I. No kiddos (yet) in our house, and yet several Weelicious recipes are in regular rotation here! Thanks, Catherine, for coming up with kid-friendly recipes that aren’t just for kids.

  2. Pingback: Real Food Meal Plan: April 22-28 | LiveSimply

  3. aurora

    April 18, 2013 at 11:49 am

    Reply

    Thank you for posting this recipe. I have tried this recipe for my 22 month old toddler (20 month old at the time I made them). They were very good, however, they were a little dry and lacking moisture that would make them ‘soft’ /tender enough for my toddler to bite on them. My husband tried them and he really liked them and thought they were a little dry but he really liked the flavor. I really want to try and make them again but before I do I want to correct what may have went wrong. I followed the recipe exactly with the specified ingredients and baked them at the suggested time. I did some research on the internet and found out that one could marinate them in low fat buttermilk overnight. But if one is to place the chicken in a food processor; wouldn’t that defeat the purpose of marinating them? I wanted to ask you if you could kindly give me some suggestions on moisture and make them tender enough were my toddler could easily bite and chew the nuggets. I hope I do not come across as confusing, but, sincerely, overall they were really good and I have not come across other recipes that tops this one. thanks again.

    • Amanda

      April 27, 2013 at 5:20 pm

      Reply

      Aurora–

      I just made these tonight and I cut back on the oats a tiny bit and added an egg to the chicken mixture. I also used crushed corn flakes for the breading instead of panko (it’s what I had) and they turned out wonderful. I actually only cooked for 14 minutes also (they were definitely fully cooked at 14 min). My 13 month old that only has his top and bottom two front teeth ate them well after I broke them up a tiny bit. I think the egg and a little less oats helped them because I tasted them and thought they were moist. Delicious recipe! I love that you can freeze them!

  4. Pingback: Our (Real) Food Journey, Part 3: Getting Kids to Embrace Real Food | LiveSimply

  5. Melanie

    March 4, 2013 at 12:25 pm

    Reply

    Has anybody tried this with turkey breast instead of chicken? I only have turkey in the house and I want to try it today…

    • Adri

      May 10, 2013 at 5:32 pm

      Reply

      I use turkey thigh every time!

  6. Pingback: Chicken Nuggets | Dinner Intervention

  7. yulia

    January 27, 2013 at 5:18 pm

    Reply

    Can I substitute the oats for something else? We avoid oats due to them causing eczema flares in my little guy. Thanks!

    • catherine

      January 28, 2013 at 12:51 am

      Reply

      You could use mashed potatoes!

  8. Meghna

    January 26, 2013 at 5:42 pm

    Reply

    Once again, another Weelicious recipe that is a total hit in our house. My 4 year old and 2 year old devoured them!!! I did add a cup of spinach to my chicken mixture and pureed it all up together for an added veggie kick to the nuggets. Delish!

  9. Marian C. Jaro

    January 21, 2013 at 2:55 am

    Reply

    Please send me weekly newsletters

  10. Porsche

    January 13, 2013 at 2:01 am

    Reply

    These sound great I can’t wait to try them! For making a big batch & freezing do you cook them then freeze? Or freeze them raw? I couldn’t find the answer. Thank you!

    Ps. I just found your website today & there are so many recipes I can’t wait to try for my 1 yr old!

    • catherine

      January 14, 2013 at 11:17 am

      Reply

      Cook and then freeze! To defrost I put them directly onto a baking sheet in the oven until they’re defrosted and warmed through!

  11. Diana Scroggie

    January 11, 2013 at 9:16 am

    Reply

    Fantastic recipes

  12. Dawn Sullivan

    January 4, 2013 at 6:03 pm

    Reply

    I don’t have a real food processor, just a mini one. So I was concerned it wouldn’t grind the chicken good. But it did. The best part is, the kids liked them!! Hooray, no more store bought nuggets for us! The only thing I’m going to change for next time is to try grinding up the panko a bit. They didn’t like the “chunks” of crust.

