Chicken Nuggets

I have two kids, aged 4 years and 20 months, so it should go without saying that we keep chicken nuggets stocked in our freezer.   My kids are pretty open to trying new things.  And since I refuse to play short order cook, they eat what we eat.  Within reason.  Sometimes I make things that I know they won't like, or that I can't imagine even feeding to them.  Such as Thai Basil Chicken.   On those nights, I will let them have chicken nuggets.   It's a real treat for them.

The problem I have with chicken nuggets is that they're full of fillers.  I hate the really processed ones.  Usually I stick with organic.  For me, if I'm giving the kids chicken nuggets, I like the convenience of popping them in the oven while I  make our "real" dinner.  I've never considered making chicken nuggets because then I'd be making two dinners.

But then a few weeks ago, I found this recipe and decided I could feel good about giving these to my kids.  Because I'd be making them fresh, they'd be preservative free.  I would know every single ingredient in them.  And they were relatively healthy.   In lieu of making these an addendum to what I made for dinner, I made these for everyone.    I found these on a Paleo recipe site, but I made a few adjustments because I didn't have all the ingredients they called for.  For example, I didn't have dessicated coconut, so I used panko bread crumbs.  No longer Paleo-friendly.   But still the healthiest chicken nuggets my kids have ever had.

They were a huge hit.  When I made them last week, I used chicken breast and ran it through the food processor.  I only used two chicken breasts and that was plenty for the four of us.   My husband has requested them again, so I'm making them tonight.   I bought ground chicken this time, mostly because I hate cleaning my food processor after I've put meat in it.     Tonight I'm making extra, so I can toss half in the freezer for a quick and simple go to for the kids when my menu gets a little too spicy for them.

Feel free to pair these with whatever your favorite chicken dipping sauce is.   My kids like ketchup.   I like BBQ sauce.  My husband like buffalo sauce.   Maybe you like honey mustard.  To each their own. Just make a lot of these.  You won't be sorry.

Chicken Nuggets
adapted from Health-Bent.com

1/4 cup  + 1/2 cup almond flour (you can substite all-purpose flour if you don't want to buy almond flour)

1 cup panko bread crumbs 

salt and pepper

1 lb ground chicken
1 egg
1 teaspoon onion pouwder
1/4 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 cup coconut oil (or vegetable oil)

In a bowl, combine 1/4 cup flour, 1/2 cup of panko bread crumbs and salt and pepper.   Then set aside. I ended up adding more panko as I was breading my nuggets and probably used closer to 1 cup, which is why I cited 1 cup above.)

In a separate bowl, combine chicken, 1/2 cup flour, onion powder, garlic, egg, salt and pepper.   Mix to thorough combine with your hands.

In a saute pan, heat the oil over medium heat.

Shape about 2 tablespoons of the chicken mixture into a ball (I used a small spring loaded scoop for uniformity). Drop each ball into the flour/bread crumb mixture and roll around to coat.  Flatten the chicken balls out a little bit to get them to cook a little faster.   Repeat until all of the chicken is formed into balls, then cook in the oil until nice and brown.  Cook in batches so you don't overcrowd the pan.   I put mine into a preheated oven to keep them warm while I cooked the remaining batches.
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