There is something about chicken nuggets that all kids seem to love. And many parents love them too because they are so darn convenient to serve. As my own toddlers started eating more substantial foods, I had hit a wall on what to give them.
The convenient thinking side of my brain told me to buy some chicken nuggets so my husband could prepare them fast for weekday lunches, but the thought of that many hard to pronounce ingredients and preservatives going into their little mouths quickly shut that thought down. There had to be a better alternative.
In comes homemade chicken nuggets. I’ll admit, I was on the search for ground chicken but my local store was out that day so I reached for the ground turkey instead – both are equally as delicious!
They are seriously so good! The best part? They are SO easy to make. With only 3 main ingredients and a few spices, these pull together in under 30 minutes from start to finish. As an extra bonus – they freeze amazingly well!! I tend to make a batch of these and serve immediately then freeze the rest for future meals.
To start, gather up all your ingredients. You’ll need ground chicken or ground turkey, one egg, one envelope of Shake n Bake and a few spices. Measure out 1/4 cup of the Shake n Bake and set the rest aside for the chicken nugget breading later. Throw the rest of the ingredients into a medium sized bowl and mix together well, much like preparing meatballs.
When it is thoroughly mixed, roll the meat mixture into golf ball sized portions. I typically get about 15 portions depending on how clear my memory is of what a golf ball looks like (which I’m still not confident about even after making these many, many times). These make pretty large nuggets, but feel free to scale back to a more standard size and you should be able to get 22-24 of them.
Here is where the nugget comes together. Take the rest of the Shake n Bake crumbs and sprinkle them on a plate. Roll the balls in the crumbs before placing on a baking sheet. Once they are all lined up, take the bottom of a glass and smash these down until they are roughly the thickness of a standard nugget (is that a scientific measurement?) Now all that’s left is to pop these little guys in the oven for 15-18 minutes.
Ta-da! Welcome to being one of the coolest parents of the day (at least during mealtime, savor it while it lasts…) For some bonus points you may be able to find one of those little leftover cups of sauce from the last time you ran through the drive-thru – score!
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Crispy Chicken Nuggets
Ingredients
- 1 lb Ground Chicken or Ground Turkey
- 1 Egg
- 1 Envelope Shake n Bake (use ¼ cup in mixture, reserve rest for coating)
- 1 Tablespoon Minced Garlic
- 1 Teaspoon Onion Powder
- 1 Teaspoon Salt
- 1 Teaspoon Pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees
- Measure out 1/4 cup of Shake n Bake and set the rest of the envelope aside
- Add 1/4 cup of Shake n Bake, ground chicken, egg, garlic, onion powder, salt and pepper together in a bowl and mix thoroughly
- Roll a heaping spoonful of the mixture into a ball (just like making meatballs). I make these roughly the size of golf balls and it yields 15 large nuggets.
- Sprinkle the rest of the Shake n Bake crumbs on a paper plate. Once all of your "meatballs" are formed, roll in the crumbs.
- Place meatballs on a baking sheet. Using the bottom of a glass, flatten the meatballs so they resemble chicken nuggets
- Bake chicken nuggets for 15-18 minutes
- Once the chicken nuggets are done, let cool slightly on tray before serving.