  13. Katherine

    January 3, 2013 at 9:10 pm

    Reply

    I tried these tonight but they didn’t turn out well, too dense. Disappointing! I added an egg as someone had suggested because I was worried they would be dry. But I was wondering if you can overprocess the chicken in the food processor – could that have been what I did wrong? Next time, I think I’ll just cut up the chicken into chunks and rub them in the spice/panko/parmesan mixture instead of using the food processor at all, see how that tastes.

  14. rzuniga31

    November 19, 2012 at 5:18 pm

    Reply

    So its raw chicken that goes into the food processor with the other ingredients, right?

    • catherine

      November 19, 2012 at 6:29 pm

      Reply

      Right!

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  16. Abernathy Dickson

    November 14, 2012 at 10:56 am

    Reply

    Awesome recipe! I bought ground chicken and then used my blender(don’t have a food processor). I also added a small amount of mashed up carrots so they’d be moist.

  17. brenda

    October 1, 2012 at 9:29 am

    Reply

    why chop and then shape into a “nugget”?
    how about cutting chicken into bite size nuggets?

    • catherine

      October 1, 2012 at 12:22 pm

      Reply

      I do have a recipe for that type of chicken nugget! http://weelicious.com/2008/05/14/wee-nuggets/ In this recipe grinding the meat and mixing it with the other ingredients and then shaping into a nugget gives it that fast food nugget (or the ones that come frozen from the grocery) texture for those that prefer that texture to just chopped chicken! :)

  18. em.k

    September 29, 2012 at 7:06 am

    Reply

    I live in Australia and we don’t get kosher salt… Is this just a form of non iodized rock salt? Could I use this instead of the kosher salt?

    • catherine

      October 1, 2012 at 12:42 pm

      Reply

      Kosher salt is not iodized so you could probably use the rock salt. You might need to grind it first!

  19. Laura

    September 26, 2012 at 8:57 am

    Reply

    I use whole wheat panko, its naturally golden in color and a little more healthy! Thank you for all your awesome recipes!

  20. Pingback: Catherine McCord's Keys To The Kitchen | Aida Mollenkamp

  21. friba

    September 18, 2012 at 8:12 pm

    Reply

    Hi I made these and they tasted great but they came out a little dry and got even harder to eat after they got cold. No trouble for me to eat but more difficult for my little one. Any suggestions on how to make them more moist? perhaps add an egg?

    • Rebecca

      November 7, 2012 at 9:29 pm

      Reply

      Try grating a small bit of onion with its juice, its suppose to keep meat moist.

    • Ashli

      October 17, 2012 at 6:34 pm

      Reply

      i had the same issue with the dryness. they were good and our two year old loved them; however, they were a little tough. have you had any luck tweaking the recipe a bit? i believe i stuck fairly close to cooking 15 minutes. i forgot to put the timer on (oops!) our oven is brand new, too. maybe it’s a bit hotter. i could try cooking for less time…

    • catherine

      September 19, 2012 at 12:11 pm

      Reply

      An egg would help keep them a little more moist! How long did you cook them?

  22. Angela

    September 10, 2012 at 2:50 pm

    Reply

    When I finally found the time to make these, they were super easy and my normally picky children both ate their fair share of chicken. I used organic ground chicken and some basil and oregano and mixed it by hand. I’ll have to try the food processor next time to see if there’s any difference.

  23. Kiki

    August 23, 2012 at 3:16 pm

    Reply

    We did this with ground chicken form the butcher and also chicken breast in the food processor at home. Everyone chowed down the food processor version, but not the pre ground. It was much too dense. I highly recommend taking the time with the food processor. It really made a difference!

  24. Lora D.

    August 22, 2012 at 1:25 pm

    Reply

    Thank you! My children absolutely love this recipe. Do you think this recipe would also work with fish?

  25. Rebecca

    August 19, 2012 at 11:18 pm

    Reply

    Made theses tonight the flavor is incredible!! I had a problem the Pablo bread crumbs would not brown the the oven and I way way way over cooked them because I was waiting for them to brown. Is there a better way to get brown color on them??? Thanks! Love ALL the recipes here!!

    • catherine

      August 20, 2012 at 12:03 pm

      Reply

      Did you spray them with oil before baking them? That is how I got mine in the photo to brown. Some other readers have toasted the bread crumbs first before breading the chicken and that gets them brown and toasty without having to cook them longer!

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