3 Ingredient Super Crispy Chicken Nuggets
These homemade chicken nuggets are so easy to make and taste just as good as regular nuggets. They need only 3 ingredients and they don't need any flour, bread crumbs or oil.
Ingredients
- 6 oz (170 g) cooked chicken breast, see note, you can also use boneless chicken thighs which will have more moisture
- 1 cup (108 g) shredded mozzarella or parmesan cheese (94 g)
- 1 large egg, 1.5 eggs are needed for the parmesan version
Instructions
- Add chicken breast to a food processor. Pulse a few times until it is fully shredded.
- Add in cheese and egg(s). Mix on high speed until the eggs and cheese are fully incorporated. The cheese shreds should not be easily noticeable and should be finely chopped up into the chicken. Scrape the sides and bottom of your food processor a few times to make sure the egg and cheese are fully mixed in. You want everything to be evenly mixed otherwise when you cook it, your nuggets will brown unevenly if there are large cheese shreds or streaks of egg not fully mixed in. See photo in post for reference.
- Using a 1.5 tablespoon scoop, scoop up chicken mixture. Press lightly into palm to compact it a little. Then shape into an oval patty between 1/4 and 1/2 inch thick. You can also make other shapes if you prefer a different shape for your chicken nuggets. Place finished nugget onto a sheet of parchment paper. Repeat with remaining chicken mixture.
- For the air fryer version: Remove the inner basket plate from your air fryer. Preheat air fryer to 400°F/204°C. Grease the inner basket plate with cooking oil spray. Place chicken nuggets onto the plate, making sure none of them touch. You may need to cook in several batches depending on the size of your air fryer. If desired, spray the chicken surface with cooking oil spray. This step is completely optional and I explain more in detail in the notes and in the post. Cook in preheated air fryer for about 8 minutes. The nuggets should be mostly browned. Working quickly, briefly open your air fryer to flip the nuggets and then cook for 2 more minutes or until both sides are evenly browned and crispy (you don't need to wait for the air fryer to preheat again but keep the temperature set at 400°F/204°C.
- For the oven version: Preheat oven to 400°F/204°C. Line a large baking sheet parchment paper. Place chicken nuggets on the lined baking sheet, making sure none of them touch. If desired, spray the surface of the chicken with cooking oil spray. See notes for more details on the optional oil step. Cook nuggets in preheated oven for about 20 minutes and then flip and cook for about another 5 minutes or until both sides are evenly browned and nuggets are crispy.
- Uneaten nuggets should be stored in the fridge or freezer and reheated in the oven or air fryer.
Notes
- Chicken note: You want the chicken to be just cooked so it doesn't get too overcooked when in the oven or air fryer. I recommend poaching or steaming so the chicken breast maintains most of its moisture. I cooked mine for about 1 minute in the instant pot. You can also use boneless chicken thigh meat which is more moist than chicken breast.
- If you have an air fryer, I recommend making these in the air fryer as they will be completely crispy and evenly browned and cook in less time, which prevents them from getting dry. It is a little harder to get them evenly browned in the oven and because they need a longer cooking time in the oven, they do have a little bit drier of a texture in the oven. The top and bottom of the nugget that is touching the baking sheet will brown and crisp up the best so the sides of the chicken nuggets won't be as evenly browned or crispy.
- The nuggets in the pictures are made with the parmesan cheese cooked in the air fryer. It is also a mix of nuggets that were cooked with the oil spray and ones without.
- The oil spray on top of the nuggets is completely optional. The nuggets will be just as crispy without the oil spray. The only thing the oil spray does is give the nuggets a more evenly browned coating that is slightly lighter in color than if you don't use the oil spray. I don't use the oil coating if I'm just making these for myself but if I'm making them for others where the appearance is very important, then I will use the oil spray. You can see a photo in the post for the difference between oil spray versus no oil spray.
- Whether you use parmesan or mozzarella will change the taste and also appearance of the nuggets. See photos and more details in the post.
- You can use low fat or full fat mozzarella cheese. If using parmesan, make sure you use shredded and not the grated powdered one that comes in a canister.
- The parmesan version needs slightly more egg otherwise the chicken mixture won't bind together. I found 1.5 large eggs was ideal, but you could use 2 eggs if you don't want to measure 1/2 of an egg. To measure out half an egg, crack an egg into a bowl and whisk. Pour into a liquid measuring cup and add half into the chicken mixture (along with the other egg). Using 2 eggs will make the batter very moist so the nuggets will need a little longer cook time to turn crispy and the golden coating isn't as even.
- Nutrition estimate is calculated with parmesan cheese.
Serving: 1nugget, Calories: 42kcal, Carbohydrates: 0.02g, Protein: 6g, Fat: 2g, Saturated Fat: 0.2g, Sodium: 62mg, Sugar: 0.01g
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. This is not a comprehensive list of all the nutrients in the recipe (i.e., does not include vitamins, cholesterol, etc). I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
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