Chicken nuggets are always a huge hit with kids! Little ones love them because they are a great finger food and very easy to eat. But a chicken nugget is not a healthy choice. It is actually one of the most processed foods and sadly, it is targeted to children. How can you turn them into something healthy and nutritious? Make your own: Homemade Baked Chicken Nuggets! If you are also interested in homemade snacks, please check out 5 Processed Kids Snacks You Should Avoid.
You should think about it twice before buying your kids chicken nuggets at a fast food restaurant. What’s inside those nuggets? blood vessels, nerves and chipped bones. Yes, I know it is pretty gross but there is something even more concerning: chemical additives and preservatives. They are also loaded with fat and sodium. Oh and they all contain sugar, or the sugar alias dextrose.
A new investigation by Consumer Reports Health concluded that the nutritional value in chicken nuggets is minimal. Whether store-bought or purchased from McDonald’s or other fast food establishments, chicken nuggets pack a wallop of fat and sodium, the publication says in a news release.
Just check your frozen bag of chicken nuggets. Do you see the long list of ingredients? Can you even pronounce half of them? Reading labels is so important and by looking at them you can tell if a product is healthy or not. Not chicken nuggets my friends. One of the most processed foods you can find at the supermarket.
And please don’t be fooled by these terms: “whole grain,” “all natural,” or “organic”. Granted, some brands are better than others but most chicken nuggets have been highly processed and mixed with so many dangerous and unhealthy ingredients, that makes them a very poor nutritional choice.
But like most kids, my son loves them so I decided to look for a healthy alternative to store bought frozen nuggets and came out with a great idea: Homemade Baked Chicken Nuggets with only 4 ingredients! Can you believe it? You can also add a couple more ingredients for seasoning depending on your taste. For this recipe I used Trader Joe’s Organic Bread Crumbs
but you can make them with your favorite kind or gluten free version.
Making your own food is a great way to turn something unhealthy into something nutritious. And you can make your Homemade Baked Chicken Nuggets super fun too by using your Cutters
(these are the ones I used for this recipe). Do you have toddlers at home? Try making this recipe with Dinosaur Cutters
also.
What is the best part about this Homemade Baked Chicken Nuggets recipe? It makes me feel good to know my son is actually eating real chicken!
Tip: If you try this recipe and find the Homemade Baked Chicken Nuggets too dry for your taste, try adding 1 more egg or just chop the chicken and mix with the rest of the ingredients instead of blending. You can also try using a little less bread crumbs. Make sure you grease or oil the Parchment Paper
to prevent sticking. I used Ghee
.
Homemade Baked Chicken Nuggets
Print
Homemade Baked Chicken Nuggets
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4 -6 1x
Description
Healthy alternative to store bought chicken nuggets using fresh ingredients.
Ingredients
- 1 Large Chicken Breast (bolied for 20 minutes in water, don’t overcook or chicken will be dry)
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese (optional)
- bread crumbs
- Oregano (optional)
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees
- Place the cooked chicken breasts, egg and some salt in a high speed blender or food processor. Blend or pulse until smooth.
- In a separate large bowl, place the bread crumbs.
- If you want to add more flavor use some Parmesan cheese mixed with the bread crumbs. It works really well and the nuggets come out so delicious!
- You can add some oregano, basil, thyme, pepper, paprika, or any other spice you like to the bread crumbs.
- Take out some of the blended chicken and form about 1 tablespoon of chicken mixture into a ball with your hands. If need, mix it using just a little bit of the bread crumbs to nicely form the ball. Then press your cookie cutters or simply form basic nugget shape with your hands. Finally roll them in the bread crumbs mix.
- Place on cookie sheet on top of greased parchment paper and bake at 375 for about 10 minutes, turning half way though if you want both sides crispy. Make sure you don’t bake for longer or they will come out dy.
- Serve with your favorite dip.
- You can also freeze and save some for later (before baking them).
- Category: Finger Food
Recommended Products For Homemade Baked Chicken Nuggets:
ursulaherrera10 says
Thank you 🙂
Jazmin says
I tried this nugget recepie twice and both times they came out dry, I didn’t use the “optional” items. Added butter to the sheet. Flipped them half way too!
What kind of bread crumbs are you using?
Thanks for the help?
ursulaherrera10 says
Hi Jazmin, thanks for your message. Yes, I find them a bit dry too. What works for me: adding 1 more egg or using less chicken and bread crumbs. I use whole wheat bread crumbs but something that will make them more moist also will be not blending the chicken. Once cooked, chop the chicken well then mix with the rest of the ingredients. Try adding a little bit of milk if you want. You can also cook them in a pan with a bit of cooking oil instead of baking. About 3-5 minutes each side in medium heat. Hope it helps 🙂
Amy says
Hi Jazmin,
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. My baby girl is allergic to eggs, is there an alternative to replace the eggs?
Thanks!
Amy
Creative And Healthy Fun Food says
Hi Amy, thank you for your message. You can look it up here: http://www.kidswithfoodallergies.org/page/egg-allergy-recipe-substitutions.aspx