Adults and kids alike LOVE this chicken nuggets or “chicken strips” recipe. It's easy to make larger quantities so you can take some to a friend OR use leftovers for chicken sandwiches the next day. (I had one with my yummy cilantro ancho-chili lime mayo, and it was delicious!)
Baked (or Fried) Cheesy Chicken Strips
See the lower-carb options too!
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter, melted (pastured butter is best)
- 3/4 cup flour (preferably sprouted flour)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 egg
- 1 Tablespoon milk
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
- 1 1/4 cups Italian seasoned bread crumbs (bread crumbs with some dried oreganoand/or parsley tossed in)
- 6 thin boneless pieces of chicken, cut into smaller pieces if you'd like to make them kid-friendly and more “nugget” shaped. (Try to use chicken that is locally raised, free-range, no hormones, etc., or if you don't have a good local source, find safe poultry here) ***Note that you could also use this recipe for fish!
- Another 1/4 cup butter, melted
Low-carb option:
Skip the flour and bread crumbs. Instead add crushed pork rinds and almond flour!
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Coat a 9×13 baking dish with 1/4 cup melted butter. In one bowl, mix the flour, salt, pepper & garlic powder. In another bowl beat together the egg and milk. In a third bowl, mix the cheese & bread crumbs. Dip each chicken piece first in flour, then egg mixture, then cheese mixture and place in the pan. (Once you get everything in the bowls, it goes fast.) Drizzle the other 1/4 cup butter evenly over chicken. Bake 35 minutes in preheated oven, or until coating is golden brown and chicken juices run clear.
Optional “fried chicken strips” method:
If you'd rather fry the chicken, use butter or ghee and fry on each side 'til golden brown and crispy. Just make sure it's done by cutting into the middle of a thick piece. If there's no pink, you're good to go. (Cut chicken into strips for “chicken strips” – kids love this.) I use my Favorite Electric Skillet
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This is so easy, I hope you like it!
If you have some easy meal ideas, leave a comment below. 🙂
- Trying serving with homemade barbecue sauce or in one of these salads!
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- Meatless/Vegetarian/Lenten Meal Ideas
- Have you heard of Weston A. Price?
- Kitchen Gadgets to Make Life Easier
Meal Planning Help!
Sick of planning meals and answering the question, “What am I going to feed these people?” No matter what kind of eater you are (traditional, GF, paleo, vegetarian)… Check out these affordable interactive easy-to-use meal plans where the work is done for you. NOW recipes also available from Nom Nom Paleo, The Paleo Mom, and Wellness Mama all in one spot! You can read over my review here.
Cara says
Hi,
I recently disocvered your website and am busy ploughing through all the delicious recipes! I really want to give these chicken nuggets a go as I am sure that they will be a hit (with me never mind the children). I would love to double batch and freeze them but am unsure as to how to cook them afterwards. I don’t have a microwave is it necessary to thaw them and then reheat in the oven or, can you just put them straight in? If so, could you recommend how long, what temperature?
Cara
KitchenKop says
Hmmm, that’s a great idea! Here’s what I’d try (let me know how it comes out please and if it’s good, I’ll add the info to this post):
Make them like above and bake/fry until they’re done, but not quite all the way golden brown yet. Cool, freeze. Then to reheat, thaw for a while (couple hours?) and then bake until golden brown. I’m guessing 350* for 10-15 minutes. Hopefully they’ll still crisp up a little, too.
Can’t wait to hear how it goes! 🙂
Kelly
%kelly the kitchen kop% via Facebook says
love it 🙂
Amanda says
Could you use sprouted flour, do you think? We try to avoid all-purpose as much as is possible.
KitchenKop says
Yes!!! 🙂
Tina says
So much more healthful that buying that nasty fast food. It would be nice to come up with a gluten-free version – for those of us that avoid wheat and gluten and also anyone on GAPS.
Magda says
You could dip chicken in GF flour (rice flour works well; coconut flour for grain free), then egg mixture, then mixture of 1 part coconut flour and 2 parts almond flour mixed (this would sub for the breadcrumbs) with the cheeses (can’t recall which one is GAPS-legal, but you could sub any cheese here I would think). I’ve been frying my chicken this way for a long time and it works great.
Amy says
sounds yummy! i’m already hungry :o)
Kim says
I made this last week and everyone loved it (which is RARE in my house). And I would second the Jessica Seinfeld cookbook comment – it does more for making you think about how you can add purees into things you’re already making, which I honestly would not have thought of had it not been for reading the cookbook. My husband hates vegetables and even asks me to add purees because he can’t taste them in the food. I especially like adding them to things like taco meat. Who would think you could eat spinach or sweet potatoes in your tacos??
Lisa says
Awsome recipie! my kids love these chicken nuggets befor i found this i had come up with a healthy deep fried version, they taste almost the same as the frozen kind you buy at the store. love to have one you can just bake in the oven.
here is my fried chicken nugget recipie,
first mix 3/4 cup flour with 2 tbsp cornstarch, 1 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp sage, 1/4 cup cornmeal,1 tsp black pepper, and 2-4 tsp sea salt. dip 1 1/2 pounds chicken breast that has been cut in strips or cubes in a mixture of 2 eggs and about 2 tbsp water then in flour mixture. fry in 350* tallow till crispy,(about 3-5 minutes) place on ungreased cookie sheets and bake at 350* for 20 to 30 min or till chicken is done in center. can freeze this and thaw in oven just like chicken nuggets, also easy to double or tripple batches.
thanks again yours is great!
KitchenKop says
Hi Jill,
I think that would be fine! Try it and let us know. 🙂
Jill says
To make this process easier, would it work to dip the chicken in the egg first and then in 1 mix of flour, salt, pepper, garlic powder, shredded cheeses, and bread crumbs? I want to make this mix in bulk and have it in my freezer all ready to go, but don’t know if on mix of the dry ingredients will work or not. I’m trying to simplify an already easy mix. I’ve made this several times already and we all love it on fish and chicken! Any input is great! Thanks!
Kelly says
Kami, definitely!
Kami says
Do you think you could freeze these and use them through out the month like you would the kind that comes in a box from the store. My daughter loves those dinosaur chicken nuggets and I am trying to find a healthier alternative. thanks!
Kami
Kami
Liz says
Hi Kelly…. just wanted to let you know that I made your chicken nugget recipe last night and we all liked it! I’m not sure I would actually cut the chicken into little nuggets again (that was a lot of work to do all the cutting and dipping!) but maybe strips would be doable.
I made one tiny change to the recipe. I added ground flaxseeds to both dry mixtures. I’m sure it didn’t add a substantial amount of fiber or good fats, but I always feel that every little bit helps! 🙂
thanks for the great recipe!
Liz
p.s. You asked before if I thought Jessica Seinfeld’s cookbook was worth purchasing. I don’t know. We have not been in love with every recipe we’ve tried, but it has stimulated my thought process about increasing the nutritional value of the foods I make. Stirring in a vegetable purree is easy…. cauliflower puree into scrambled eggs, carrot puree into broth based soups, butternut squash puree into mac-n-cheese. It’s not so much recipes, but using the idea. Anyway, you’re welcome to borrow my book anytime.