Chicken nuggets are instant nostalgia, no matter how old you are. They automatically bring us back to our childhood days. That crispy outer layer, the absurd amount of ketchup, and the warm memories of going through a drive-thru after a soccer game or doctor’s appointment are something we all know. Well, now you can relive those memories from your own kitchen with this simple step-by-step guide to making homemade nuggets. So, break out that air fryer, and let’s get ready to go back to our kids’ meal days!
Ingredients:
- Chicken breast chopped into 2-inch cubes
- Panko breadcrumbs
- Garlic powder
- Salt
- Pepper
- All-purpose flour
- Cayenne pepper
- Onion powder
- Milk
- Eggs
Instructions:
- In a bowl, mix all of your dry ingredients.
- In a separate bowl, combine your eggs and milk.
- Take a piece of chicken, dip it in your egg/milk mixture, and then coat it with the dry ingredients. Repeat with all the chicken pieces.
- Spray your air fryer with olive oil.
- Heat the air fryer to 400 degrees.
- Set breaded pieces aside until they’re all ready.
- Layer the pieces in the air fryer, giving each piece some space and not layering them on top of each other (you may have to do this in batches).
- Cook for 8-10 minutes, flipping midway.
- Remove the chicken nuggets from the air fryer and let cool.
Getting Saucy With It:
Since we’re “adults” now (it’s a matter of opinion, haha!), we can get fancier with our sauce game. If you want to stick to old faithful ketchup, that’s fine. But if you want to spice up your sauce game, below are some fancy sauce ideas.
1. Sriracha Mayo
Combine two tablespoons of mayonnaise, and mix it with one tablespoon of Sriracha
2. Copycat Chick-Fil-A Sauce
Family Fresh Meals features this easy recipe for the copycat of our favorite dipping sauce. It’s easy to make, and you can make extra to have on hand!
If you don’t want any of these, you can always just stick to classics like barbecue, honey mustard, and ranch.
Now, you might find yourself asking, what shall I do with these nuggets?
Making a big batch of nuggets can help make several easy meals for the next few days. They’re good on their own, thrown into a salad, or added to a wrap with some lettuce, tomato, bacon, and avocado. You can even break them into individual serving sizes, freeze them, and save them for a night when you don’t feel like cooking. Either way, these chicken nuggets will be the gift that keeps on giving.
Do you have a favorite at-home chicken nugget recipe to share? Let us know in the comments below.
Featured image via Tyson on Unsplash
