Copycat Chick-Fil-A Nuggets! Skip the line and make them at home! Made with real chicken breasts. These nuggets taste just like the ones you can buy. But only for a fraction of the cost.
How to make Chick-Fil-A Nuggets at home:
- Cut the chicken! these Homemade Chicken Nuggets start with actual chicken breast cut into 1 inch pieces. The pieces don’t have to be perfect, that’s one of the things I love about Chick-Fil-A nuggets.
- Soak the chicken. After we cut up the chicken, then it’s placed in a large bowl filled with eggs and milk. I let the chicken sit in the mixture for about 15-20 minutes before moving to the next step.
- Bread the chicken. Add the breading mixture to a large plastic bag that can be sealed. Pull the chicken from the milk mixture scrape off any additional egg or milk, and then add to the bag with the breading.
- Fry the chicken. You only need to add a small amount of oil to the pan, just to add a nice thick coat to the bottom of the pan. We don’t need to immerse the chicken in the oil.
What oil does Chick-Fil-A use?
They use peanut oil for frying their chicken. So that’s the same oil that is called for in this recipe. Peanut oil is a mild tasting oil with a high smoke point of 450 degrees F.
About pickle juice:
I tried brining the chicken in pickle juice and this method does give a distinct flavor to the chicken. And honestly, I don’t feel the chicken I get from the restaurant has that flavor.
So in my final recipe we just soak the chicken in some milk and egg for a little bit prior to breading and frying.
Make sure you snag the recipe for the Copycat Chick-Fil-A Sauce while you’re here so you have a complete experience!
Copycat Chick Fil A Nuggets
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds chicken breast
- 1 cup milk
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup all purpose flour
- 1 and 1/2 cup bread crumbs
- 1 tsp paprika
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1 tbsp powdered sugar
- ½ cup peanut oil
Instructions
- Cut the chicken breasts to 1 inch pieces.
- In a large mixing bowl combine the eggs and milk. Add in the chicken pieces. Place the bowl in the fridge to sit for about 15 minutes while preparing the bread crumbs.
- In a large plastic bag that can be sealed, add the breadcrumbs, flour, paprika, salt, pepper, and powdered sugar. Stir with a fork to combine.
- Add the chicken nuggets and shake the bag to coat the nuggets in the breading.
- Pour the oil into a large skillet. Heat over medium high heat.
- Add the chicken nuggets one by one, and work in batches so the pan isn't too crowded.
- Line a plate or pan with paper towels and once the chicken nuggets have been fried for about 1-2 minutes on each side and are golden brown, remove from the oil and place on the paper towels to dry and cool.
- Continue until all of the chicken has been fried.
- Serve with Copycat Chick-Fil-A Sauce.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Recipe first posted on May 18. 2018. Recipe post updated on March 20, 2020. Recipe remains unchanged.
I started out trying the recipe for Homemade Chick-Fil-A Sandwiches by Serious Eats and went from there!
