Today I am recreating a popular item from one of the best fast food chains you can find… Chik-fil-A! These are my Copycat Chik-fil-A Chicken Nuggets.
Eat more chikin! Everyone has seen the commercials, and I’m willing to guess that everyone has been to Chik-fil-A at some point in their life. Their nuggets are to die for! This week I attempted to recreate those very nuggets in my kitchen, with successful results!
The raw chicken marinates in a mixture of milk and pickle juice, which I found interesting. At first, I questioned the strange combination of liquids. Later on, I learned never to doubt the mysterious ways of Chik-fil-A. After the marinade was drained from the chicken, I dipped the chicken and milk and egg.
The chicken is coated in a mixture of flour, powdered sugar, salt, and pepper. Not quite the eleven herbs & spices of KFC, but that just proves that sometimes simplicity can be better.
This chicken is fried in peanut oil, a healthier alternative to typical frying oils. It’s lower in saturated fat, for you people that care about that sort of thing…
Lesson learned: bubbling oil is incredibly hot… You have to be extremely careful with it or you’ll end up with arms covered in mini burns. I opted for using an oven mitt while flipping the chicken.
I also made Chik-fil-A Sauce for these nuggets… That recipe will be coming soon. I had always wondered what was in their famous sauce, so recreating it was exciting.
These nuggets are phenomenal! They taste just as good as they do in the fast food joint. As I learned from my professional chef cousin, you cannot go easy on the salt in this recipe. Salt is important and can ultimately determine a dish’s flavor. Chik-fil-A is possibly my favorite fast food of all time, so I am stoked that I’ve learned how to make one of their most popular meals. These nuggets are perfect for anyone, whether you’re a Chik-fil-A fanatic like me or not!
Copycat Chik-fil-A Chicken Nuggets
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless chicken tenders, cut into 1-inch chunks
MARINADE:
- ½ cup milk
- ½ cup dill pickle juice
DIP:
- ¾ cup milk
- 1 large egg, beaten
DUSTING:
- 1¼ cups all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- salt and pepper, to taste
FRYING:
- 1 to 2 cups peanut oil
Instructions
- Combine chicken and marinade in a large zip baggie, and let marinate for 30 minutes in the refrigerator. Drain the marinade.
- Place the milk and egg into a bowl. Add the chicken to coat with the dip, and then drain the dip from the chicken again.
- At this point, you can get your peanut oil heating up in a medium skillet over medium heat. You'll need just about an inch of peanut oil in the skillet.
- Place the dusting ingredients in a large zip baggie and shake to combine. Add the chicken and shake to coat.
- Once the oil is hot enough (Test by flicking a drop of water into the oil. If it sizzles, it's hot enough), use tongs to add the chicken to the skillet (shaking off excess flour as you take the chicken out of the bag). Cook in batches, turning when golden. Remove cooked chicken to a paper-towel lined plate.
- Serve immediately with ketchup or your favorite dipping sauce!
Nutrition
Here are a few more copycat Chik Fil A recipes you might enjoy:
- Copycat Chik-fil-A Frosted Lemonade by Copykat Recipes
- Homemade Chik-fil-A Chicken Tortilla Soup by The Baker Mama
- Chik-fil-A Cole Slaw by Melissa’s Southern Style Kitchen